You really haven’t experienced true terror until you’ve experienced driving in Asia. Everyone passes everyone; rules of the road don’t seem to apply, at least not the same as they do in the USA! We spent 6 hours driving through the Cambodian countryside today.

I think I have figured out the rules of the road for passing slow vehicles here:

• If you are in a tuk-tuk or motorbike, just save yourself time and drive on the shoulder. Everyone will be passing you all of the time.
• If you are in a car and want to pass slower traffic, feel free to pull into oncoming traffic if there are cars or motorcycles in that lane. They will get out of your way. If it is a van or truck, don’t pass
• If you are in a van or small pickup truck, pass whenever you want (unless there is a larger truck headed your way)
• If you are in a truck, pass whenever. You are bigger than everyone else and they will get out of your way
• The pretty yellow lines (whether dashed or solid) down the center of the road are purely decorative. They mean nothing
• Speed limit? What speed limit?
• Traffic signals don’t exist until you get to Phnom Penh, so if there is an intersection, be bold. Drive right through and hope like heck that others stop for you. And when you get to Phnom Penh, feel free to ignore red lights. They are as meaningless as those silly stripes that are supposed to separate traffic

If you would like to read about our adventure and see some pictures I took along the way, click on the link here: From Siem Reap to Phnom Penh via Cambodia Post VIP Van: Playing Chicken on the Road