Later this morning I went down to our car park to greet Jürgen Seidel, Minister for Economics, Labour and Tourism of the German Land of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and a party of intrepid cyclists who were about to set off on a cycling trip from Brussels, from the EU institutions, to Wismar. They are doing this as part of ‘European Week 2010’ (to be celebrated by all German Länder from 2 to 10 May) and their aim is to help bridge the gap between the EU and its citizens – a common endeavour. Altogether, they will cycle some 835 kilometres and when they get to Wismar they will visit a children’s university (an initiative of the local university) and speak about the EU and its institutions. The minister and his fellow cyclists are great fans of the EESC’s European Cycling Lexicon. I ceremonially handed over a boxload that they will distribute back in Wismar and on their way there. The weather for such a send-off couldn’t have been better and they left in great spirits. Not for the first time in such circumstances, I wished I could jump on my bike and join them.