Most of the cars I encounter are tiny little Puegots or Renaults. They line the streets and sometimes the sidewalks. When we go to pick up the kids at school, we just drive up over the curb and park wherever we can find space. Anywhere there’s concrete, really. Life is just more fun when you can park wherever you want.
Driving is also amusing. They have more roundabouts here than I have ever seen. They have more of them than they do stop signs or lights. And using a roundabout is an adventure all its own. There are the daring drivers who yield only if a car is about to hit them, and there are the cautious drivers who brake a little bit before dashing out just like everyone else.
Both of my family’s cars are stick shifts, so I had to practice driving one before I came. The combination, though, of driving a standard and driving on French streets is a little intimidating. It’s yet another adventure, but one which I hope not to embark upon until sometime next week (preferably later).
Glad you’ve arrived safely!
Thanks for keeping this blog — I’m loving the adventure.
At least you aren’t in India- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjrEQaG5jPM
Oh, Jolly! You really know how to put things in perspective!
Mrs. BadgerMum, I’m glad you’re reading. If only you would post on your blog… then I could read about your adventure! ;)
Oh, my adventure! Yes.
I’ve half a mind to set up a blog just for real life friends to talk about that with — I’m just feeling weird about blogging about it, because it’s so precious to me… and you know how freaks tend to come out of the woodwork when you post on something really important.
I understand. It’s hard to know what to write about, since I never know who’s reading. I think it’s possible to have a password-protected blog. It might be something to look into.