Today I was heading to our corporate HQ on the bike, ambient temperature was about 33 C. Its hot but not that hot. So here is what happened.

Cue: Theme Song from Cruel Intentions

I ride past a traffic cop on the road. The window is split just enough for em to stick out his cig, the guy had a look on his face that said (*Fuck another boring work day*). He was parked in front a vehicle that had decided to violate our lovely traffic laws by parking on side of the road blocking an entire lane.

What was obviously an foreign labor (low wage) dude (Indian/Paki/Bengal etc.. by the looks of it) exits the cops vehicle, wearing a bright orange jump suit. He picks up a steel tire lock, and proceeds to mount it on the offending vehicles that are parked in that lane.

The only think that came to mind was “WTF????? Ya3nie 7ata el-shir6a be 7atunlehom khadam?” (Translates into wtf, even the cops get maids?)

What is our country coming too? When will the day come that every wealthy citizen will have his “Personal Assistant” to do our work for us? Heck I might as well hire one now, he can sit at my desk, do my daily job, while I chill at home and play World of Warcraft, at the end of the month Ill givem his KD45 from my paycheck. And thats it.

I thought I would never see a day such as this. Cops with Maids that do their work for them. Whats next?

I was all excited about this weeks trip, cause I was going to drive to Bahrain using my car, following a convoy of 3 other cars. Havent you ever been in another country and thought to yourself; “Damn I wish I had my car on these roads”. This would be especially true for those that own sports cars, or HD Off Road Vehicles. However 3 days prior my trip I had to take care of a few things.

1. My sports car however had a flat tire, was extremely dirty, needed an oil change, all four tires changed, and a new battery. Since I’ve had my bike, I completely neglected my car.
   1. I got a Malaysian car battery, since no one including the dealer stocks my battery size
   2. 4 x Toyo wheels (sub KD 100)
   3. Most of the work was done by Express Group Int. when the garage handed me the keys, it looked brand spanking new.
2. Though I have a Garmin Nuvi 250, I needed the Middle East Map, picked this up for KD 45 from Seas Deserts Group. Their located in the vicinity of City Center, you can reach em at T: 82 22 88
3. Packed stuff I would need for the next 3 days.
   1. 3 x : pants, shirts, boxers, socks, under-shirts
   2. a light jacket
   3. bathroom stuff
   4. detol (heh, trust me on this one, if i could I would disinfect the entire”motel”)
   5. iPod
   6. Laptop
   7. 2 x Mobile Phones (always keep a spare on trips, you never know when you could use one)
   8. GPS Unit, car lighter charger, HUD suction cup type stand
   9. Passport

All set! …… Not!

I was under the impression that I have renewed my cars insurance and registration, but forgot that I did not complete the last step. Which is actually pick up my new Car Registration Card (Dafter). Its 5:15pm, and Im still at the Garage in Al Rai. What do i do?

I simply stepped into my car sped off to Jabriya Vehicle Testing (fa7s al-fanni), turns out the dept. that hands you the Registration was moved to Medan Hawalli. So get going, upon arrival, I was shocked and disappointed,  since it was wednesday, and the last working day this week, it was insanely crowded.  Simply being at any government building makes me nervous, cause you always run into complications. I was ready to give up and just go home.

An old man behind one of the counters, spotted me, and beckoned me to come to him. He knew I was lost dazed and confused. He took my papers, (ignoring the masses of angry trolls behind me), told me to pay a late fee of KD5, and come back to him. I did that, and came back, again he skipped the que, and took my paper work, he was about to print the Registration Cards, when he noticed that my Vehicle Inspection papers were no longer valid. The last vehicle Inspection I made was in 2007. Were in 2008, so he told me I had to redo the vehicle inspection, cause the computer wont accept it otherwise. I looked at my watch it was 6pm, I could still make it, I had hope.

I arrived at Jabriya Vehicle Inspection center at 6:15pm, it was closed. =( I was so disappointed, and shocked, while at the same time not knowing what to do, I involuntarily walked in circles in the parking lot, going through all my options again. When a guy in a uniform passed by, I asked him:

“When does the place close?”

Cop: “5:15pm at the very latest”

So I thought well it seems it was a lost cause right from the get go. I thanked the guy, and kept walking in circles. *Light bulb*

me: “Do you know anyone inside?”

cop: “I work here, of course I know people inside”

me: “Ok heres the deal, Ill tell you my situation, and Id appreciate your time no matter what the outcome”

cop: “ok… shoot”

me: “I have an entrance exam in Bahrain on Saturday, and really need my cars registration for that, all the paperwork stamps etc. is done, but its expired. think you can help me out?”

cop: “I’ll ask the guys, and let you know”

2 minutes later the cop calls me in. Turns out I was talking to the guy in charge, and to my luck all the people needed to help me with this were there too. (I have to get them something from Bahrain for their help)

The did all the paper work for me, I hastily thanked them, before I left the guy in charge pulled me aside, reminded me that I need to have the insurance date changed, (theres an insurance place right across the street).
I did that, and practically teleported myself and my vehicle back to Medan Hawally Traffic Dept.  Where the old man took my papers again, smiled, and said it was done.

The moral of this story is: There are some decent people in the Traffic Dept, even though by their looks you would think otherwise. You know the old saying “Dont judge a book by its cover”

End result, looks like Ill make the trip anyways =)

I woke up this morning refreshed and very excited, because I was fully confident that I was going to pass my test.

….

……..

…………

So I passed the written test, it was easy and took about a total of 5 minutes as its only 2 pages long, consisting of traffic signs. Nothing complicated….

* Drum Rolls *

The actual bike driving test however I failed. Not due to lack of riding skills, I failed because I followed the officers instructions, that was my mistake.

I was on lane 2, and the officer asked me to move my bike to lane 1, so I asked him if he wanted me to go the long way round. The answer was I could simply backup in my lane and head for lane 1. I knew that If I did that on a “real” road it would be a traffic violation. So I asked him a 2nd time to confirm, “Can I go from here, without a problem” and the officer said I could. That right there was the mistake, and hence I was failed.

When I confronted the commanding officer, he simply told me, even though I verified with the officer it was not enough. One must clearly mention the fact that its a traffic violation prior to proceeding even if instructed to do so by an officer of the law.

Tune next time same time same place….