Visitors to Bermuda have the option of renting a scooter, taking the big, pink bus or walking around the Island. It is not permitted for visitors to rent cars—it simply doesn’t exist. For those who are officially residents, you must have a driver’s license in order to drive any vehicle, and you cannot rent a scooter with any license other than Bermudian. So off we went to get our licenses. First there is the written—unusual questions, but no problem. Then there is the driving test, consisting of weaving in and out of orange ‘coeunes’ spaced way too closely together if you ask me. If one should fail the driving test, you are permitted to retake it in another 2 weeks. So Andre was driving me to school for a couple of weeks… Honestly what does it matter if you’ hit de coeune’? How often do you have to weave in and out of orange 'coeunes' in the real world? Now, all of this was some time ago, but my wounded ego prevented me from blogging about it, although a good friend did suggest some lovely potential titles to explain my lack of driving prowess: “De Coeune of Silence’ ‘ Coeuney Island’, "Bermuda Try-Angle'.
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| Morning Commute |
I have been driving my own (borrowed) little scooter since September and I love it! Even when the weather is awful and I am bundled up in GoreTex and rubber boots—it all adds to the feeling of adventure and a totally different lifestyle. Driving on the left is not as difficult as I had thought. It’s driving down the middle that I have to be careful of. There is something known as ‘the third lane’ here. Basically, if you drive a scooter, you can disregard all line-ups and slow traffic and drive down the centre line, when there is no oncoming traffic or when there is—depends on if you are truly Bermudian or not. Cars will simply allow you to cut in front of them if a particularly large vehicle is bearing down on you as you ignore all traffic safety laws. As it happens, knowing how to weave in and out of tight spaces comes in handy when trying to avoid head on collisions, slipping between cars, driving down the sidewalk to get to a parking spot or trying to fit your bike into a 2 ft wide space..but there are still no cones on the streets!
Accidents are common. Roads are very narrow and most are lined with rock walls. In fact, accidents are so common that the Government has an arrangement with homeowners that when (not if) someone hits their wall, then the government will rebuild it if they will donate a couple of feet to build a sidewalk.
It is only a matter of time before you will ‘come off your bike’ as they say here. It’s an interesting expression, to ‘come off your bike’--just as if you softly float to earth. I assure you, you don't. There is still gravity in Bermuda, perhaps more than in Vancouver. Bikes run into walls, cars run into bikes, bikes run into each other, everyone runs into the walls. Then there is what I call the 'Arte Johnson Manoeuvre'. (Let those old enough to get the reference explain it to those who are too ridiculously young.) This usually occurs in parking lots, at a complete standstill generally due to circumstances beyond one's control, wind, sun, balance, gravity... Obscure segue: It really should not be called a 'funny' bone.
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| 'Elbow' Beach |
