The last time I rode a bicycle was in 2009, back when I was still a kid and cycling around the neighborhood was just part of playtime. After that, life picked up speed. I moved away from home for college, then work, and somewhere along the way, bikes simply disappeared from my routine. I never learned to drive either, so my “on-the-road” experience was pretty much nonexistent. In India, cycling isn’t exactly a go-to option for adults—it’s just not part of the daily culture for most. But when I moved to Germany, that changed quickly. Here, biking is a way of life. Here, bikes aren’t just for kids or fitness enthusiasts—they’re everywhere. Practical, eco-friendly, and surprisingly stylish. Almost everyone rides—from students to working professionals—and the infrastructure actually supports it. I landed here during the winter months. Initially, winter kept me indoors and unsure. The cold, the snow, and let’s be honest—my very rusty riding skills—kept me from taking the plunge. But as spring arrived and the sun started showing up more often, something shifted. It finally felt like the right time to get back on two wheels.
The search for the perfect bike turned out to be more challenging than I expected. My husband found his ride on Kleinanzeigen, so I naturally started there too. But scrolling through endless listings day in and day out quickly became exhausting—and to make it worse, nothing seemed to match what I was looking for. Either the bike was too pricey, too far away, or just not what I was looking for. I wasn’t ready to spend a lot on a new one either, especially since I wasn’t even sure if I still remembered how to ride! That’s when I started looking for other ways to get a second-hand bike. While browsing one evening, I stumbled upon this cool event called Fietsenbörse—a second-hand bicycle market. It sounded interesting and felt like something worth checking out.
To tell you more about the event, it is a second-hand bicycle market which takes place across different German cities like Berlin, Hamburg, Bremen and more. It’s an organized market that runs regularly from March to October. People come to sell and buy everything from city bikes, mountain bikes and even kids bikes, that means there is usually something for everyone. What I liked the most is you can actually see the and test the bikes before actually buying the bike – which comes in very helpful when you haven’t ridden in years and want to make sure your new two-wheeled friend feels just right! It felt like the perfect mix of variety and convenience, and honestly, the idea of a market just for bikes sounded kind of fun. So I looked at their website here and marked the date on my calendar when it was happening next in Bremen which was very soon i.e. 29th,March, 2025.
Finally, It was the day of the market. I was feeling jittery but was quite excited to get back on the wheels. I reached the location, Bürgerweide, around 11:30 AM. There’s a small entrance fee of one euro to enter the market. The event was already buzzing with people when I got there. Rows and rows of bicycles were lined up, and there was this lively energy in the air. I started looking for the bikes which I felt would be perfect for my height and priced around my budget. I stumbled upon a bike which I thought would be fine and I started talking to the lady who was selling it. I wanted to try it but I couldn’t gather the courage to ride it with lanes of bicycles standing and people moving. I thought it was a lost cause and we should just go home. But my husband gave me a bit of a push to keep looking and assured me that maybe that was not the right fit. So I kept on looking, and the next one I found was great. The gentleman helped us by telling us about the bike and insisted that I take it outside to try it.
We didn’t know that we could do that. We found out that we could take the bike outside to an open space for spin by submitting a valid id proof(worst case scenario our mobile phone which we had to do since we didn’t carry any id proof with us). Once I was outside in open space I found myself confident enough to ride it and I did it. I was riding the bike and it felt wonderful. The bike was good but a bit over our budget and we didn’t feel brave enough to just buy the first one I tried. So we decided to try some more before finalizing one. Just as we convinced ourselves it was the right pick, someone else got to it first. A little tip: bikes tend to get picked up pretty fast, so it’s good to decide quickly if you find one you like.
I tried a couple of more bikes before finding the perfect one for me. OMG!! Yayyyy I found my bike. We did a bit of haggling for the price and got a bit of a discount. All the payments are done there in cash so be sure to carry enough. Once the payment is done to the seller you can go to the exit counter and they will give you a form showing which you can exit and voila, you have it. There is a small shop set up near the exit where you can buy and set up new accessories for your bike. I got my back basket installed there. So yeah that is how I got myself a new bike.
Getting back on a bicycle after so many years was both nerve-wracking and exciting. I wasn’t entirely confident, and I was far from knowing all the traffic rules, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying every bit of it. Having my own set of wheels for the first time gave me a new sense of freedom—no need to depend on buses or timetables, just the simple joy of riding wherever I wanted, at my own pace. The experience of finding the bike at Fietsenbörse made it even more memorable. It was such a well-organized and friendly event, and I’d definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a second-hand bike. In fact, the next one is happening again in Bremen on 10th May(if you’re reading before that else you can check their website for the dates)—so maybe mark your calendar! For me, it wasn’t just about buying a bicycle—it was about reconnecting with a part of myself I’d long forgotten. And that feeling? Absolutely worth it.
TheTorchedSpace 