I feel I'm missing something. I'm wondering if there are some road laws related to honking. Every morning when I'm pulling out of my parking garage someone honks at me. I don't stick my nose out into traffic. I don't approach at high velocity and then brake hard trying to scare the person into slowing down. Although my friends love to show me how that techique works. I'm wondering if everyone here learned in driving school to honk whenever you feel threatened. I see people honk if a person just puts his reverse lights on. Before the car even starts to move!! I guess it's still culture shock for me as in the Midwest we only honked at someone if we HAD to get their attention. I feel there is so much honking that it doesn't get my attention anymore....

Jeffo

Jeffo, I may be wrong, but I think the honking is just the driver's way of informing you of his presence. I live on the corner of a blind intersection and drivers sometimes honk when they approach to let anyone on the intersecting street know that a car is coming. It drove me mad at first but then I began to think of it as a courtesy, so I'm much more relaxed about it now.

You honk any time you might not be seen.

If it's foggy and you enter an intersection you honk.

If you think somebody isn't looking your way you honk.

etc

Think of it this way. Which would you rather hear a honk or a screach of metal on metal?

In general, honking is prohibited in most cities, and if you've ever been stopped in traffic, you'll notice that there's little (if any) honking. In the states people would be layingon their horns! Here it doesn't seem to matter if someone stops their car in the middle of the road to talk to a friend...people just seem to accept it.

I agree that the honking might be simply a precaution becasue of your circumstances.

A brief honk means "I see you.. but maybe you don't see me!"

Also useful to keep in mind on narrow roads with tight curves and bad visibility.

In Positano/Amalfi and up around the Alps the tour buses are always going "BEE-bu BEE-bu" when they enter the turns to let you know they may be taking up space in the opposite lane of the carreggiata.

Sorry, Barb, but I have to disagree with you, at least for what concerns Milano. We live across the street from an Esselunga, and I can promise you that the interval from when cars begin to back up waiting to enter the parking garage and when all of the cars begin honking is measured in milliseconds.

Guess things are a little more laid back here in rural Umbria!

Had an interesting honk today. [I thought of rephrasing that, but didn't] A VW Golf decided to overtake me with oncoming traffic about 75 metres away and doing a thousand miles an hour. He honked me to slow down to let him in in front of me.

bamh1: that's right, in Tuscany (and Umbria is not much different) I used to get crazy about how people would stop the car and start chatting while blocking the traffic. Not that there was much traffic to start with, but after a few minutes of middle-of-the-street chatting a line of cars patiently waiting formed anyway.

A very common way to substitute horns, in the city, is a rapid flick of the lights. One or two blinks can indicate anything, from a friendly "Watch out, there's a 'vigili' patrol ahead, checking on the security belts" to "Stupid ruminant, will you get going?!".

quote:

In the states people would be layingon their horns!

I thought that honking is against the law in most US cities. If I remember correctly it seems like New York City had this law 15 or 20 years ago!!!

But it's unenforced, both in US and in Italian cities.

Usually we only hear horns here if it's a wedding or a bike race.

You don't hear the continuous blaring of horns in NYC like you did in the 60's & 70's when traffic is tied up East to West (from river to river). It seems that you hear more horns in Naples now than NYC. But, you are right in that the law is rarely enforced.

Just came back from Sicily and there the horn is used to let people know they are behind you, if they want to pass or on blind curves or if they want to get on the street.

This was really a trip!! I had a wonderful time! It is definately chaotic driving at it's most charming.

In Naples it's a life or death competition..the best charioteer wins.

In the north they drive too fast and cut you off in passing and never thank you when you let them go first.

But in Sicily everyone stops and chats in the street, make bottlenecks...but very courteous ones, everyone takes their turn (as long as you are assertive enough ), pedestrians cross everywhere, any old time..but they thank you with a smile when you don't run them over and are more than happy to give you directions in the middle of the street..and nobody gets mad!! I loved it!!!

While we lived in Sicily I wanted to make and sell car horns that communicated what I precieved as the most common messages Siciliano send via horn
#1 ciao
#2 sono qui
#3 guarda mi
#4 **X--****xxx******* (usually I was the 1 using this 1)
#5 CIAO

We seldom heard horns while awaiting the end of the converstaion in the middle of the street We love the Siciliani

Dear BandR would love to hear some recommendations for a nice place to stay for a week or so in Sicily for next year(where they clean the beach) , 3 pitiful days have wet my appetite...want more!

Pisa is a nightmare too. And honking drives crazy us Italians too!!!
Especially if you live near an intersection or a trafficated road.

I live on a largish road in Rome and many mornings I am woken up by loud continuous honking that goes on for more than 15 minutes. Apparently people double park and then in the morning the person who is parked in has to go to work. So they sit there honking away for ages waiting for the person who parked them in to let them leave. Must be very frustrating - glad I don't own a car! This would drive me nuts, especially if I really had to be somewhere!