Quote:
Originally Posted by jfink
I learned a couple valuable lessons today in Argentina I would like to pass on. First, don't speed through town even though you are in a pack of locals speeding through town. You are the gringo, be the gringo! Cost for this lesson, a mere 50 peso's ($10 US). AND don't piss off the peace officer, who can't pass because his car is a POS. And when you do pass, he catches up with you at the police check point and claims you passed on the double yellow line. Damn, that was a mouth full, I not sure I even believe that lesson. Cost, a mere 830 peso's ($160 US).
The Sargent wanted to know if I was going to pay in Gringo dollars, I said, hell no!!! Hint: they really, really like the "blue" dollar in Argentina. The official exchange rate is around 5 pesos per dollar but I just saw that you can sell "blue" dollars on the "black" market for around 7.50 pesos. ... so many colors.
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Good to know!
Man, every country is different.
In Ecuador, you'd better go as fast as everyone else or there will be honking and knashing of teeth. Personally I was able to get away with driving like a total maniac through the city of Guayaquil without even turning the heads of the Transito. It was a blast ignoring everything but red lights. I find the practicality delightfully refreshing in that they are only concerned with safety, not behaviour. Do what you want, but if you get in a wreck, you're gonna pay big time, and sit in jail until it's paid. That's how it should be everywhere - you rarely see wrecks in Ecuador. Outside the city on the via a la playa, I passed a Transito (they run with their blue/red lights flashing all the time there) on a curve with a double-yellow line. I gave them a wave as I went by on the outside of the curve. But I didn't do it at random; I saw someone else ahead of me do it first. Fun country!
