Pimp My Hump

Now for those who have not watched MTV for a while may not be aware of the show “Pimp My Ride”. Whereby some kids old rundown beaten up car is taken away and rebuilt with all the trimmings and usually a sound system that would enable Helen Keller to hear the lyrics.

But on the desert highway of Jordan, the locals obviously consider having a camel in the back of your pick up as a status symbol. You could imagine the conversation in the gas station

Achmed “ Hey Mo”

Mohammed “ Yo A man”

Achmed “ Yo Mo, nice camel”

Mohammed “ Bitching Man, You should hear this babe moan, when we hit the highway, the wind in our face and this babe just purrs”

Achmed “ Yo Bro, way way cool”

Mohammed “ A man gotta go bro, the bitch in the back may need the little camels room soon and man have you ever tried to get rid of the smell of camel piss from your car.”

And as the sun sets over the highway to Amman, Mohammed and his camel crest the horizon.

Only in the Middle East.

Thusly my day began in Aqaba and ends in Amman, having driven the desert, South to North. Now in any normal country road signs are there to advise you as to the speed limits, however with an election in progress here and basically no trees along the road. Enthusiastic campaign workers have taken it upon themselves to plaster every road sign with photos of their candidate to the point that you cannot read what the speed limit is at any given point on the road.

And as I was waved over by an enthusiastic policeman, he walked up to me with his speed gun grinning knowing that I was done. How do you explain that “Officer I did not know what the speed limit was because … well your desire for democracy precluded me from knowing how fast I could go”

Lapsing into my fluent mother tongue of Australian, I explained with a strewth cobber you would not believe what I am going to say” He responded with a perplexed look and walked to the car behind me waited five minutes passed and he came back and waved me off, obviously the Bazza Mac Kenzie school of elocution paid off.

Speeding ticket avoided , wonder if it had been different if I had a camel in the back of my Mazda 323