I used to ride my bike "sensibly", as I would back home. That lasted about a week and I was having 30 near death experiences per kilometre.
I converted to riding Thai style, felt much more comfortable, and reduced the near death experiences to a more manageable 5 per kilometre, on a good day.
If everybody on the dancefloor is doing a tango and you only know how to waltz, you've got a problem.