Drivers Beware!

My arrival in Manila was interesting…I’m still trying to figure out if it was Thai Airways being super nice or because they think Americans are really stupid and need to help finding Immigration, but there was a lady from Thai Airways standing at my gate with my full name written out on a paper, calling for me as I walked off the plane. Needless to say, I was a little confused when I saw this. My first reaction was, what the what did I do because let’s be honest, I’m certainly not famous! But she walked me to Immigration and that was it. I still think it’s kind of funny and if I weren’t so shocked by the experience, I would have taken a photo. I hurried to the street to grab a cab to the domestic terminal and was on to Cebu.

When I arrived in Cebu, Katy and her mother, Carol were there to pick me up. Boy was I excited to see them! We got in the van and Carol started our 1 ½ hour drive to the city of Naga (they just got “city” status six months ago). I know that some of you reading this blog thought that Korea was the place of the craziest driving, but I’m here to tell you all that you’re wrong. The winner of that award goes to the Philippines. First let me tell you that lanes are more of a suggestion than a requirement as you can see here.

Second, Carol had to swerve in and out of all sorts of driving hazards. For example the Jeepney is stretch jeep or van that holds between 12-24 passengers (not comfortably, or safely). Sure it’s a darn cute little vehicle filled with all sorts of people getting on and off frequently, but they seem to stop a lot and sometimes they don’t pull over very far; look out!

Third, there’s the pedi-cab (these are bicycle operated carriages) and the tricycle (motorcycle operated carriages). Both are often filled to capacity while driving slowly on the road like any other motorized vehicle. Lanes aren’t marked with dotted lines for passing and double yellow for not passing, although you might come across a sign in a very dangerous spot that says “do not overtake, accident prone area”, but most of the time, people pass whenever they feel like it.

Anything goes in transportation. Any vehicle with a nice flat bed is perfectly reasonable to pile in the back of, like the people in these two photos.

I’ve seen many motorcycles filled with three, four or five passengers (five is the legal limit), but let’s be honest, there aren’t really police officers enforcing the rules of the road here. Look real close at this photo and you will count five on the motorcycle, three adults and two kids. Yikes!

Bottom line, I’m surprised there aren’t more fender benders and serious accidents based on the driving I’ve seen. As long as you remember this simple rule, pedestrians never have the right of way, you’ll do just fine here…but keep in mind if you actually hit one, you pay for everything, medical bills, family dinners, etc.