You can always tell the intensity of a Dhaka traffic jam by the decibel level the honking horns have reached. If you can still hear the person next to you speak inside an air conditioned vehicle above the sounds of horns honking outside of your car, then you are just in normal Dhaka traffic.
Back home, in our "let me make sure I do not offend you" American culture, honking your horn at someone is like inviting someone to a school backyard fight. People get offended. “What’s that guy’s problem? He HONKED at me!”
Here in Dhaka, honking is just a way of life. Walking down the street, you must expect to lose some of your hearing. Cars here honk more often than they do not. When they come to an intersection, they honk. When a person is walking alongside a road, they honk at the person. When they are changing lanes (realistically there are no lanes here), they honk. When they are turning, they honk. When they just are on the road, they honk. In traffic, they just hold down their horns as if through their abuse of the horn they can express the incredible frustration they feel at the hopeless situation of the eternal traffic jam in Dhaka. A true jam will incite even the most patient driver to start honking. The horns are most annoying to pedestrians, ricksha wallah, and CNG drivers/passengers.
I seriously contemplated ordering a blow horn from the US. I would get the most powerful one, the kind that blows out your ear membranes at sporting events. Then I would just honk back at any bus, car or CNG that honks at me.
When a Dhaka traffic jam hits, it strikes with the force of an atomic bomb going off, and all ears are affected by the sound. Pedestrians beware, If you are a pedestrian near this jam, you are at serious risk of permanent hearing loss. Same goes for those in the CNGs or rickshaws. Even in the confines of an air conditioned vehicle, it becomes difficult to hear one’s own voice, or the voices of others in the car above the symphony of horns being honked.
Back home, in our "let me make sure I do not offend you" American culture, honking your horn at someone is like inviting someone to a school backyard fight. People get offended. “What’s that guy’s problem? He HONKED at me!”
Here in Dhaka, honking is just a way of life. Walking down the street, you must expect to lose some of your hearing. Cars here honk more often than they do not. When they come to an intersection, they honk. When a person is walking alongside a road, they honk at the person. When they are changing lanes (realistically there are no lanes here), they honk. When they are turning, they honk. When they just are on the road, they honk. In traffic, they just hold down their horns as if through their abuse of the horn they can express the incredible frustration they feel at the hopeless situation of the eternal traffic jam in Dhaka. A true jam will incite even the most patient driver to start honking. The horns are most annoying to pedestrians, ricksha wallah, and CNG drivers/passengers.
I seriously contemplated ordering a blow horn from the US. I would get the most powerful one, the kind that blows out your ear membranes at sporting events. Then I would just honk back at any bus, car or CNG that honks at me.
When a Dhaka traffic jam hits, it strikes with the force of an atomic bomb going off, and all ears are affected by the sound. Pedestrians beware, If you are a pedestrian near this jam, you are at serious risk of permanent hearing loss. Same goes for those in the CNGs or rickshaws. Even in the confines of an air conditioned vehicle, it becomes difficult to hear one’s own voice, or the voices of others in the car above the symphony of horns being honked.
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