OMG, driving on the RIGHT side of the road
At first I was nervous about driving so I let Steve take the lead because he has done it before. The problem with that was it was decades ago and that gap combined with nerves meant he was jumpy and slow and grumpy and did I say slow.
Anyone that knows us, knows I do most of the driving in Oz because I can talk & drive at the same time. Steve cannot.
So after a harrowing 10minute drive from the Murcia airport to our hotel in the dark and 40mins of driving along the coast near Cartagena I was ready to take over.
We posted a video of me driving for the first time. Steve said I was nervous to start with but then let it all go and just drove. I think the trick is to not think about it too much. Yes, they drive on the wrong side but now I’m doing it and that’s that. Just keep to the right😉
Roads in Spain
The only time we have had an issue with Google maps so far is navigating us to the castle Fortaleza Del Sol??? We were happily driving along, almost there. We drive into one of the numerous tunnels in the region and the map-lady said “You have arrived at your destination” WHAT?😳 The castle was directly above us but the map told us it was in the tunnel. Whoops. That reminds me. I have to report that error to Google Maps.
We swapped to the iPhone map app & found our way up the hill. Easy.
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Steve is great at navigating through the spaghetti monsters, massive five-exit roundabouts and counting down the kilometres until our exit.
Plus, he is jumping less and less as he gets used to me driving like a local.
Zero road rage
The way people drive here is worth mentioning too. People stick to the right lane unless overtaking and there is no agro, road rage, impatience or stupidity. Okay, so there are the odd speedy drivers and when they overtake and then move back into the right lane they don’t leave enough of a gap but overall they are really good.
We tend to avoid driving into the centre of town unless it’s to the hotel☺️. If not sure we park at a shopping centre a little way out of the centre of town and walk or taxi it in until we feel comfy with the area.
My parking is pretty basic, in & out of bays. I was lucky doing a parallel park with room for two cars so that made it less nerve-racking😆
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My fabulous drive straight in parallel-parking.
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At one point I suggested Steve lie down in the back seat he was so nervous about the drop, height, fear of slipping off the edge etc. Not sure if I have mentioned it before…Steve has a fear of heights.
I was patient, drove slowly and endeavoured to distract him but with little success. Locals or Spanish tourists went fast up and down the hill like it was flat grounds. We simply took our time, worked together to navigate the winding narrow road, stopped for other cars. That makes it sounds like it was easy…it wasn’t. There were frantic and upset words used before we found our balance. Saying that, we are still alive and together in this adventure.
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