Driving

While in the Dominican Republic, the thought of fear came into my mind. On one of our excursions into the city, we took both of the vans. I ended up being driver number two. Within blocks, the vans were separated and of course we did not have the walkie-talkies or cell phones to communicate between the two vehicles. Driving in the Dominican Republic is very different from driving here in the U.S. Basically, stop signs don't mean much. Cars cut in and out of traffic. Honking the horn is considered a necessity rather being offensive. So there I was driving a van with passengers and not knowing for sure where we were headed. Pedrito was in the front seat but of course there was a bit of a language barrier. He is also protective (this is a good thing) but he was overly concerned about the roads being slippery (there had been some sprinkles) and I think he was more than a little uncomfortable with my driving (probably a little bit warranted). However, truth be told, I was a bit nervous, too - driving in the chaos in a place had been to since 2007. Then this calm came over me. Just go. Not recklessly, of course. But going was definitely safer than being hesitant or getting scared.