Wednesday, November 01, 2006
My driving test
I took my driving test today. I passed!!! I’m now all legal. It was quite an ordeal though. First we had a meeting all day long (8am-4pm) where everyone just sat around and complained. Ugh! We left and I was already tired and stressed from that encounter but I had to take advantage of the day because Pablo is returning to the states this week and I would have to wait a long time to take the test again.
Everyday after work the drivers and cars of HAI drive everyone to their respective houses—recolha is the name for this. This is a perk that no one wants to mess with. So when I said that I needed a car to take my driving test there was some protest from people still in the office after the meeting. Pablo’s solution was that I would do the recolha and drive everyone home. Yikes!!! Not only do I have to take the test, I have to drive with 8 people in a hulking Land Cruiser through the potholed streets of Beira driving on the left-hand side of the street. Oh well, I’m always up for a challenge. I dropped everyone off safe and sound and there were not even any near misses. I weaved in and out of the people, kids, chickens, goats, potholes, crazy drivers, bicycalists etc.!! All of this from the right-hand side of the manual car. Yay!!! I think the combination of learning to drive from my father (who was great but crazy), driving in Manhattan, Brazil, and finally in Cambridge on the left-hand side of the road, set me up well for this challenge. It was like playing frogger with the controls upside down. Whoohooo!!!
Everyday after work the drivers and cars of HAI drive everyone to their respective houses—recolha is the name for this. This is a perk that no one wants to mess with. So when I said that I needed a car to take my driving test there was some protest from people still in the office after the meeting. Pablo’s solution was that I would do the recolha and drive everyone home. Yikes!!! Not only do I have to take the test, I have to drive with 8 people in a hulking Land Cruiser through the potholed streets of Beira driving on the left-hand side of the street. Oh well, I’m always up for a challenge. I dropped everyone off safe and sound and there were not even any near misses. I weaved in and out of the people, kids, chickens, goats, potholes, crazy drivers, bicycalists etc.!! All of this from the right-hand side of the manual car. Yay!!! I think the combination of learning to drive from my father (who was great but crazy), driving in Manhattan, Brazil, and finally in Cambridge on the left-hand side of the road, set me up well for this challenge. It was like playing frogger with the controls upside down. Whoohooo!!!
# posted by Molly Louise @ 9:44 AM 
