Traffic Jam

It’s the reason I hate riding around in Baghdad. On the outskirts we don’t have to worry about traffic. For some reason, I don’t know why, there always parts in the city where all traffic stops. Then there’s the people, most don’t smile or wave. I don’t know. I guess, why would they? Not like I smile and wave to people back home on the street. I do get the occasional wave or smile, mostly from kids. Most of the adults don’t care or even acknowledge our existence. It doesn’t bother me at all. Not even the ‘Evil Stare’.

We always joke about those when we get back to camp. “Did you see those people giving us the Evil Stare?” It’s when not one person cracks a smile and they all just seem to stare us down. I think it’s kind of funny myself. Don’t worry people. We definitely don’t bite.

What’s also amazing is that there are no traffic lights anywhere. Sometimes I think it’s crazy to be in a city with no traffic signals. They mostly use policemen to direct traffic. There aren’t too many intersections around here. Where there are intersections, there’s a traffic circle. That’s mainly why this place reminds me of Mexico. And the traffic is crazy. People here drive almost anywhere they want. Well, not really, only on the outskirts of the city. They mostly obey traffic rules in the city.