One Way Road to Hell

You may start to notice a trend throughout these blogs, namely, my constant frustration with driving. I am not the only one either. It is often a topic of conversation amongst the small group of English teachers that I work with, about how rage inducing driving is. Even the calmest driver will be tested by the foreigners traps, bikers everywhere, narrow roads, and people stopping anywhere they want and putting their hazard lights on. But the one thing that has caught me most off guard is the one way roads.

In Australia I always wondered how on earth people end up going the wrong way down a one way street. Isn’t it obvious? Are they blind or just stupid? Well I must be both, because I swear I do not know how I have ended up going the wrong way down one way streets numerous times, each time ending with someone yelling at me or waving a stick at me. My only condolence is that I often see Japanese people making the same mistake.

*Small side note*

This is my condolence for a lot of things actually. Running red lights, not bowing at the right time, being late for work, falling off my chair in the staffroom, the list continues. Anything is fine if you have seen a Japanese person do it. Well, when I say fine, I mean fine with your conscience. However, it may not actually be fine with your boss, or the policeman who caught you running the red light.

*Side note ended, continue with the point of the story*

As for the roads, the only advice I can give to people who are going to brave the roads here is as follows. Always go in the direction of the white arrows on the blue sign. Never assume that a road that begins as a two way will not end up being one way, in the direction that you are not going. And if all else fails, pretend you cannot understand Japanese so people get less angry at you (also referred to as playing the foreigner’s card). Basically, look lost and say ‘Wakarimasen’ or ‘I don’t understand’.