Adventures in Turkey : Driving

While in Turkey we ended up buying a car (due to some family issues), a Renault from the 80's for 7,000 lira (2500 euros at the time).

driving to Elazig from the village, dirt roads the whole way till the expressway

Here we are getting the 80's material out and getting black and red retro style in (which somehow I don't have a picture of)

Driving in Turkey is a nightmare. If you have ever driven in Paris, its 10 times worse. I thought that the French drive horrible, with no respect for traffic laws, but Turkish drivers are worse. Since we were in Eastern Turkey, there are not a whole lot of women who drive for reasons I couldn't figure out. So everytime I was driving or got in the car, I got stares, but I brushed it off because I am just as comptent or more as the other drivers on the road.

There is no respect for traffic laws, like there would be stop signs and no one would stop. Or the round about, which I don't even understand in the first place, and people would just all go in at once. Or they would drive without their lights on in the middle of the night. People crossing the street right in front of you (I decided I would honk the horn everyone did this). Lots and lots of stories. And apparently the traffic is worse in Istanbul than where we were!!

Every time we left the city there would be a police check and I kept telling my husband I hoped that we would get pulled over, so that I can give them a discourse on driving in Turkey and how they really aren't doing their job. The one time we almost got pulled over was a false alarm, the police wanted the car in front of us, but I told my husband it was because I was a woman and they didn't want to deal with me!


Have you ever driven in Turkey or do you have a French driving experience ??

Something to Remember...

especially in Paris and the suburbs, LOOK both ways before crossing the street.

Even if the car is 500m away, keep making sure that it isn't going to speed up, and even if the little green man says you can cross the street.

Because, I witnessed a girl try to cross the street without looking both ways and almost get hit by the bus I was on. And let me tell you, bus drivers drive crazy, not to mention all of the other drivers as well.

So if you end up to be road kill, don't say that know one warned you, lol!