ROAD WARRIOR: Indonesia's drivers scoot along

A motorbike carrying a couple of piglets, a not uncommon sight, holds up traffic on a Bali highway.
ADRIENNE PACKER/LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

It's always entertaining observing driving laws and habits in foreign countries.

Typically, it's somewhat educational and puts our grumbling and groaning about the drivers in our hometown into context.

Forget the gorgeous beaches and phenomenal people of Indonesia, it was the traffic and driving habits that had me mesmerized during my recent vacation. I'm either dedicated to my job or a complete dork. I'm afraid it's the latter.

Never before have I witnessed a family of five on a single motor scooter. This sighting can cause bodily harm, not because these motorists are reckless, but because my Bintang beer-fueled brothers invented a silly game in which the person who spotted more than four people on a tiny motorbike was punched.

Confident the statute of limitations has expired, I will admit witnessing a family of five -- two parents and three small children -- but didn't dare pull out my camera for fear that my brothers would take notice.

Motor scooters are the preferred mode of transportation, and understandably so. Manageable two-lane roads can easily be converted into choked six-lane speedways.

The small scooters are the transportation of choice for families. Gasoline prices are slightly lower than here but still more than $2 a gallon, and the majority of the locals are fortunate if their income is $80 a month.

My brother was married in a Javanese-style wedding where my entire family waddled in, completely unfamiliar with wearing sarongs, and witnessed my brother negotiate his marriage contract with three holy men and the bride's father.

But my fascination was watching the locals navigate the gridlock in Bali and contrasting that to how we deal with traffic in Las Vegas.

At traffic signals, these little motorbikes congregate around, between and in front of vehicles like a swarm of gnats. It's crucial to jockey for position so the motorbikes don't get separated from one another and end up stuck behind a truck.

Astonishingly, no serious accidents seem to occur. Or at least we never saw one. Occasionally the motorbikers knocked their heads on a van's side mirror or bumped into each other. Intriguing.

Road rage is rampant here, but nothing appeared to faze Bali riders, perhaps because they live in paradise.

Distractions? We have our force of text messengers and cell phone users, but Indonesia distractions come in all forms.

At least in Las Vegas, pedestrians for the most part stick to the sidewalks and are fairly safe, unless someone drives onto the sidewalk -- which happens more than it should -- or tries to cross the street.

Here, honking typically means someone is not happy. In Bali, horns are the norm. They aren't considered obnoxious, but courteous to warn the vendors, pedestrians or even stray dogs of an oncoming vehicle.

Admittedly, the startled woman whose basket of goods toppled off her head might challenge that observation.

Distractions? How about this: What the heck is that load the guy on a bicycle is carrying? Why of course, a cage stuffed with chicks dyed blinding bright purple, blue, pink and yellow.

And what the heck is that? Ah, a motorbike weighed down by its cargo, which in this case is a couple of piglets.

Is that bread on the back of that motorcycle? No, chickens.

Cows standing on the corner of an intersection are about as common as, well, you get the picture. Even though the cows are in traffic and the pigs have a ride, it's likely the pigs' fate will be less desirable than the cows'. Bali is a Hindu island where cows are sacred.

Indonesian motorists also deal with terrorist threats. Each time a driver enters a parking lot for a restaurant or resort where crowds might gather, security officers examine the undercarriage of the vehicle and take a look inside the vehicle as well.

No one is bothered; these threats are real. Our driver lost his entire family in the 2005 bombing in the seaside town of Jimbaran.

While it was not easy leaving the beautiful island of Bali, full of wonderful people, it's comforting to be back in a city where there are lanes, speed limits and laws designed to keep us safe.

Please resume sending in your questions, tips and concerns and, as soon as I become reacquainted with driving on the right side of the road, I'll check them out.

If you have a question, tip or tirade, call Adrienne Packer at (702) 387-2904, or send an e-mail to roadwarrior@reviewjournal.com. Include your phone number.