[martiancookbook]

"...since he always had something to show them as interesting as anything that they could show him, he made his way among all nations."

Reminds me of a piece of advice I read when researching one-bag packing for a long trip: learn how to make balloon animals and pack balloons. Then, you can entertain children & endear yourself to their families. [1]

I think both the silly-looking bicycle and the balloon animals create some sort of surprise and delight that set the tone for a good interaction when you are a stranger doing something objectively weird.

[1] https://www.onebag.com/packing-list-specialty.html