Russel Beattie tells about an incident where he told off someone in Spanish for blowing smoke in his face. He adds a PS to defend himself for what some might see as being affended at local customs (i.e. smoking). Well, when you live someplace, doing as the Romans do, telling people off for being rude is, well, it's what the Romans do.

Driving in Turkey, honking at drivers who do rude things is part of Turkish driving, so I've learned to do it. In the US and northern Europe honking is something you only do when you're really pissed off, but in Mediterranean countries, it's much more casual. Drivers honk just to let pedestrians and other cars know they're coming by, a reasonable precaution in a place where "defensive driving" is an oxymoron.

For those of us from calmer driving cultures, learning to honk freely takes a while. People cut you off *all* *the* *time*, so if you get really steamed about it you're going to lead a very stressful existence. I've learned to take it as normal. I honk and maybe flash my lights, and if the other driver does something particularly egregious, like driving through a redlight to cut me off, I might even wave my hand in exaggerated bewilderment. Just like a native.