Travel in auto

This is a separate world, with extremely rich and varied life. Do foreigners have the impression that the entire population of India is constantly going somewhere. Of course, this is not the case. But since the Indians is very much (more than a billion), the roads are used at full capacity. It should be noted that in some places they are fairly decent quality. Typically, this is the toll roads, vezzhaya at which a driver pays from 10 to 30 rupees ($ 1 equals approximately 45 rupiyam). Where roads are free, their condition varies from more or less acceptable to the most heinous too, with a predominance of the latter. To paraphrase a famous anecdote about the Indian cinema, one can say that the roads are good, some bad, but there are still Indian. Besides these, Indian roads are often so narrow that it is not clear, as they traveled cross-machine.

Traffic Rules in India, perhaps, all there is. But they are merely virtual, because each driver adheres to its own rules, depending on what machine it goes. The more prestigious car, or more in size, the more likely it is less than the owner of the rights and responsibilities. You can see the road signs between the cities, I specifically tried for a while, has not yet tired. However, they do occur, but rarely. Again, drivers are typically not respond.

The relationship of drivers and their vehicles on the roads is very much like the lives of animals in the jungle, where the main thing – the size and strength. The most terrifying beast Indian roads – it is a tractor with a trailer (they go to the ablutions of women, children in school and to the Indians for a variety of important urgent cases). They (tractors), quite a lot, and they are not afraid of anybody, except for police cars and government officials (from the police, do not go the tractor, you can and bamboo cane on the head to get). The rest of them are deeply «on drum». So, for example, go to the main road, the driver of the tractor and did not think to miss the one who goes for it, if it is not, of course, a large tractor.

By the terrible beasts of Indian roads can be attributed, and trucks TATA local production. According to the size they are slightly less KAMAZ, but drivers often exceed the arrogance of our kamazovskih drivers. Besides, that would have anything to earn, the Indian truck drivers have to work on the wear, drive and they are mostly in the afternoon and at night. In order not to fall asleep at the wheel, many (if not all) of Indian drivers regularly chew betel, resulting in a state of mild narcotic Kayf. And in this state to the other road users, attention is drawn last. And because the picture when overloaded (from all sides hang bales, etc.), the truck rides a night, the middle of the road, the deeds only when the same is going to meet his brother, quite a typical Indian roads. And only after numerous nasty and loud signals every petty shushery (cars) Tats driver may deign to take a bit to the side.

But back to the description of the multiple manifestations of life on Indian roads. In addition to the above-mentioned «terrible beasts» (to be added and local buses), they found numerous representatives of the wheel life, not so frightening – cars, motorikshi (hereinafter referred to as vulgar «fat-tukami»), motorcycles, scooters, mopeds, trishaw and bicycles. But that’s not all. Permanent road users in India and fauna are the usual: walking around the cows, buffaloes, carrying cargo, and the same herd of buffalo, Decode the road, horses of different sizes, camels, donkey and occasionally elephants. At the same mountain roads frequently goats, sheep and monkeys. Last behave most insolent way. More than once, and not two of our car at a decent speed, the risk of being at the bottom of the valley, had объезжать sitting meditation in the middle of the road monkey. Monkeys seem to know very well that for most Indians ahimsa (non-violence) – not an empty word, a guide to action (or rather – for inaction) and, therefore, confident that they harm no one cause. However, this is the case for the distant relatives of these (and other) monkeys glorious representatives of the genus «homo sapiens». Pofigizm Indians on the road unless you can explain that their belief in karma ( «every bullet has its billet») and reincarnation ( «in the next life will be much better»). They are moving the road, often are not even paying her any attention, and bicycles travel on two or even three people in a row, indifference treating signals volant in a few centimeters from their machines. The reaction of drivers on all of these manifestations of national fatalism, we also seem strange. Where our driver jumped out of the car, already half an hour to beat mounting negligent pedestrian, an Indian driver cost reproachful gaze and short grumbling.