When we first arrived in Egypt, I commented on the chaos of the driving conditions in Cairo. Having just arrived and witnessing a style of driving that is very different from home was a little concerning. It seemed that there was no rhyme or reason to the lane changes, honking and excessive speeds. I was surprised to not see more accidents. We have seen accidents though. Almost all of them we very severe accidents, and we have known people that have been in very bad accidents here.
Although there are lanes painted on most roads, they are seldom used, and if they are used, it is not by everyone. If your car can squeeze through a small space between other cars, they try. A four lane road can suddenly become an 7 lane road.
Then, the more time that we spend in Cairo, the more intricate the driving system appears to be.
As a new person, the traffic looked like a swarm of bees around a hive, or a bunch of ants roaming over a huge piece of food that they want to move. These insects appear to be moving frantically without much communication, but, in reality, the complexity of the situation elevates the communication. The proximity of the insects to each other facilitates co-operation and fluid movement.
This is how the traffic in Cairo appears. Frantic, chaotic, disorganized and loud. But, as you watch and learn, there are a series of horn honks that indicates where another car is in proximity to you, or, if they are passing you. Of course there is also the, "What are you doing!" honk and the, "Get out my way!" honk. But, the amount of honks and the duration of the honks are a language in and of itself. It is like Morse Code for drivers. As a newbie here, I am still trying to determine which honks mean what, but, I am not driving around. We have a driver for that. It is still fascinating though.
What grasps my attention the most however, is the unusual behaviour driver's exhibit around puddles. Since we are in a desert, it seldom rains here. Most puddles occur because someone was washing their car on the street, or a porter was watering the trees, grass and plants and some water accumulated on the road. Or, a pipe explodes and turns the road into a massive, muddy lake (as is the case in front of our house right now).
On rare occasions, like today, it actually rained. Rain often brings a sense of excitement to the people here, except when they are driving. A driver could be speeding down the street (sometimes at excessive speeds) and encounter a puddle. If the puddle pops up suddenly, the driver will literally slam on the brakes so that they can avoid the puddle. They will slowly move around the puddle and then continue at the speed they were going before the puddle.
They will also drive onto the other side of the street to avoid puddles that are covering the entrance to a street, or take excessively wide turns so that the wheels do not touch the water. Or, a car will swerve into another lane to avoid a puddle while driving at a fairly quick speed and severely cut off another driver, nearly creating a massive accident.
So, when it rains, the entire street is wet. It is like the first snow in Winnipeg, when "most" drivers take extra caution to ensure that they do not encounter an accident.
We are unsure as to why they have this feeling about puddles, maybe they just do not want their cars to get dirty. But, the behaviour is quite intriguing to say the least.
Although there are lanes painted on most roads, they are seldom used, and if they are used, it is not by everyone. If your car can squeeze through a small space between other cars, they try. A four lane road can suddenly become an 7 lane road.
Then, the more time that we spend in Cairo, the more intricate the driving system appears to be.
As a new person, the traffic looked like a swarm of bees around a hive, or a bunch of ants roaming over a huge piece of food that they want to move. These insects appear to be moving frantically without much communication, but, in reality, the complexity of the situation elevates the communication. The proximity of the insects to each other facilitates co-operation and fluid movement.
This is how the traffic in Cairo appears. Frantic, chaotic, disorganized and loud. But, as you watch and learn, there are a series of horn honks that indicates where another car is in proximity to you, or, if they are passing you. Of course there is also the, "What are you doing!" honk and the, "Get out my way!" honk. But, the amount of honks and the duration of the honks are a language in and of itself. It is like Morse Code for drivers. As a newbie here, I am still trying to determine which honks mean what, but, I am not driving around. We have a driver for that. It is still fascinating though.
What grasps my attention the most however, is the unusual behaviour driver's exhibit around puddles. Since we are in a desert, it seldom rains here. Most puddles occur because someone was washing their car on the street, or a porter was watering the trees, grass and plants and some water accumulated on the road. Or, a pipe explodes and turns the road into a massive, muddy lake (as is the case in front of our house right now).
On rare occasions, like today, it actually rained. Rain often brings a sense of excitement to the people here, except when they are driving. A driver could be speeding down the street (sometimes at excessive speeds) and encounter a puddle. If the puddle pops up suddenly, the driver will literally slam on the brakes so that they can avoid the puddle. They will slowly move around the puddle and then continue at the speed they were going before the puddle.
They will also drive onto the other side of the street to avoid puddles that are covering the entrance to a street, or take excessively wide turns so that the wheels do not touch the water. Or, a car will swerve into another lane to avoid a puddle while driving at a fairly quick speed and severely cut off another driver, nearly creating a massive accident.
So, when it rains, the entire street is wet. It is like the first snow in Winnipeg, when "most" drivers take extra caution to ensure that they do not encounter an accident.
We are unsure as to why they have this feeling about puddles, maybe they just do not want their cars to get dirty. But, the behaviour is quite intriguing to say the least.
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