Dancing... aka Driving

Traffic is always a challenge here in Brazil. In Canada, I found driving to be a relaxing activity, good for organizing my thoughts and contemplating life. Here? Not so much. Every ounce of mental energy I have is focused on the road.

Karl's parents are here visiting us these days, so we have been putting more-than-average kilometres on the car as we show them the sights. All this time in the car reminds me of just how different the rules of the road are here. And by rules, I mean guidelines or suggestions... ideals really. For example, the other day I was going grocery shopping, which involves a 5 km drive. I decided to count the number of Canadian infractions/faux pas' I committed during that drive. When I reached 16 and still was not at the grocery store, I decided it was time to stop counting.


I don't think I'm  the only one who thinks drivers are risk-takers here. This is a sign we pass on a regular basis. It says "Respect Life". Is it crude? Probably. Does it get the point across? I'm not sure.

It is not uncommon to be passed at breakneck speeds around blind curves and over hills. Motorcycles think they MUST drive along the dotted line, and weave in and out of traffic, flying through stoplights. Then add bicyclists who will happily avoid what few paths exist to drive directly on the road, never looking behind them to see if someone is coming. Then there are horses. And donkeys pulling carts. And tractors. And every now and then a stray cow. And just in case things were not bad enough, add a generous number of potholes large enough to keep your tire and axle if you hit them. 

My latest pet peeve about traffic is people who need to stop along the way. Even if there is a generous shoulder, (which, granted, often doesn't exist) people feel the need to keep at least 1/3 of their vehicle on the road. This effectively does the same thing as stopping smack dab in the centre of the road. So frustrating. It leaves me driving in the lane of oncoming traffic, or slamming on my breaks to allow an oncoming car to pass. 

Fortunately, there is a language of communication among motorists. It consists of horn honking, similar to Morse Code, and headlight flashing. Essentially the language boils down to this: the longer the honk, the angrier the other driver, or the more dangerous the situation. And, if someone flashes their headlights at you, YIELD! They are probably committed to passing someone (or avoiding a parked car) and will occupy your lane for the next while. If you don't want to have a head-on, YIELD. 

My last complaint about traffic is the engineer who decided where and in which direction the streets run. In downtown Caucaia, for example, all the streets are one ways. Which sounds like a good idea. But all the streets on one side of the centre run in the same direction, and all the streets on the other run the opposite. That means there is no backtracking. If you miss your turnoff, you must literally pass through the most crowded part of the city to find a one way taking you back to where you started to try again. Once, I missed my turn and it took me 45 extra minutes to get where I was going! 

Also, don't expect to be able to turn left. Ever. Here, 3 rights equal a left... Usually. You can see one of my favourite signs below. I like it because really, this is what you do every time you need to get to your left. But this is one of the only signs I have found that explains how to successfully complete the manoeuvre. 

So when I go into Fortaleza to run errands, I make a list, analyze where each one is located, and carefully plan my route, because there is no going back. At least not without wasting oodles of time and becoming rather frustrated. 

I don't mean to bash the way people drive here. There are some positives to the system here. For example, I liken driving here to a dance, you must learn to read what the dancers around you are doing, and then compensate. It might mean you have to speed a little, or drift into the next lane. But it does often keep things moving. In Canada, people think the dotted yellow line is a brick wall, and must never be crossed without adequate signalling and shoulder checking. Canadian drivers follow rules. Brazilian drivers follow the flow. Besides, based on the way Karl and I drive here, I guess we have to remember that while there's one finger pointing at society, there are four fingers pointing back at us. Oh well. When in Rome...