Learning how to drive

I haven't been updating this blog as often as I ought to. Just a short update here, to let everyone know that I'm still alive over here :P

Hmm.. what have I been doing these days?

I've been taking my driving lessons for some time now (I have yet to fulfill the 15 hours minimum of driving practice). I'm hoping to get my driver's license soon but I'm not  very confident that I'll pass in one go. I have tiny fears while driving on the road. It's not all that easy and fun as many thought it would be.. well, for me that is. It'll definitely ease my parents' burdens if I could drive.

Well, here in Brunei, all driving learners must drive and learn with a MANUAL car. Manual car scares me! An automatic car has only two pedals -the brakes and the accelerator. Meanwhile, in a manual car, there's an extra pedal - the clutch, other than than the 2 mentioned before.

I hate stick driving! For some of you that don't know, stick driving means driving a manual car. It's like you have to change the gear stick all the time and while you change, you got to press on the clutch. Also, if you don't have good handling on the clutch.. oh boy, you're gonna have a hard time driving a manual car because your car will stall like crazy!!

I stalled far too many times during my first lesson. It was my first time ever behind the wheels (yes, I'm a law abiding citizen, not secretly driving out and about without a license) and driving a manual is quite a handful or in this case, feetful? :P

Your hands and feet must coordinate together. Some people will tell me that it's easy just because playing the piano, which I do, also requires hand and foot coordination. It's very different and much more difficult from playing the piano. While driving on the road, looking out for cars, you also have to move your hands, one changing the gears and another one on the steering wheel.

When on the slopes, you've got to listen to the correct engine sound to change pedals so that your car wouldn't fall backwards. While parking, you've got to learn how to estimate the space correctly . On the roundabouts, make sure you don't stall, drive and signal correctly when changing lanes. All these... I haven't yet a perfect grasp but I'm still practicing and I'm sure one day I'll be as good as all the other experienced drivers out there.

When driving, you not only have to consider your own safety but also the safety of your passengers and other road users as well. There are many road bullies on the road and I've met quite a few of them while practicing driving on the main roads other than practicing in the driving circuit at the Land Transport Department. They just cut your lane without signalling in a really fast speed and all... and that sometimes make my driving instructor go mad as well. :( 

While on this topic, I'll apologise to the other road users that I've met while practicing driving. Sorry for being so slow, sorry for lacking in better driving skills and confidence, sorry for being a possible road hazard. Thank you to all the nice drivers for understanding a learning driver - for making way and slowing down or even flashing your headlights, giving us good opportunities to proceed especially at the U-turns whenever you see a practice car on the road. Nice drivers do help me gain more confidence when using the roads.

To all the drivers out there, be nice to the learning and new drivers (not referring to myself only but also to the rest of the new road users). You were also once a rookie driver. It'll help us, the new drivers, a lot. To the nice and kind drivers that I've encounter, thank you so much and keep on looking out for the new drivers. It could be irritating at times, but your patience does helps and would not intimidate the new drivers as much as being on the road is already a scary experience especially for first-timers.

To a certain friend, Jonathan, who tried to change my mind about stick driving... nope, I still hate stick driving as much as I hate it in the first place. I'll stick to auto driving when I get my driver's license. :)

This short update turned out to be such a long-winded post. Sorry about that. I do get carried away at times while writing a post. :P

Drive safe :)

Hannah