A private bicycle museum opened in southern Beijing Wednesday, showcasing more than 140 different types of bicycles to visitors.

The museum is at China Folk Tour and Culture Street in Nanyuan Village in Fengtai District, said Chen Jiansheng, head of the Nanyuan Village committee of the Communist Party of China.

"The bicycles were mostly made in Britain and Japan, but there are also some from Netherlands, Thailand and Malaysia," said the 72-year-old owner Wang Mingxi.

Wang collected the bicycles from second-hand markets in Beijing and other Chinese cities.

"The biggest dream in my life was to build a folk bicycle museum so people can learn the history of bicycles and come to appreciate them," Wang said. "Today my dream came true at last."

(Xinhua News Agency May 6, 2010)