Hanoi cab drivers are crazy to Americans

While most of the americans I have traveled with to Hanoi will say that cab drivers are crazy and that a cab drive was a harrowing experience.  I disagree for the most part.  It is the traffic and the seemingly unorganized flow of traffic that seems to be the most distressing.  Most cab drivers (or any drivers for that matter) are actually not crazy or erratic,  but rather doing the best they can to  get where they need to go.  I have never really understood the erratic honking though.  I think it has something to do with warning other people that you are there,  but the funny thing is that everyone knows that someone is there because there is nary a square meter without a vehicle( motor bike ,  taxi, truck, car, bicycle or pedestrian).

Tonight I found a person that really needed to be an erratic taxi cab driver with honking.  He had turrets syndrome and had a huge number of ticks.  He was constantly giving nose snorts / blows,   clicking sounds,  finger cracking and almost whiplash worthy head shakes (think violent Justin Bieber head shake on crack).   Anyway,   the horn honking appeared to b part of his Turrets and while I did not figure out what order he liked to do it,  there were long periods of time when there was no honking followed by  episodes of clicking, head shaking, nostril sounds, finger cracking fit in with random seeming honks.   I realize that this does not explain all honking,  but I know that it really fit for him,  he was a very happy person and he was excited and happy to be driving.