I drove today. It was a little harrowing, but nobody was injured! YEAH!!!
The roads here are very narrow, a little wider than one lane back in the States. Many of them are in terrible condition. It is difficult to describe them, it would be smoother driving through a field. There are potholes everywhere, some of them almost a foot deep and very wide. The parking spots are almost the same width as the car, but just a little smaller (or so they seem).
Driving on the right side is also a challenge. Everything is on the other side. You shift gears with your left hand - I tried to shift my door handle (the right side) many times today. The turn signal and windshield wipers are also reversed. Most of the time today I signaled a turn by turning on my windshield wipers. So far I have only made one other driver visably angry with me. I am sure that will change!
Actually we did pretty well. The car is very wide, (I imagine driving a tank feels the same way, or maybe a battleship) the roads are very narrow and there are pedestrians EVERYWHERE. I learned that Kenya leads the world in automobile fatalities most of them are pedestrians. They have no experience with how long it takes a car to brake, so they simply step right out in front of you.
Night driving is the craziest. There are hardly any lights anywhere, and there are still so many people walking, you don't see them until right up on them. But we are learning.
Lexi said, "Do you know why it is so bumpy here? Because of the huge rocks everywhere." Nicole and I agreed. Nicole didn't want to try driving today. She also decided that she prefers riding in the back between the kids to riding on the passenger side. That way she doesn't know how close we are to people, the side of the road, sidewalks, etc. Lexi asked why she was sitting on "Daddy's side of the car but not driving" I told her I would love to switch sides with Mommy. Mommy said no - but she will eventually.
The missionary who road with us the first time to give us directions said, "See, it only took you 12 minutes to get here." It seemed like 3 hours! Oh well, trial by fire. For the record, people who are thinking in one time zone should probably not be driving in another.
More musings to come I am sure.
2 comments:
It's GREAT to read your comments, and we love staying in touch with you this way and seeing "our" world through your eyes! Kudos for driving so soon! We are in reverse culture shock with NO pedestrians. YEAY for the TANK of a Speed the Light vehicle.... we pray it holds together and doesn't completely fall apart at any point in time! It may have bad memories of the way we, er, drove it?!?! 12 minutes is impressive for your maiden voyage across town !! We are still in awe of how the Lord led you to where you are, and humbled to be a small part of your world even though we're not there with you. We love you guys!
So glad you made it alright! Hope your having a great time and settling in ok. We look forward to seeing pictures and hearing about your adventures!
Love you!
Bob, Louise and Angela Browne
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