Thursday 30 April 2009

The art of honking or what is New Zealand like

I liked my time here in New Zealand but I do not think I will want to come back in the near future. On the other hand I want to go back to Australia very soon. Why? New Zealand is beautiful, nice and pleasant, but it is also very European. Australia on the other hand is so very different from anything I have seen before. Australia’s landscape is not as spectacular as New Zealand’s, but it is very special and almost magic. Also people are much more outgoing and hospitable. And don’t forget the kangaroos either….

But both countries have the same art of honking: If a car passes you giving you a short double honk it usually means anything from “I have also been cycling 20 years ago” over “I even break for cyclists” to “I like your cute little butt in bike shorts” or to cut it short: Double honks are friendly.

A single long honk on the other hand is a totally different story and they are generally not friendly at all: My interpretations range from “I had to slow down for you stupid idiots” over “I hate everything that moves and is not in a car” to “My sex life is a desaster”. On top of all that these drivers usually give you a honk when they are right next to you therefore scaring the shit out of me.

That said I also want to add that we generally did not have many problems sharing the road. There were some scary moments when trucks passed me too close and I hated heavy traffic whizzing past me at 120 km/h on narrow single carriageway roads, but generally drivers were treating us ok - not super friendly, not totally bad either, just ok. I am very curious now about Japanese drivers now!

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