Saturday, April 14, 2007

Going Right? Turn Left! (of course)

Riding in a taxi in Melbourne, Mine Host was puzzled and surprised when instead of taking a right-hand turn, the cabby pulled over to the left, more or less still in the middle of the intersection.

"er... wasn't this supposed to be a RIGHT turn?" queried Mine Host.

The cabby gave a strange look as if to say "That's right, and just WHAT does it look like I am doing?"

Surreptitiously eyeing off the door handle, Mine Host wondered if he wasn't being set up for a mugging, or kidnapping, or heaven knows what.

Just then the lights changed, and the cabby simultaneously floored it & turned hard to the right.

As we shot up the intended street, the cabby (in response to Mine Host's weird look) said:

"You not come-a from Mela-born, rite? That-sa how to make the rite turn some place inna Mela-born"

For the rest of the journey Mine Host contemplated the outcome if an out-of-towner were to be spotted by the police making a normal right hand turn at that intersection.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's called the hook turn Steve. My missus will drive 5km out of her way rather than execute one. They're OK if there's only a couple of cars lined up to do one. Still in Melbourne, 10.30 Sunday night? If so, I'll buy you a jar at O'Brien's at Southgate. -- Slatts

Anonymous said...

Ha! Police actually doing their job in Melbourne. Oh, that's a good one, Steve.

Anonymous said...

Reply to Slatts: Thank you very much for the kind offer.
I accept, but will be (or was) unable to make it as I was in Qld on Sunday night.
Due to the identity concealing shuffled geography & chronology of my posts, this incident was not posted by me at the time it occurred.
It will be my pleasure to take you up on it when I am next in your neck of the woods.

Reply to Anonymous: Is it reasonable for me to assume, that as an otherwise law abiding and productive citizen, if I was to inadvertantly make a harmless but illegal turn, I could then expect Victorian Police to display a razor sharp response time, an arrest followed by a lengthy "booking in" process, into the bin for a most uncomfortable and undignified "cooling off", finishing with diligent and carefully prepared manpower-heavy prosecution in which a robust penalty was sought for my "crime"?