Cycling the south coast of India (January 24th - February 4th)(continued)
I am starting my days earlier to beat the worst of the heat and the benefit is some beautiful sunrises while on relatively quiet roads.
It has been a fantastic route so far and each day has been exciting, chaotic and a little crazy. One of the annoying habits of Indian drivers is their need to pass the vehicle in front of them. I have to constantly stay vigilant as a few minutes rarely pass without seeing an oncoming bus or truck in my lane. It is particularly frustrating because they really have no requirement to pass. I will often be cycling uphill with 2 trucks side by side, completely blocking the entire road. They cannot increase their speed with the steep climbs and slowing down to allow another vehicle to move ahead would be unthinkable so up they go, at exactly the same speed, around corners and honking their horns the entire way. They will go by me with a deafening noise warning all oncoming traffic to get out of their way, yet still take the time to wave at me with big smiles, ignoring the potential disasters ahead.
On Friday as I was heading towards Mangalore, I crossed a long bridge that was in very poor condition. There were pot holes a few inches deep requiring my full attention as I tried to weave my way across at a crawling pace barely keeping myself upright. At one point an Indian male pulled up beside me with a big smile and rode within inches as I struggled to keep my balance. It was hard to keep from hitting him as I weaved on my bike but he couldn't move over because a large truck decided it was a good time to pass a bus. So the 4 of us proceeded at a snail's pace with the truck and bus laying on their horns the entire way, only feet away from me, and my smiling friend staring at me and paying little attention to the road. I could barely hear what he had to say but did catch the following question/statement.
Smiling guy: Hello, how are you, fine?
Me: What?
Smiling guy: Where is your name?
Me: Huh?
Smiling guy: What are you going?
I was torn between hitting him over the head with my pump to get him to move over, and laughing at his huge smile and broken English. He was trying and certainly had enthusiasm going for him so I started laughing and did what any self-respecting local would do, started ringing the bell on my bike. He almost rolled off his bike in laughter as he drove away while the maniacs beside me continued their testosterone fuelled duel. India may shatter every nerve in my body but it's not dull.