Suzuki Sidekick...Kicked My Ass

On Tuesday, Matthew took me to Basseterre, (the main town in St. Kitts), so that I could be listed on his car insurance policy. After aimlessly following him around for fifteen minutes, and getting directions from two different locals, we finally found the insurance building. In the mean time, I found Independence Square—a park with a lot of really cool trees and plants—in the middle of town. According to http://www.geographia.com/stkitts-nevis/knpnt02.htm, Independence Square was built in 1790 for slave auctions and council meetings. In 1983 it received it's name to commemorate the independence of the island Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis from Great Britain.

Travellers Palm

Since I had received my driver's license the day before, I was finally able to drive. I had not gotten a chance to practice, but was willing to give it a go, and drive Matthew to school from where we were in town.

Keep in mind that the vehicles down here are notoriously known for being...less than ideal. In addition, a lot of the cars are recycled by students who are broke and either don't have the money to fix up their cars, or simply just don't care. If your car can get you to school and back, and perhaps up a few steep hills on the island, you're all set. I will note that Matthew's car is pretty rough, but is in great shape as far as island standards go. It has a great engine (so I'm told by Mateo), and it looks pretty nice physically, but it has some quirks. It would probably be worth $800 in the US. Don't even ask me what we actually paid for it because it makes me cringe.

Little did I know that the brakes are terrible and the power steering................what power steering??? Needless to say, my first driving lesson in a foreign country was a complete disaster. Not only did I not feel safe in the car, but I was seriously concerned about injuring myself and others. I jumped a curb (thanks power steering, or lack thereof), and completely freaked out when I turned the wheel and the car didn't turn along with it. The brake pedal has to be pressed all the way down to the floor to get the car to slow down, so you spend a lot of time just kind of slowly coasting. Oh...and seat belts. HA---none here. It's not uncommon to be missing those in the cars on the island, apparently. OISK!

When we arrived at school, I was pretty rattled and upset by the entire experience. Eventually I got over it. After speaking with a couple of friends, they just reminded me that all cars on the island have all sorts of issues and that I'd just have to get used to it. "Just drive slow and take your time," they'd all say. Matthew, of course, stated the same things—but you know how that goes...sometimes you just have to hear it from somebody else.

Since Matthew had class, and I had nothing to do for the next several hours, I had no choice but to drive myself home. After drawing me a map, giving me a kiss, and wishing me good luck, he sent me on my way. The ride home was a huge improvement and I took the bypass instead of driving through town, to avoid unnecessary traffic. Besides almost hitting a goat, I survived the drive home. Woot. woot.