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Trishaw
travails They are brightly
coloured, have inspirational messages attached and travel on three
wheels - you guessed right, they are trishaws! I am not particularly
fond of trishaws simply because, to my mind, they seem unsafe. My
brief yet eventful trips in these 'vehicles' give enough proof of
that, but like many Sri Lankans, I can't do without them! I remember
travelling in a trishaw some years ago to the Kandy Railway Station.
Anyone who's ever been there must remember the steep incline that
leads to the entrance. Being quite ignorant to what kind of chaps
these trishaw drivers could be my sibling asked ours to go a tad
fast. That was it. We were launched into a Formula One race. As
the 'vehicle' turned in to the railway station, us passengers lurched
from side to side. The three-wheeler soon became a one-wheeler as
it skidded to a stop! What I learnt from this exercise was 'never,
never ever ask them to speed up'; that way you might just get to
your destination in one piece! I've defied
death many a time during my trips. But the sight of an overturned
trishaw, a common sight in this country only keeps me away from
trishaws for a few days! After that necessity prevails. Another interesting
aspect of trishaws is their music systems. After much investigation,
(I asked a parent) I was told that trishaws come fixed with a six-volt
battery that really cannot do much. But then how on earth do they
manage to emit a continuous flow of music? Well, evidently Sri Lankan
trishaw drivers are an inventive bunch. For they fix up a ten-volt
bike battery to the trishaw and thereby end up with all the power
they can possibly need. Noise pollution and street lighting galore
all because of an inventive TD (Trishaw Driver). I also learnt that
to do this all the driver needs to purchase is an eight-rupee cable
- Brilliant! TDs too are
a class by themselves. It's almost as though they belong to a union,
since they exhibit an amazing amount of togetherness. Take this
hypothetical situation into consideration. You walk up to a trishaw
stand and there are around five trishaws parked down it. Ask the
first TD the cost to Point A, he'll quote you an amount and that
will be repeated by every other TD! - Are they psychic, I wonder! When starting
off my trishaw travels, I called upon a professional trishaw person
for advice. Her words of wisdom ran thus, "Quote half the amount
the TD quotes and hang on for dear life!" One lazy Friday
afternoon as I was travelling in the 'vehicle', I started nodding
off. I was suddenly jolted awake for my TD and the neighbouring
TD had decided to race down Galle Road! He charged me an exorbitant
amount but I was too glad to have escaped unscathed to protest!
Traffic lights
are another 'must create a fuss' area for trishaws. Have you ever
seen a trishaw sticking to its lane at traffic lights? They never
do, for their sole purpose seems to be to stand in the way of all
other vehicles and thereby cross over to the other side first! Trishaws are
the one mobile unit that believe in variety being the spice of life!
For I'm yet to see a plain black or white trishaw. Unlike conventional
vehicles, trishaws come in shades of green, blue, purple and even
pink! They are also
highly decorative pieces of art. Just the other day I happened to
be travelling behind one that said 'don't ink and drive'! Then there
are the others that sport scenes from the Titanic and the latest
Hindi film. I often wonder how on earth they manage to reverse! Ever noticed
the trishaws that proudly proclaim - Knight Rider or Batmobile?
As my ignorant nature got the better of me I half expected the TD
to carefully whisper our destination to the trishaw and get whizzed
there in the twinkling of an eye. I was sadly mistaken. Rain and trishaws
simply do not go together. Whenever I step into one there is almost
always a shower (though the weatherman swore to the contrary). The
TD courteously asks me to pull the curtain-like apparatus down.
After unbuckling it, the curtain rolls down and covers me with the
dust it has been accumulating for the past few years! Once the curtains
are down, we are on the move. But soon the curtain invariably flies
up and exposes me to the rage of the elements. My final conclusion?
Water cut and in need of a bath? Go grab a trishaw! |
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Copyright © 2001 Wijeya Newspapers
Ltd. All rights reserved. |
playground
cannot fail to notice these necessary devils of the road. For there
isn't a place without them and they boast of a calibre of drivers
that none can match.
