The crazy traffic

One of the most interesting things here in Bali is the traffic. The roads are narrow so the traffic jam is inevitable in certain parts of Bali. Therefore the best way to get from one place to another is driving with a scooter.  The scooter is small enough to past the traffic jams also from the smallest spaces. There are more motorbikes than people in Bali so everyone from a child to an old man uses them. Every day you see an entire family driving on a scooter and people carrying what most interesting stuff on their scooters.  

The traffic is also one of the most dangerous things in Bali. Even thought you drive here on the left side of the road, it is not the biggest difference when compared to driving in Finland. When you look at the traffic first, it looks chaotic and you are not that tempted to drive there yourself. However, there are actually certain unwritten rules for driving here and the traffic goes with a flow quite smoothly.  The best way to drive here is to follow the locals and be rather selfish than give too much space for the other drivers. If you suddenly stop to give away for another driver, the drivers behind you are not expecting that and they might crash you. Also, how strange it might sound, sometimes it is better to drive towards the red lights than stop in the last minute because the locals behind you most likely won’t stop there and then they will crash you if you stop too early. :)

One annoying issue about the traffic here is the traffic police. When you look like a tourist, the local police will stop you for any reason to get your money.  I was once stopped by a police when I didn’t stop on the right line for the red lights. Because I also didn’t have my international driving license with me, I was supposed to pay fines for two mistakes. In those kind of situations it is really useful to know couple of phrases in Indonesian and especially to say that you are a student in a local uni. If you just keep smiling and stay friendly with the police, in the best scenario you will survive from the situation with only a warning.  :)