Robots
On the way to the bus station this past Saturday morning:
Taxi Driver: “Do you have these where you’re from?”
Amanda: “You mean the robots?”
Taxi Driver: “Yeah.”
Amanda: “Yes, we have lots of those.”
Taxi Driver: “Oh, I thought maybe they were only in Botswana.”
Amanda: “Nope. Where we are from, we call them traffic lights.”
Taxi Driver: “Traffic lights? (laughs)”
True Story.
As an aside, they do indeed call traffic lights “robots” here in Botswana. Here’s a quote from the book Botswana – Culture Smart! by Michael Main:
I witnessed the switching on of the first set of traffic lights in 1985 and remember well the large crowd gathered for the ceremony, their applause as the lights changed colour, and their still louder applause and enthusiasm when a minor accident occurred within minutes of the formal opening.
Now the city has divided highways, railway flyovers, and many imposing, glass-fronted modern buildings, as well as forty to fifty traffic lights – or “robots,” as they are sometimes known in this part of the world.
Amanda 3:32 pm on 8/17/2011 Permalink
I must add that although there are “robots” here, the pedestrian button never works. Perhaps the traffic authorities deemed it too unsafe as the drivers here do not seem to be very attentive to their surroundings in general. Adding more lights and symbols at intersections could create even more chaos. As a result, pedestrians (especially foreigners like us) must carefully look both ways, and in the correct direction (as Batswana drive on the other side of the street here) before attempting to cross, and then make a run for it!