9/24/08

1.Anything Goes While Driving

Imagine everything that is illegal about driving in the United States. Now forget all of that. That is how driving is like in the Philippines.

Lanes are of no meaning. Seatbelts are not mandatory. You could fit 9 people in a 5 seater jeep, since apparently there are no laws against people sitting in the trunk. There is constant honking, lights flashing, vehicles merging in and out of lanes on both sides of the roads.

Little tricycles consisting of only a motorcycle and a small carriage with 4 or 5 people riding inside are weaving in and out of the traffic of much more larger vehicles.



And then the jeepneys. Old retrofitted, retooled, and often flamboyantly painted post WWII army jeeps that have been converted into a pseudo public transportation system for the country. You’ve got people hanging off the back these trucks, going at speeds upwards of 40 mph, rain or shine.

But you know what? No one had road rage. Not once did I see anybody complain or open their window to shout at the next driver over. It was sort of accepted that driving would be complete and utter chaos.

But I’m not gonna lie, I actually enjoyed traveling around like that. It was fun, hanging on for dear life on these little machines, risking flying off the vehicle on the next struck pothole or bump in the road. And besides, it’s cheap too.

“I now know where the bad Asian driver stereotype developed.”
-AR

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