Photo of the day ... India's traffic

“Even an ambulance or a fire engine cannot come into the locality in case of an emergency,” said M. Sangeetha, a resident.
Report here

Exploring South India in a .... autorickshaw? :)

The Hindu reports that:

That's what a team of adventurers who will be making an epic 2,000-km autorickshaw rally through Tamil Nadu and Kerala believe.
The rally, flagged off here on Sunday, features participants from the U.K., Egypt, Austria, Singapore and Hungary. ...

The 14-day rally will give the participants an opportunity to see the entirely unknown parts of India. It will offer them a chance to observe how the fishing industry works in the idyllic costal villages of Kerala and to sleep under the stars on the coffee plantations on the Yercaud hills. Adrianna Tan, who runs a Singapore-based start-up, said “The autorickshaw is iconic and symbolic of India. People of all classes identify with it. Besides, there are villages where even buses won't stop. With an autorickshaw, you can go anywhere.” 

The team on this "Malabar Rampage" ...?

Tips on driving an autorickshaw?

First, sit comfortably in the driver’s seat.
Prepare to expend an inordinate amount of energy from your left arm. Now yank the stick on the side of your rickshaw really, really hard. It needs to be hard and smooth at the same time - smooth, even past its jerking.
That should get the engine going.
Position yourself comfortably at the driver’s seat again. Put both hands on the handlebars. On your left, the clutch and gears. On your right, the accelerator. At your right foot, the brake.
The gears work, downwards, in this order: first, neutral, second, third, fourth. Clutch to first gear. Release clutch halfway - your rickshaw will move forward. “Give gas” with your right hand (as the Indians say), and simultaneously release the clutch.
Change to whatever gear is appropriate, and don’t tip over while turning.

P.S. You can use your arms and feet in place of indicators.

Note that this group is different from the one that did the Chennai-Mumbai autorickshaw challenge last year :)

On the road in India

It is extremely difficult for me to relax while travelling in India. Car, taxi, autorickshaw, plane--it doesn't matter. It is too damn stressful. The only travel part I really enjoyed was the train ride from Kollam to Sengottai.

I can, therefore, easily imagine the autorickshaw accident, in the on-going "on the road to India" WSJ blog: