Traffic

A friend asked me about the traffic in Dhaka and today's blog is in her honour. She was interested to know if it was safe to walk on the streets, if I could cross the road easily, and if there were any traffic lights here. It is safe, and I walk to the office every day for lunch along these roads (see Google Maps for route) although I do take the  precaution of travelling by car once it becomes dark. I took the photos seen in this post on January 8th, 2013.

Most people (80% male) I meet on the streets are friendly, and only one time have I felt uncomfortable due to inappropriate attention. It happened quite soon after I arrived that a rather young lad, while passing me in the street, asked me a impolite question. Incensed, I turned without thinking, and yelled, "You little sh*t!!!". Luckily, he was smaller than me and he sensibly fled from the scene as fast as his short legs could carry him. However, that is a rare case. 

Many other people I have met have been very friendly  and will strike up a conversation as we walk. One time, a literature student from near Cox's Bazar told me about his favourite Shakespearian play, and another time I met some JICA Japanese volunteers in their twenties from Rangpur who were involved in a dengue-prevention project. I actually approached them and said hello first and asked them what they were doing in Bangladesh. Disappointingly, they struggled to answer my question in English, and I switched to speaking Japanese to continue the conversation and satisfy my curiosity.

The traffic can become very heavy and it can take a long time to travel less than one kilometre (one hour due to rain is my all-time record). This area houses the embassies and high commissions of many countries and there are often bottlenecks around this roundabout. The red brick building in the picture below is the Canadian High Commission. The man in the green uniform directs traffic. Not included in the photograph are the checkpoints on either side with men in uniforms with guns. I didn't like to get too close and take their photographs. We saw them checking people's bags on New Year's Eve here, and as I was carrying a bag with a bottle of wine (not the smartest move), I felt a little anxious and walked just a tad faster. Saburo said he noticed them looking at me, but fortunately they let us pass without incident.

The traffic is beginning to build up here. Madani Avenue leads onto the main thoroughfare of Gulshan Avenue. To the left, you can just see a man dressed in red sitting on the pavement. He  has a condition where his hands are all twisted and I have never seen him stand, so I assume his legs are also affected. He is there almost everyday and always greets me with a very jolly and very loud, "How are you?" when he sees me and then smiles the biggest smile you have ever seen. He has a friend who comes by regularly and counts his earnings for him (approximately taka 400 and 250 on the days I have observed this) and folds his bank notes into a roll for him to hold easily. 

It is very easy to cross the road when the traffic is like this. There are traffic lights at the roundabout further along this road. But I have never seem them working. I rely on watching when other people cross to know when to move. There are traffic guards who direct the traffic here. On Christmas Eve, the amount of traffic on this road was insane, and we waited for an inordinately long time without making any progress towards our destination.

Another traffic shot.

We are experiencing another cold snap in the capital. It was eight degrees celsius (46F) this morning. Our future home, Naogaon, has even lower temperatures. Saburo and I don't remember it being so cold in Chittagong. Although we had just arrived from Japan where it really is cold so perhaps it took a few years for the cold to set into our bones. These days, after living many years in the tropics, I am wearing cardigans, scarves and socks, and it really does feel COLD!!!