Danger In The Streets

As I'm splitting time between two schools, the directors (i.e. the owners) drive me back & forth twice a week, so I've been privy to some fantastic front row experiences on the mean streets in and around Gumi.

The mental image I know we've probably all got tucked away somewhere of Asians behind the wheel - carefree, a little loosey goosey & the slightest hint of danger in their eyes could be quite entertaining if there wasn't some actual truth behind it.

I have yet to see a STOP sign, it's wild....everybody just takes turns & makes their way into traffic. Of course there are lights at major intersections but even that makes up a very small percentage of the total number of intersections.

It is baffling how tight many of the streets are & parking seems to be a free for all - everyone parks where it seems suitable; I can imagine maneuvering a car through the roadways is likely quite an adventure but regardless, I have yet to see an accident, fender bender or the slightest semblance of even a possible collision. Absolutely amazing! Throw in your typical 21st century pedestrians, preoccupied with various gadgets, conversations or simple daydreaming & again, nothing but the occasional blare of a horn, unfathomable!

I guess if you spend your whole life driving where you know you've got to be aggressive & intelligent at the same time, while assuming your fellow road hogs are going to be aggressively considerate & attentive, you roll with the punches & make it work.

Seriously, though, NO STOP SIGNS....cruise up to an intersection, ease your way far enough around the sporadically parked cars, eye the tin cans barreling in both directions, let said tin can barrels past & go for it!

I saw a huge red, shiny, new Dodge Ram Pickup (mostly Hyundai, KIA & Daewoo) the other day attempting to make it's way through the narrow side streets & it seemed he was having quite the trouble to keep from scraping various automobiles, poles, buildings and the like as he maneuvered in and out of the parking fiasco called streets.

So there you have it, first hand, visual accounts of what might factor into the 'Asians are terrible drivers' stereotype....or maybe they're not used to being told to STOP, simply an instinctively aggressive lot due to traditional techniques & methods that seem to suffice on their home turf.

Who knows, maybe we're the lousy drivers................