I'm learning to drive in Switzerland. I thought it would be a good idea to learn now because I have plenty of free time and am earning a little money to pay for lessons. I never learnt when I lived in the UK, so luckily driving on the 'wrong' side isn't a problem.
However, there are a lot of rules to remember. When you see a road to your right and there are no white lines on the ground, the cars to your right have priority and you have to stop for them. In practice, lots of people forget this and cars either wait for each other while both drivers try to remember what to do, or beep at each other if both try to go at the same time!
When you drive round a roundabout, you should check all your mirrors. To remember how to do this, I often count them aloud - one, two, three - then a second glance at your blind spot when you're in the roundabout. One friend came driving with me and after about an hour asked why on earth I was counting. He had passed his test so long ago, he couldn't remember ever having to check three mirrors!
Driving still seems scary to me so I drive quite slowly. I also don't know the countryside roads very well and don't know what's coming up round the corner or over the next hill. I drive slowly so I feel safe, but my driving instructor tells me to speed up or cars will bump into me from behind or try to overtake somewhere dangerous. So driving slowly is just as dangerous as driving fast!
I'm not a very practical person so learning to drive has been a challenge. I don't have a lot of confidence and find it quite demotivating to do something that doesn't come naturally to me. To make driving more fun and interesting, I learn in Swiss German, so my instructor gives me instructions in Swiss. This way I've tricked myself into enjoying driving and hopefully will pass the test!
Are you looking forward to learning to drive? Do you think we really need to learn to drive now people are working on self-driving cars?
