January 15, 2012

Heart-stopping traffic



You couldn't help but be fascinated/horrified at the mega-masses of mopeds. Most of the riders wear face masks - sometimes they cover their entire head. And tiny children are standing on the seat between 2 adults who hold them but don't grip them. 

Look at the middle photo and you'll see a brave soul crossing amidst the scooters. He's got the system down ~ walk at a steady pace, do not falter, do not hesitate, keep moving forward, do not show fear!
One morning we strolled down to the harbor. But we had to cross about 6 lanes of relentless traffic to reach the water.  After 3 days there I was feeling pretty smug about how daring I had become in negotiating the traffic.  But this was daunting, to put it mildly.  Because this road was 6 times wider than the other streets, the mopeds had that much more space to whip around each other and cut each other off.  I started out the way I always do but quickly realized that I had overestimated my skill. It was just this side of terrifying. And as you cross, you can't just look towards the oncoming traffic because there's always someone going the wrong way against the traffic so your head is swiveling right to left to right to left the whole time, just praying that you're not missing someone but they're missing you.
I made it to the other side with my heart racing, pounding in my chest.  And then I had to turn around and watch Trygve just starting out from the other side because he had missed the first tiny window of space that I had darted into. 
He made it across. 
Whew.

1 comment:

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