Monday, June 9, 2008
Look ALL ways before crossing the street!
Spending a lot of time on the bus traveling to and from our various destinations throughout the trip we became well immersed with the wonderful world of driving in China. We were warned before we left that it could be quite nauseating and even just downright dangerous. I noticed quite a few similarities between the way we drive in Minnesota and how people drive in China including...1.The only time a blinker is in use is when the cops are around...2.Yelling and swearing at the car in front of you would make a difference...assuming the person could actually hear you...and finally...3. A red light means stop, not just push right on through, or you will get a ticket. Now I say these things only in good humor because you really do see them here on a daily basis, but that doesn't necessarily make them ok. I did however notice 2 major differences...1. A Chinese driver loves the sound of their own horn. I do not think there was ever one ride on our bus or one hour out on the street that we did not hear the sound of a car horn. I find people here in the U.S. to be conservative when using their horn even if they have a strong desire to do so, but in China it is often used to let a fellow driver know that they are moving too slow or to express anger to someone merging into your lane...of course without a blinker...or even in special circumstances like when our bus driver was honking at the cars in front of us filling their gas tanks at the gas station. I guess he thought they should pump a little faster. The second major lesson I learned/witnessed is the pedestrian has no right of way. If you have a green light to cross the street and there is a car or scooter or even a bike that wants to turn right you better look out because they don't stop for anyone...and if you don't be prepared to hear the wonderful melody of car horns that are emitted from each car that you wrongfully prevent from turning the corner. The most interesting part of all of it though was even though we heard about how bad the driving was and witnessed some of these silly things I dont think I even saw 1 accident on the whole trip. Quite Impressive.
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Chinese diving culture is, I agree, a lot different than ours. There are a few reasons why the aggressive behavior exists. First, it is necessary. With so many people walking and biking on the roads,not to mention all the cars, it is hard for people in cars to navigate through the streets. If the driver, when trying to cross a busy intersection, wasn't aggressive, there stands a good chance he/she would be there all day because gaps in the pedestrian commuter mobs are a rarity. The aggressive nature exhibited at intersections helps move traffic along. Plus, the pedestrians don't even notice that they were about to get run over.
The second reason why Chinese dive differently than us is that driving a personal car is a relatively new concept in China. Our parents grew up driving cars in the US where the rules are enforced fairly strictly. In China, most still don't drive cars, but rather take the bus, subway, bike, simply walk, any combination of these alternatives to cars as their mode of transportation. with less time on the road and few traffic violations to worry about, Chinese drivers are more concerned about getting from point A to point B.
I also have a few comments about horn usage in China. Just because a car horn can only play one note, doesn't mean it only has one meaning. There is a language for the car horns so drivers can communicate with other drivers. The long drawn out 'beeeeeeeeeeep' means, "Why are we all sitting around? Who is holding up traffic? ." This is usually used when traffic is at a stand still. It might also mean, "Does anybody else's horn work?" because one long 'beeeeeeeep' leads to more. It is a little like the story, If You Give A Mouse A Cookie.
Next there is the quick and snappy 'beep bep' which is used, as one traveler enlightened me, like sonar. Rather than using blinkers or mirrors. Divers will simply lay down the quick 'beep bep' and that tells others around him that he is coming up or 'Hey, I am in you blind spot' or 'Hey, you are in my blind spot.'
Then there is the drawn out version of 'beep bep' which goes 'beeeep beeeep.' This means, "You better get out of my way because I am driving a (insert large vehicle name) and I don't care if I crush your (insert small vehicle name) so you better move out of my way before I hit you!"
If you hear a "beep" and mistakenly think some one has recognized you and wants to say, "hi" only to find out it is a taxi cab that just wants to say, "do you want a ride." Because of the close similarities between the "hey" beep and the "want a ride" beep is is easy to understand the confusion.
"be be be bee beep" (goodbye)
Jake
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