I drove a car..... in China! (a.k.a. "Sarah, you know how to drive, right?"

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That's right. I drove a car in China. You see, today started like any other day. I woke up, ate breakfast, brushed my teeth and got dressed.

Then, it happened. Yinxi said to me, "Sarah you know how to drive, right?" I replied that I did, but that I could only drive an automatic. Luckily for them, the car was an automatic. My mind raced for other excuses. The roads in China are very different from the U.S. I don't have an international driving license. But none of it mattered. They needed someone to drive, and I was the only one who knew how. Next thing I knew I was standing in front of Yinxi's uncle's new Mercedes and he was handing me the keys. Why oh why did I remember to pack my driver's license?

As I drove along with Yinxi and family I asked what the speed limit was. They replied that they didn't think there was one. Great. Considering that the speedometer was in km/h, I really had no idea how fast I was going. It also didn't reassure me that Yinxi got really nervous every time we went by a policeman. And just to put the icing on the cake, no one wears seatbelts in China, so Yinxi's four year old nephew was sitting on her lap in the front seat of the car with no seat belt.

All of that set aside though, I actually had a lot of fun. Driving in China is kind of like playing one of those driving video games. You can drive as fast or as slow as you'd like and you try your best not to hit anything. There are also plenty of obstacles, including tons of bicyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians that jaywalk more than Chicagoans. Though I was scared to death at first, I quickly overcame my fears and actually enjoyed chauffeuring Yinxi's family around for the day. Plus, I learned how to say "turn left", "turn right" and "continue going straight" in Chinese.

If you had asked me whether or not I planned on driving in China I would have told you definitely not, but I'm glad I got the chance to experience it.

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Photos

Me and my Mercedes!
This is the car I drove my host family around in during the Chinese New Year!

Comments

[Alejandro Ruiz]

It's 2.2 km to the mile....see....I'm never there when you need me. ps I miss you!