Part I - Caca en las Bombachas!

Part I

Driving in Puerto Madryn will put some, "Caca in your bombachas!"

Maybe it is because THERE ARE NO STOP SIGNS.  None.  Not one.  Not even one little tiny one.  None.  If the intersection doesn't have a stoplight - which is the norm, then it is almost a free for all.  There are a few rules.  This is what I have learned so far.

1. The bigger road USUALLY wins.
2. The faster car USUALLY wins.
3. If you have no idea, slow down; look for cars; wait for someone to honk at you, and go.

Since I prefer to avoid the unmarked intersections as much as possible, I do my best to choose routes that have stoplights - which poses another challenge.  The stoplights are timed, so you have to drive FAST to make the next green light.  If you hit the lights correctly, and put the pedal to the medal, you can cross the city in about 1.5 minutes.  I am definitely improving my skills, with Carmela in the front seat and a posse in the back whooping at me to drive faster and make the next light.

It gets more challenging when coming up on a slower car.  One option is to drive into oncoming traffic to pass the slower moving vehicles.  This is standard.  Nobody minds.  The slow cars lallygag along, while faster cars hit it on the left side of the road.  There are few center lines, so it really is a gray area.  Sometimes the right lane is 70% of the road.

It is also important NOT to stop for pedestrians (I know this is killing my Seattle people).  Even if the pedestrian is in the middle of the road, drivers just keep going - sometimes even faster.  Pedestrians can be relied on not to jump in front of cars.

Five kids, three seat belts,  and an 80lb. golden retriever
in the back of our car.  

Seatbelts and carseats are a lovely addition to vehicle safety, but not required.  It is expected to pile as many people in the car as possible, say a prayer and go.

Early on before I knew the seatbelt rules, I offered to drive some of Carmela's classmates to a party, and I sent out a text to ALL the parents explaining how many seatbelts I had, and how many people I could take.  I got no responses.  I think everyone must have thought I was NUTS-BALLS CRAZY!!! I should have known better since daily we see piles of kids crowding in and spilling out of cars at school like the clown car at the circus.   We roll with it.  Now we have playdates for all the kids on the same day, and everyone just gets in.  Sometimes even a dog.  It is a total throw back to the 70's.

Stay tuned for a Part II on why we get a little caca in our bombachas when driving in Puerto Madryn.

And, if you are so inclined, please pray for our safe travels.  Saint Christopher, Saint Nicholas, Saint Philip, Blessed Mother Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus... any and all.  We'll take all the prayers we can get - and some toilet paper too!