Here are some things that have surprised me living in Scotland:
I hadn’t appreciated how much I used sound as a cue for my spacial orientation. I caught on pretty quickly to look right first before crossing a road, but I often jump while crossing, because the sound of where cars are make me sense that I’m in danger. I’m using the sound cues I’d used my whole life, and those never switched to UK right-side driving.
Speaking of UK driving, my best hint for driving, and I can make that switch easily, is to always place the driver along the center line of the road. Once you do that, it’s fairly easy to navigate.
I LOVE not having a car. I’ve never been a fan of cars; I feel like they are a constant drain on money and often let you down, but I like getting out on the open road, especially driving on US cross-country trips I’ve taken as a child and as an adult. Now that I don’t have a car, I don’t miss it at all. The few times a year I want a country drive, I rent. Everything else is planes, trains, and busses. Those modes are so much more pleasant. I can read, work, sleep – none of which you should do whilst driving.
Seeing eggs in a random bay in a grocery aisle. I KNOW it’s ok and I know why, but it has been too many years of being told to keep eggs cold to avoid food bourne illnesses. That said, eggs are always room temp for baking!
More to come…
