If you’re a big uncle (older man with clout) and you see a place you want to grab a bite to eat, you just drive right up to the door and park there. Chinese traffic has all the worst qualities of Egyptian and Italian driving. Lanes are suggestions that can, at the very least, be doubled. Four lanes are instantly eight. If you want to turn left but you are in the far right half-lane- no problem. Simply, put your vehicle across all other lanes horizontal to traffic and go the direction you need. Chinese traffic is like a serene game of chicken. Drivers get to have at least ten games of chicken each time they hop in their car, bike, rickshaw. The main city streets are very egalitarian; they’re not just for cars but also for pedestrians, bikes and animals. I saw a dog take an exit ramp. Later in Xi’an while foolishly waiting for traffic to thin, I was chided by a friend, who said ‘No nice- just cross the road. It’s not our fault. Too many people’ A testament to Chinese fortitude and forbearance- I never saw any road rage nor an accident apart from the intentional ramming of a taxi by a rickshaw driver who drove us home.
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