Some guideines on how to cross the road in China

1. Don't.

2. If you have to, DO NOT cross when the little man is red. This is when the cars play chicken with eachother, weaving in and out and almost crashing into eachother. The traffic lights at junctions and crossroads don't make any difference to controling their movement. The general rule for a driver is if you can see a gap between two cars, no matter how small, then go for it. They have no concept of lanes.

3. When the little man turns green the real fun begins. This is when the cars play chicken with the pedestrians. It can be quite scary at first, but after a few days it becomes a sort of game. A green man does not mean that the cars will stop in front of you, but rather that they are obliged to avoid you. The safest way to cross the road is to start walking when there's nothing coming and then to keep walking at a slow and steady pace all the way until you reach the other end. That way the cars can see you from a long way back and once the fisrt one starts to swerve around you the rest will follow like a snake.

4. DO NOT RUN! That way the cars can't predict where you'll be and there's so many of them on the road that you'll never find a gap big enough to run through in time. Just go slowly and steadily and walk with confidence.

5. Use Chinese people as bumpers. Three in the front, two to the rear and one to each side of you is a good choice for beginners.

6. Enjoy it. It's more nail-biting than most themepark rides and when you know how to do it safely it's a lot of fun!