riding to class

June 20, 2006 - Heping East Road, Taipei, Taiwan. Maybe this shot makes riding in Taipei traffic look scarier than it is. This is actually pretty tame. Er, but that's not to say that the drivers here aren't totally nuts. They are. In the U.S., I can usually get by with me doing my part to not get hit, and expecting drivers to do their part and not hit me (there's actually a little more to it). Here, that doesn't really apply.


In the U.S., I don't ride on sidewalks unless I have to (i.e., in New Jersey). I usually dismount out of courtesy to pedestrians. Here, riding on sidewalks is part of the routine. Pedestrians don't expect courtesy and don't give it. And motor-scooters regularly drive down sidewalks. I haven't seen an accident yet, but I've seen many close-calls, which is not helped by Taiwanese pedestrians who are apparently all near-sighted and don't notice something approaching until it's about two feet away, and then they jump in total surprise, "where did he come from?".

iTunes soundtrack:
1. Sea of Love (Cat Power)
2. Quiet (Smashing Pumpkins)
3. Scarecrow People (XTC)
4. Garden Party (Marillion)
5. Fumbling Towards Ecstacy (Sarah Mclachlan)
6. Rastaman Chant (live) (Bob Marley & the Wailers)
7. Fabricoh (Archers of Loaf)
8. Crestfallen (+/-)
9. The Double Planet (Michael Hedges)
10. Around the Dial (The Kinks)