The hustle and bustle of the ever-increasing traffic in Skopje
has become more the norm than just the sign of a busy season.
The road that goes from our apartment into town is
a four-lane road,
but due to the increase in the number of
cars, buses, trucks and motorcycles,
as well as
the cars parked & the dumpsters lining
the outside lanes,
this four-lane street is, in actuality, two lanes.
At any given time there may be three cars abreast
in each of these two lanes.
A scenario that happens on a daily basis:
A bus gives a signal as it pulls out of the safety of
the designated bus stop and almost collides with
two taxis as they both try to pass the bus;
thus, three vehicles of varying sizes
in one lane.
A car behind the second taxi passes
on the wrong side of the road and barely avoids
running over the pedestrians in the "makeshift" crosswalk -
the actual crosswalk that theoretically protects pedestrians-
is half a block up the street.
This same taxi speeds ahead (there are no speed limits)
to get to the intersection first so that
he can make a left-hand turn from the right lane,
thus beating all the other cars that are waiting
in the left-hand turn lane.
Two motorcycles use the "invisible" white line
that divides the two lanes as an improvised racetrack.
In the midst of this confusion, a Mac truck makes a
U-turn across both lanes to deliver merchandise to a
"dyqan" (store) while a student driver in an
"Auto-Skolla" car looks bewildered as to which way to go.
The student driver decides to make a right turn
in order to park on the sidewalk,
but fails to give a signal.
She goes unnoticed.
Just another driver who is learning to traverse
the streets of Skopje!
Shelia
