Something New

This afternoon as I started on my way to the bakery, after walking up our alley onto the circle near our apartment, I exclaimed out loud to myself--"whoa"--when I looked up and saw this:



Now, perhaps you've scanned this picture and found it most unremarkable, but this is because what startled me so was actually the sight of something quite simple: lanes. You see, for our 2.5 years here--and for how many years before this I don't know--this circle has had no lanes. It was just a big, wide, black hole--an unmarked circle in which as many cars as those driving wanted could squeeze in. What these lanes will change now, though, will be interesting to see, as more than one guest has commented to us that even on roads where there are lane markers, actually using them seemed optional. So, since the point of these new lanes is to use them, perhaps in my surprised reaction to their simple addition was hidden this simple sentiment: Good luck.