Gramps' Web Site - Bangladesh Gallery OTR - Drivers   HOME Bangladesh Gallery    00-Arrival    10-Install Panel    20-On The Road      21-Commerce      22-Ferry Crossing      23-Road Work      24-Drivers      25-Field Work      29-Nasim's Baby    30-At Home      31-Dhaka Streets      32-Around Dhaka    40-Heart Attack    50-Floods    60-Bangla Wedding    70-Signs    80-Portrates    90-Last Day    Bangla Journal    Sign Gramps'     DreamBook    “guestbook”     The heroes of our work in Bangladesh were our drivers. They had to be ready to go early, have the cars serviced, and they were the last home at night. They often put in 16-hour days, sometimes 18-hour days. They were mostly good spirited, reckless, and sometimes sleepy at the wheel. They loved to pass busses on narrow roads just to see if they could dodge oncoming traffic.     My favorite driver was Jalil. He began as taciturn and grumpy. He didn't like me at all. After several long trips with just the two of us and several substantial tips, we became good companions if not friends. He was by far the best "driver" of the pool and the hardest working. Also, he gambled less and won more than the others. Click on a thumb to see a larger version. This is Jalil in the driver's seat - in the RIGHT hand side of the van. We drove on the left, mostly, depending on his mood. Here we are dodging an oncoming bus, that was passing a rickshaw which you can't see, after we'd passed a car and headed straight for the rickshaw. And, there's another bus coming at us on the wrong side. This was common. We came across two wrecked trucks one day, with a crowd of people blocking the road. Without television and little radio, things like this provided great entertainment in the countryside. I got out to take a picture when the driver jumped out and started yelling and waiving his hands at me. He ran to the nearest truck ... ... and climbed on top so I could take his picture. It was a big deal when I gave him a copy back at TWX. All of the other drivers wanted one too. One of the things drivers did often was fix flats. The roads weren't so bad but the tires were terrible. They would re-groove old tires and drive them until the threads were exposed. You can see the kind of help the drivers got when we had flats. Lots of people appeared from nowhere to watch and offer advice. "Remember, Gramps loves you and wants you to be happy."