The Driver, The Driving and The Cars

On my way from the airport to the hotel in Mexico City I was chatting with the driver and he told me some fun facts about Mexico City - and yes, the driver does speak english and I observed some things:

1.  The traffic in Mexico City is really bad in the mornings - between 8 and 10 O'clock - and in the afternoon - between 6 and 9 O'clock.
2. When we say traffic is really bad, we mean it. When the cars move people drive very aggressively;
3. Anyone can get a driver's license in mexico as long as they are 18 years old or older;
4. There is no driving test required for a person to get a license;
5. There is no eye test either;
6. Even tough people are required to wear their seat belts only a very small minority does it;
7. The majority of the cars on the street are really old - 10 + years;
8. There is a mandatory test for cars older than 3 years to check its level of pollutants;
9. This test is done every 6 months;
10. Car insurance is not mandatory, therefore most people don't have it;
11. If you're in a car crash it is likely that the other person won't be able to afford the repair and other costs if they caused it;
12. There is a complete disregard for all the traffic laws we're used to - people don't stay in their lanes, no one uses the blinkers, people turn left and right as they please and they honk their horns all the time;
13. If an ambulance or fire truck is coming your way, watch out. There will be 3 or 4 cars following it to beat traffic.

It is quite an adventure to drive in Mexico City. Even for me, and I'm used to drive in the Sao Paulo traffic. So buy car insurance, pray to the Virgin of Guadalupe and be super careful! then let me know how it goes.