Karachi is a pretty great city. We’ve got beaches, we’ve got restaurants that serve meat we’re actually supposed to consume and we’ve got fun places to go to if we want to chill. Unfortunately, we also have a fuck ton of traffic. Commuting in Karachi is a HUGE pain in the ass. The roads are almost always jam packed and a large majority forget how to drive when they’re behind the wheel. Here’s a complete breakdown of what happens when you’re travelling in Karachi and get stuck in the endless traffic:

So you’re in the car, minding your own business

You’re making your way downtown, driving fast, faces pass and you’re work/home bound.

Seems like a pretty great day, too

The sun is shining, the birds are chirping and you feel like nothing could go wrong.

When all of a sudden, in the distance, you see a bunch of cars

And you wonder why a bunch of cars are just standing there. Shouldn’t they be moving?

“Kya yeh signal hai?” you ask naively

“Nahi, yeh signal nahi hai,” you answer your own question, moments later

You start deciding if you should try to take a different route

But there’s a pretty thin window of opportunity to make your decision. So you need to think fast.

Because what if you get stuck there too?

Since the streets of Karachi are almost always swarming with traffic, you really need to weigh out your options carefully.

So you stick to the route you’re on

What could go wrong, right?

And the regret is almost instantaneous 

Because you realize that the only way to get out of the horrible traffic is when the angel of death carries your soul out of the car.

Soon, you find yourself in a seemingly endless procession of cars

Pretty soon, you start feeling like there’s no way out.

It’s pretty much bumper to bumper

Karachi’s traffic HAS to have made some world record. Kaafi insane ho jaata hai. 

The heat doesn’t help either

If there’s anything that makes the situation worse, it’s Karachi’s sweltering heat. AC bhi chalna band ho jaata hai eventually.

You try your best to not murder that one khabees who keeps honking from behind

Matlab, bhai, kahan aag lagi hai? Can’t fly over cars, can we?

Sometimes, you give in to the anger

Dou teen gaaliyan nikal jaati hain from time to time.

As the minutes pass you by, you’ll try to switch lanes, which is a task in itself

And when you do, the one you’ve left will start emptying itself like a child’s bladder

Why does this happen? Every. Single. Time. What is this bullshit baqwas?

Eventually, after wasting an enormous chunk of your life, you make it out into the open 

You never thought you’d see the end of the line, but there you are – alive and kicking.

But it doesn’t matter because you’re already late, sweaty and angry

Your celebration is short lived, because you’re probably super late, drenched in paseena courtesy the perpetual garmi and probably super pissed off as well.

Still, you acknowledge that it could’ve been worse

However, you’re just happy to have made it out. You let out a sigh of relief and carry on forward.

And brace yourself for any other hold up that you may find yourself in within the next 10 minutes

Because agar Karachi main ho, toh traffic har jagah hoga. So you keep on driving – cautious and afraid – hoping against hope that the roads are clear, fully aware deep down that aisa honay nahi wala.

Cover image via: Showcase Productions