Driving in Europe

 After nearly a month of driving in Europe, I'm ready to return to the USA.  Our villages are not cute, pretty, historic, or quaint.  Our roads are wide, boring, efficient (except in some big cities, but BIG compared to European streets). 

Our road systems were designed for the most part in the last century with lots of space.  The European cities, towns and villages are at least hundreds of years old.  Many towns were built close to the only path through them sometimes established by the Romans and only be as wide as a cart or 4 Roman soldiers (average height only 5'6").

So that's why driving OFF the Autostradas, Autobahn, or Autoroutes is a step back in time.  Where you need to have a VERY good knowledge of the width of your car down to the millimeter.  Sharp corners through small villages, and sometimes roads narrowed to allow one car to wait till the oncoming car has past demand one pays attention.  Of course, if I make a mistake which upsets a French driver (or a Belgian), they can blame the Dutch - plates on the RENTAL.  Today, unlike 50 years ago when I drove through France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria and Germany and Belgium, we have GPS!  No more maps!!!

I'm driving a new SEAT - a Spanish version of a FIAT which is generally an excellent car (acceleration, braking, handling).  It has eliminated every button, switch with the exception of some steering column and steering wheel controls.  So I have ONE Screen which has 5 buttons at the bottom for Navigation, Radio, Phone, Settings, etc.

 It has more voice commands, warnings, controls, algorithms, lights, etc., etc.  It's like having all functions in your entire house accessible on ONE SCREEN on your cell phone.  Turn on THIS light - menu, sub menu, subsub menu.  Meanwhile turn on the water in bathroom 2 to 57 degrees C, and check on the roast in the oven at 420 degrees F, answer the door bell, OOOPS!  Problem - water in the children's bath is overflowing!  Quick! Turn off the valve!  Menu, plumbing, bath3, tub1,  flow 2, temp 4 (out of 10).  Oh no!! the screen is frozen on stereo in the kitchen!!!!

This car also has a lot of control over the path of the car.  If you are on Cruise Control and doing 110 and a car pulls in front of you, the car senses the distance as WRONG.  And slows down to avoid tail gating.  Of course on roads with a roundabout every 250 yds in small towns, the cruise control is useless.  

IN 600 YARDS, TAKE THE SECOND EXIT TO CONTINUE ON ROUTE D18 TOWARD AIX-LE-SALAUD.  - CONTINUE ON THE D437 FOR 12 KILOMETRES AND MAKE A U-TURN.  All In a English accent who pronounces Paris as PA-REESE, and Strasbourg as STRASBOO. (I could change into any of 15 other languages!)


Of course my Android phone can communicate to the car, but just like a Scot and a American some things get lost in TRANSLATION.

She is really cheeky.  Warning me to put on seat belts, keep in the middle of the lane (even when I AM in the center), etc., etc.  The other day when I go something  RIGHT I swore I heard the car change into a Spanish voice - Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole.    Once in frustration with the whole screen I switched to my phone.  The car suddenly switched to an American voice - we ALL know that voice.

The other night, I was locking the car in the dark.  As I started to walk away I saw a white circle with the word HOLA at the center.  I looked around to see if Batman was going to appear.  Then I discovered a small light projecting this message from the passenger side mirror.   Lifted my heart.


So 47 tolls later, 

nearly 3,000Km, twenty-five U-turns  in front of amazed drivers, several close calls at speeds nearly 15mph (or 25kph) on pedestrian/bike crowded streets with electric trams bearing down on me in the wrong lane, - I'm looking forward to NOT DRIVING.

Comments

  1. Donald DadeyJuly 25, 2021 at 8:30 PM

    So funny! Yes, and lets not talk about the size of parking spaces. Also, I still know some people in Switzerland who are up in arms with the autoroute from Lausanne to Geneva is still 2 lanes each way..... and if construction, down to 1 lane.. a scandal! They DO have a very good rail system! LOL!

    ReplyDelete
  2. ArleneJuly 25, 2021 at 9:40 PM

    Loving the updates !

    ReplyDelete

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