Traffic Notes...

Some Observations...

Traffic in Asia is difficult to describe if you haven't been here, but a few observations may help in giving you a feel for land travel over here.


In Thailand, they drive at light speed, there is a constant jockeying for position, cutting in is standard operating procedure,a nd nobody gets too upset unless there is contact, then it's a totally different story.

In Vietnam, the ratio of motos to cars is probably a hundred to one, similar rules, but more aggressive and less forgiving.

Cambodia, which lies in the middle of these to nations is a subtle combination of both. Much like the food, sort of like Thai, sort of ike Vietnamese..... sidebar..... Vietnamese soup is called Pho, honkies always say Fo, like in Fee Fi Fo Fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman....when in fact it is pronounced Fa, as in Do Re Mi Fa......

Back to traffic.

Cambodia is growing fast. There are still more motos than cars, but Phnom Penh is rife with CLO's (corrupt local officials) zooming around in their Lexus SUV's. I think I might have seen ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin zooming around in an Escalade.

Our usual way of getting from point a to point b is by the ubiquitous Tuk Tuk. Motorcycle on the front, hauling a four person rickshaw type rear end.

When driving in Cambodia there really are no rules. While there are a few lights they tend to be more for show than anything else...unless a local gendarme is right there....so traffic flows incessantly. SIZE MATTERS. Trucks rule. cars second motos third, pedestrians.....

Groups of six to ten motos equals a car, and if the traffic is flowing, can indeed win the game.

Travel is indeed interesting here.

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