As you might suspect, travelling in the Philippines is not exactly like travelling in Canada or the UK. Although there are many cars on the road, many of them familiar makes and models, our primary mode of transport has been a jeepney. What's a jeepney, you ask? Put simply, a jeepney is scrap metal slapped together in order to pass itself off as a legitimate vehicle. Jeepneys are every where and even serve as 'buses' for the public transport system out in Payatas. There are no seatbelts which is just as well as there are no doors; the driver and his co-pilot are shielded only by a piece of cloth strung up like a curtain.
While the jeepney was fun at first, the appeal has now worn off and I loath getting in them to travel anywhere. They are dusty, noisy, and bouncy. However, I mustn't complain as they have been what gets us to and from Cashew every day.
The other interesting thing about driving in the Philippines is how people appear to regard the painted lines on the road, that mark out driving lines, more as general suggestions on where to drive rather than actual fact. The horn is also used more freely - I truly believe that Filipino drivers consider the horn to be as essential to the car as the gas pedal. As Graham (our team leader) summed it up: "They honk when they turn right, they honk when they turn left, they honk when they pass somebody, and they honk at people to get out of the way." Sadly, the only thing Filipino drivers don't do is signal. Minor oversight, most likely.
Kristen
So are stop signs as optional as the horn? What about traffic lights? What's it like during rush hour traffic - or do you avoid it? Do they pack the jeepney to standing room capacity or must all passengers be seated? Do you know how much it costs to travel on one? So many questions. . .
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