Living in Peru : your everyday companion

By
Larry J.  Pitman

My journey to work is both pleasurable and dangerous.



For most of the trip we have two lanes on our side, but suddenly one lane disappears and cars have to merge. That is where the fun begins. Drivers have various strategies in this situation. First, it is essential that you never allow any other car to get ahead of you. Second, if at all possible, you must try to turn out from the line, go around on the bank of the road and then squeeze in front of another car.

Next on our journey, having survived so far, we have to cross several intersections where cars are jammed together, and there are no traffic lights. Again, it is extremely rare for one driver to willingly permit another driver to cross in front. Clearly, courtesy is not a value on the road. Instead, Luis Alberto slowly inches his car forward so that finally he can place the car in a position to cross the road by blocking the incoming cars. It is a slow process and sometimes I wonder if the other cars will actually stop.

I can only shake my head in wonder at the daring of some drivers. I admire their skill. When I think that no one could possibly squeeze a car through that opening, they do. When I think that no one would dare to make that move in front of oncoming traffic, they do.

I’m not one to get angry or even nervous during our adventurous rides. In fact I have acquired a detached, fatalistic view of my experiences on the streets of Lima. -- I have made my peace, and I’m ready or prepared to die. This means that I can view the  maneuvers of the other drivers with an amused detachment. Thus, I can appreciate the creativity, courage and incredible egotism that are reflected by the behavior of Lima’s drivers on the road.

It wasn’t always that way. When I first arrived in Peru, I was terrified of the traffic. No way was I going to drive. Even going in a taxi or with a friend put my heart in my mouth. The behavior of the drivers was totally unpredictable. All I knew was that we were always just a few inches away from annihilation. There were no apparent rules of the road. It seemed to me that people made them up as they went along.

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Even after I passed the examinations and got my driver’s license, I was still very doubtful about taking to the roads. Then one day I realized that all the stress and anxiety did me no good. I resolved to accept my fate and enjoy my life.  So I do, even on the streets of Lima.

Now, as we arrive safely once again at the University, I smile, shake my head at the incredible things I have seen on my journey, and calmly say goodbye to Luis Alberto.

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2 Comments

# Justin Dieter Perez Altamirano says :
30 September, 2009 [ 02:28 ]

Incredible egotism is not the logic and rules that inform "proper" driving practices in Lima but rather the sentiments of the author of this article.  The conceit that comes across in his/her writing is far more excessive and boastful then the unwritten rules that the author, albeit with sarcasm, identifies.  To think that one's own set of cultural norms and practices for doing something, in this case driving, are more logical than the Peruvian practices is egotistic, and at the very least, ignorant.  The author identifies strategies that s/he feels are employed by local drivers, and through sarcasm alludes to what would be a more logical way of doing things.  It is unfortunate that s/he cannot take local culture for how it is and try to understand its logic in the context.  For instance, perhaps never allowing the car to get ahead of you, although understood from an American point of view as obnoxious, leaves little room for ambiguity on the road?  Maybe the driving is extreme, but if everyone is educated and enculturated into the same driving practices, then things make sense.  It is people like the author, who brings his/her driving practices to the context that complicated things.  

Ultimately though the sentiments expressed in this article reflect the widely shared notion that we Americans "do" things better, more effectively, and more logically then the Peruvians. Even if we do not say it, at work, at the grocery store, etc.. we often believe it.  I recommend to the author that s/he take a step back and reflect on that.  At the very least, you will not be so fatalistic about your life in Lima, right? 

# James Wells says :
3 October, 2009 [ 11:19 ]

"Gee, give me a break"

What got you out of socket?

It seems to me that the artica was pretty accurate.  l didn't see where they said anyone was right or wrong, just giving a description of a ride on the beach road at rush hour.  I also didn't see that they refered to any country they were from, but you refered to americans twice in your reply. If they were writing about driving in England, they might have something to say about not expecting someone driving toward them on the same side of the road. 

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