Abby, Zoë and Enzo

Walking on or near the street is dangerous.  I am not sure this applies to all of Brazil, or just here in João Pessoa.  Very few traffic signs and signals are actually obeyed.  Nothing really seems obligatory.  Pedestrians do not have any rights on the road, and although they trick you with some cross walks, you can wait forever for someone to decided to stop and let you pass.  I believe the only reason people stop at the traffic lights is because the person in front of them has decided to stop and they don't want to hit the car in front of them.  The stop sign "PARE" here is not obligatory, but a mere suggestion it seems.  I have yet to see someone stop at one of these signs.  I have seen many instances where they will barely slow and then keep going through, giving a small honk of the horn to signify their rebellion.  We saw a minor accident at such an intersection, where no doubt one person just coasted through and hit the other oncoming traffic.  The lady had damage to her car which she then hit the curb and stalled, the other driver, an older man just kept going.  Also, lanes mean nothing here.  When no one else is on the road, the whole thing is yours, left side, right side, middle, whatever, you own that road.  Which means on a two way street, you could have 2 or 3, in the case of motorcycles wide.  Passing and overtaking happens on any street here, regardless of the speed, length or even oncoming traffic, just flash your lights or honk and it is all ok.  Also, when they pass another vehicle here, it is an immediate cut off of the car/truck/object being overtaken, so you have to watch for them and slow down so they can complete their pass on their terms.