"Steven, there is a problem with this car. I can't get the keys out after parking it. I need help!" I complained, just after I rented a Nissan Versa and had barely taken it for a spin in the parking area. Steven had a quick-fix. "Sometimes, the steering wheel gets locked. Move it this way and that. You will be able to get the keys out." "Steven, I've tried that out. If I apply any more pressure and try to yank it out, the steering wheel will soon be in my hand! I already fear that in my effort to get the key out, I've possibly broken it into two!"
The problem was strange. For the next 15 minutes, the two of us tried to troubleshoot the issue together. "I don't want this car... I can't call you each time I run into this key-stuck issue! Just get me another one!", I protested- a bad beginning didn't auger very well. Steven didn't listen to me and was busy trying all sorts of things. Suddenly, it clicked..."Sir, you have the gear set to neutral! It should be in "parking" to get the key out." Looking at his furrowed brow, for a second, it looked as if he would cancel my rental car policy. Obviously, you don't want to hand over the keys of your car to a rookie who has starting trouble.. this basic! I mumbled a quick apology and raced out of the rental complex!
I got my first license in North America....that too, with an automatic transmission. But in 6 years of driving in India with a stick-shift, a point as fundamental as this had got erased completely from memory! Driving in these two places is literally poles apart and I felt tentative and uneasy. You can't make a mistake when you drive in the US. Every move has to be spot-on and calibrated.
In India, there are no mistakes! We accommodate everyone- you can drive on the opposite of our "highway" too... just ensure that you blink the headlights a few times! If your car is stalled, no problem! You can leave the car in the middle of the road. Just pluck a few leaves and twigs from the way-side tree and decorate your car with it. That's signal enough for other cars to move out of the way! As simple and practical as that!!
Plus, the ease of yanking your neck out of the car.. and asking any car speeding by or any biped on the road for directions..... makes us feel in control... all the time! Just remember one basic rule- if you are in North India, you ask for directions beginning your sentence with "bhaisaab"; in Karnataka with "Guru!"... and in Tamil Nadu with "Saar.. saar hello!"
"I don't think I can drive here! It's way too difficult! I just cannot use my right leg and left hand. I'm used to driving with both my feet and using my right hand for turn signals!!" Each time I negotiated a turn, I used the right hand by reflex... and had the wipers swinging madly. It was terribly frustrating. Plus the right turn had to be taken immediately in the US. Left turns had to be wide.
Like a right hand batsman told to bat left... that too against Dale Steyn's pace on a green-top... it was challenging to put it mildly.
But I took my time. Just to the office and back.. the first few days. I also chanted a mantra loudly as I drove... "left hand.. right foot... left hand.. right foot... right-turn immediately... left-turn wide... left hand.. right foot...right-turn immediately.....left-turn...!!"
And then.... it all came back. By the fifth day, I was driving on 237 and El Camino and San Tomas... with the ease of a pro. The pleasure of driving in the US... Ah!!
Not that I was driving a Ferrari! Steven ensured that he rented out the most basic model to me. This car was a hatch-back which would not even lock all doors together. You had to manually unlock the door to let someone in. As far as the windows were concerned, they had a manual lever. Surely, even TATA Nano has better features than this! But I liked my Nissan Versa... as basic and utilitarian as a car should be- chalti ka naam gaadi! Kyon? Aap sehmat hain naa.. meri baaton se!!? Kyon!?
The problem was strange. For the next 15 minutes, the two of us tried to troubleshoot the issue together. "I don't want this car... I can't call you each time I run into this key-stuck issue! Just get me another one!", I protested- a bad beginning didn't auger very well. Steven didn't listen to me and was busy trying all sorts of things. Suddenly, it clicked..."Sir, you have the gear set to neutral! It should be in "parking" to get the key out." Looking at his furrowed brow, for a second, it looked as if he would cancel my rental car policy. Obviously, you don't want to hand over the keys of your car to a rookie who has starting trouble.. this basic! I mumbled a quick apology and raced out of the rental complex!
I got my first license in North America....that too, with an automatic transmission. But in 6 years of driving in India with a stick-shift, a point as fundamental as this had got erased completely from memory! Driving in these two places is literally poles apart and I felt tentative and uneasy. You can't make a mistake when you drive in the US. Every move has to be spot-on and calibrated.
In India, there are no mistakes! We accommodate everyone- you can drive on the opposite of our "highway" too... just ensure that you blink the headlights a few times! If your car is stalled, no problem! You can leave the car in the middle of the road. Just pluck a few leaves and twigs from the way-side tree and decorate your car with it. That's signal enough for other cars to move out of the way! As simple and practical as that!!
Plus, the ease of yanking your neck out of the car.. and asking any car speeding by or any biped on the road for directions..... makes us feel in control... all the time! Just remember one basic rule- if you are in North India, you ask for directions beginning your sentence with "bhaisaab"; in Karnataka with "Guru!"... and in Tamil Nadu with "Saar.. saar hello!"
"I don't think I can drive here! It's way too difficult! I just cannot use my right leg and left hand. I'm used to driving with both my feet and using my right hand for turn signals!!" Each time I negotiated a turn, I used the right hand by reflex... and had the wipers swinging madly. It was terribly frustrating. Plus the right turn had to be taken immediately in the US. Left turns had to be wide.
Like a right hand batsman told to bat left... that too against Dale Steyn's pace on a green-top... it was challenging to put it mildly.
But I took my time. Just to the office and back.. the first few days. I also chanted a mantra loudly as I drove... "left hand.. right foot... left hand.. right foot... right-turn immediately... left-turn wide... left hand.. right foot...right-turn immediately.....left-turn...!!"
And then.... it all came back. By the fifth day, I was driving on 237 and El Camino and San Tomas... with the ease of a pro. The pleasure of driving in the US... Ah!!
Not that I was driving a Ferrari! Steven ensured that he rented out the most basic model to me. This car was a hatch-back which would not even lock all doors together. You had to manually unlock the door to let someone in. As far as the windows were concerned, they had a manual lever. Surely, even TATA Nano has better features than this! But I liked my Nissan Versa... as basic and utilitarian as a car should be- chalti ka naam gaadi! Kyon? Aap sehmat hain naa.. meri baaton se!!? Kyon!?
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