Cars and Zebras and Firecrackers Oh My!

One of the first things that strikes you when you wake up dazed and confused in your hotel room on the Prada (the main drag down the centre of La Paz) in the middle of the day after you plane landed at 5:30 in the morning for some unknown reason, is that there is a lot of traffic. This does not go away. Ok well maybe theres a few minutes in the middle of the night say around 3am where theres a bit of a lul, but other than that its pretty constant. And its not just engines, its horns and whistles too. You don't hear any screaching tires, or little voice telling you how many seconds you have to cross the street or a bird telling you where the side walk is if you are visually impaired. The traffic sounds are different. So are the rules. Here is what I have discerned so far (I do not take any responsibility for any harm caused to any person as a result of following these rules, they are only my observations and all laws should be followed).





1. Cars have the right of way. If you are a pedestrian watch out! Running is good although difficult since the streets are mostly cobble stone and not paved so be careful.





2.Honking is a perfectly acceptable way for a motorist to say, "I'm here and coming through". It's not always someone being nasty saying "Get out of my way".





3.If you are going to drive down here, and I strongly recommend you leave that to the locals because seriously, you don't stand a chance, be aggressive. No one will give you an inch. Well maybe an inch but that's about it, don't expect any more.





4. If you do happen to have an accident it is perfectly acceptible to spend any number of minutes yelling at the person you had an accident with while blocking the road to other traffic. Most cars down here have dents and scrapes so expect this to happen. Also make sure your car has good shock absorbers because you will need it. Like I said above, no paved roads (except the autopista but that is really bumpy too).





5. Stopping anywhere seems to be ok, even if it says don't stop here. I have only seen one boot on a car and many more parked in no parking zones.





6. If it seems like chaos it probably is; but then there is a physics rule that explains chaos I'm just not sure what it is so refer to that when you get lost and you should be ok. I'm pretty sure the guys above are part of that chaos theory since the last time I checked Zebras weren't native to the Andean region.





Oh and one last thing. If there is a march or a strike of some kind don't even try to get a mini bus, taxi or drive. It's pointless. You are better off joining the march. The police will even clear a path for you.