Taxco is not a small town, yet it is small enough that the residents (the permanent ones anyway) seem to know everyone. There are no traffic lights in Taxco, though there are traffic police that stop traffic on busy roads so pedestrians can cross. Other than that, it is pretty much a first come, first go philosophy, or the typical Mexican attitude of if you can squeeze your car into the space, do so. Add that to the general steepness of the terrain and as you can imagine this philosophy comes with a lot of horn honking and occasionally (amazing really how rarely), scraped paint,  broken lights, and shouting.

But having no traffic lights does not mean that there are no street signs. This being a colonial town, with the exception of the main highways into and through town, the streets are as they have been for centuries made of cobblestone.The road builders, set each stone by hand, and sometimes, using the three colors available (black, white, and red) take the opportunity to add some creative variety to their jobs by placing a pattern into the pavers.

There are the typical white lines down the middle, supposedly the line demarks two lanes but usually they serve more as a guide for one car, as if it could not get around the bend without straddling the line.

Other times, the lines form patterns — leaves, geometrics, even intricate pictures  in stone outside businesses or in the plazuelas.

Here are a few of my favorite street signs. enjoy the show.

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