Right Hand Driving

There were certainly many adjustments to basic living when we moved to Japan, but driving has definitely got to be up there on the list of most difficult.  So much so, that my wife - who never really liked driving anyways - ultimately gave it up in favor of public transportation while we are here in Japan.

I'd say that besides the obvious like adjusting to triangular stop signs or signs written in Japanese, there are two huge differences between driving in Japan and driving in the States.  First, the size of the roads.  Japan is a crowded country that makes efficient use of space.  That's why when it comes to the size of the roads, there is really no excess room.  You have to get used to using your mirrors more to check your spacing, and there are even times when you have to gauge the space ahead to decide whether or not you should pull over for oncoming traffic to share the road.  Remember the Seinfeld episode when Kramer buys a stretch of highway and then paints over the lane stripes effectively making one huge lane out of two lanes?  After which, he drives down the highway giddy with all the space as he gracefully swerves from left to right.  Let's just say, that's how I felt during my return trip to the States last Christmas.  So much space, I didn't know what to do with it.

Second, the cars are right hand drive and drive on the left hand side of the road.  This was particularly difficult for lane spacing and making turns - especially turning right across oncoming traffic.  Inside the car is another story.  Everything is reversed.  From the shifter to the wiper controls to the blinkers, everything is on the opposite side.  So, inevitably, I made the mistake of turning the wipers on when I wanted to make a turn several times before I got the hang of it.

All these adjustments were especially difficult at work when I had to do test drives on the high speed test tracks.  Try down-shifting coming off a high banked curve in a right hand drive car going 100 kph.  Not easy.  That's why last week during a test drive, I couldn't help but laugh to myself as I watched the windshield wipers inexplicably turn on when my Japanese co-workers were turning out onto the test track with the American left hand drive car we were testing.  It was a comforting reminder of how much we've accomplished here and how close we are to the subtle comforts of home.