"Chaos" is the one word that best describes road travel in India. Besides, this word could also be applied across several other areas, but we'll leave that for another day. No one follows traffic rules in India, stopping at red-lights, use of turn indicators, pedestrian right of way are considered optional while lane driving is almost a foreign concept. However, I discovered that there is a method to this madness:
Rule#1 - the guys who are ahead of you on the road rule, whether its a bicycle, 2 wheeler scooter or a bus. They get to move around the road as they please.
Rule#2 - the guys who are behind, honk their way ahead and insert their noses into any little space they can find while still keeping Rule#1 in mind.
Rule#3 - the big fish rule over the small fish
Rule#4 - no matter what, in any situation whether its a small scrape or an accident, its not your fault.
A friend of mine who moved back from the East coast loves the thrill of driving in India as it brings out an aggressive side of hers she didn't know existed (kinda like the Goofy cartoon on 'road rage' that we watch in Texas as a retribution for speeding tickets).
Today was my first attempt at the drivers seat (in Hyderabad), I chose a Sunday as the roads are less crowded and managed to drive on the left side of the road with manual shift gears. I hope to be a more confident driver by not analyzing the chaos but by becoming a part of it.
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