Elizabeth Atkinson, from Carhampton, who is

living in the Indian city of Udaipur for two months, sends us the fourth of her weekly

letters reflecting on the unexpected similarities between life in the state of Rajasthan and West Somerset. It begins:

"It’s what drives English visitors to India mad more easily than anything else - the honking of horns; the stench of exhaust fumes from motorbikes and tutktuks (motorised rickshaws); the carefree disregard of traffic lanes; the bulging, over-filled loads on every type of vehicle; and the driving - the crazy weaving in and out between lorries, motorbikes, cows and pedestrians.

Yet the more I observe, and the more time I spend casually walking the streets as passing wheels don’t run over my toes, or being taken in tuktuks (with only inches to spare) through and round any number of obstacles, the more admiration I have for Indian driving.

There is an extraordinary degree of respect embedded in it. .... And along with the respect, there is a high level of skill. ..."