To the left, to the left…

Sing it Beyonce! I love it when this song comes on the car radio. Not only is it a great pick-me-up, but it gives me that all-important island reminder to “keep left” while driving. “To the left, to the left” I sing as I truck along.

Let’s take a moment to discuss the auto aspects of island life…

What a mess! Yes, one must drive on the left side of the road. But since the driver and steering wheel are on the same side as in the mainland, there’s no circumstantial reminder of this. Just the occasional side on the side of the road – “Keep Left.” Initially this required a great deal of concentration. It took nearly two weeks before I felt comfortable enough to adjust the radio station while driving. The hardest part for me was the mental gymnastics of making a right-hand turn: I kept fearing that a car would come along behind me and crash into my passenger side as I was turning, but of course this wouldn’t happen because the traffic is coming at me, not behind me. My brain really struggled with this one, but I’m happy to say that driving on the left now feels natural to me. In fact, sometimes when I am driving along and there’s no other traffic, there’s a mischievous part of me that wants to cross over to the right side of the road just to see what it feels like. So rebellious. I will admit that I do still have slip-ups and fall back into old habits. The other day I was tired and driving around a parking lot-type area searching for a space when I looked up to find a truck coming right at me. Totally calm, I think, “Huh.? That’s strange. That truck is coming right at me… Oh, yeah… I need to be on the other side of the road! Oops!” I was embarrassed. I hadn’t done that in a so long. Crazy tourist.

But all that left/right stuff doesn’t tell the whole story at all. Apparently, everyone feels entitled to the road. Driving along one will find chickens or maybe a goat or two occupying a little chunk of your lane. A lot of people are on foot, so drivers have to be especially careful of those walking on the “side” of the road. That’s okay, but I’ve frequently seen someone standing in the middle of the road for reasons I fail to understand. They aren’t crossing the road, mind you, just standing there. And these drivers absolutely do not obey the center line marker at all. At all! You have all that space over there, buddy, use it! This side is MINE! My favorite, though, is the bull. Yes, that’s right, the bull. He’s beautiful (I’ll post a picture when I can get one) and he lives somewhere between here and the other resort where the rest of the girls live. He is not fenced or tied and is often seen eating on the side of the road. Sometimes, however, he takes a notion to cross. He’s done this to me twice, of course requiring me to stop, and I swear to you that each time he pauses right in front of my car and turns his head to look at me. If he could speak, it is quite clear that he would then say, “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Then he slowly turns his head back and continues his journey to the other side. Bizarre.

Until listening to a discussion of such matters last night, I thought that there was no such thing as a traffic violation on this island. The speed limits are posted, but as far as I can tell they don’t mean anything and I’ve never seen someone pulled over for speeding. People will park anywhere, seemingly without fear of punishment. They will cross over the solid middle line to pass cars who are already speeding (mind you, the highest speed limit I’ve seen is 35). And it’s not even illegal to have an open alcohol container in the car. When leaving the bar they’ll ask if you want one for the road! Yikes! But, guess what. There is one violation that does exist and is strictly enforced. No cell phones while driving. Go figure. And during the discussion last night I learned that if one irritates the police officer giving you a ticket, then you are sure to walk away with not one ticket, but 3 or 4 or 5… And further, you will keep getting them until you go to the police station and apologize.

This is, in fact, a different place.