My Himalayan Odyssey Part 6 – BRO On The Hilly Highways

A road trip in the Himalayan foothills involves many things – adventure, fun, great views and most uniquely to India – road signs from our BRO. That is the Border Roads Organization and not Big Brother. So what is so special about these signs you may well ask? Is it the Indian penchant for misspelling or malapropism on our signage?  Well… the BRO signs are relatively free from misspellings (though there are a few exceptions)… but what makes them unique is the humorous and appealing manner in which drivers on the mountainous roads are reminded about road safety rules and principles. Take a gander at a few… (Images courtesy http://www.peeppeepdon’tsleep.com, http://www.fabsn.com and http://www.myvisionmyway.com). There are a few that warn one against drunk driving and try their hand at rhyming while they are at it…

Then there are the ones about daydreaming that will appeal to the creative ones amid us..

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My favourites are the ones devoted to curves… of the roads and not the sort that you may occassionally find walking on the roads… the adventurous spellings just adds to their charm!

Then there are those which don’t make any bones about the dangers ahead. The warning is loud and clear. Proceed but beware …

This was obviously written by a male chauvinist at the BRO. But then… on second thought, maybe he is addressing it to the second man sitting in the car and not to the driver’s wife who is quietly fuming cause the men are refusing to ask for directions.

Then these ones which keep your family in mind even if you are willing to forget about them or more specifically, are up in the mountains in order to forget about them. Well, tough luck, the BRO is not going to let you forget your loved ones back home.

Then there are the random ones! Like an apologetic BRO –

The mysterious and profound ones that can cause you to drive off the road in to a ravine, while you try to decipher them –

The ones that touch on luuurrvve –

The ones boasting the ubiquitous ‘cheeky’ misspelling –

The ones with good advice that can be kept in mind even if you are not driving on a mountain road –

The self-pat-in-the-back one

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And finally my favourite one –

Happy Driving Darling! 🙂