urgghh I'm having a hard time driving

[chris-lei 1]

I've been driving for years in the Philippines also and I had a "culture shock" when I started driving here. I was used to driving like crazy. If you are a good driver in Manila, you'll be the worst driver in the US and more often than not you'll fail the road test. I passed my road test the 2nd time around (5 days test interval). What you can do for now is practice driving, even for short grocery trips. Dont try it on the freeway yet. Start on the sidestreets because they will test your driving skills on the sidestreets making particular note of how you follow the rules of the road.

I've come across this link, and it helped me a lot. http://www.youtube.com/results?search_quer...=california+dmv

I hope this will help.

[Nikita2Charles 32]

Kamusta ka na,

I am in the sillicon valley also, San Jose. Driving can be a fun experience once you get the hang of it, like the previous posters have mentioned, try to drive local, but it's hard to do in california since lot of places you have to go requires you to take the freeway, and the most important thing is to get a really good voice activated GPS, there are lot of pinays around here, almost any kinda of philipines stuff you want you can get it, look for the closest adult education center near you, most of them have lot of interesting eveing courses.

Ingat

[jom 4]

I have never driven in the Philippines and I have to start from scratch. My husband started me on the lawnmower, then he let me drive in the backroads during our trips ( without a learner's permit ) shhhhhhhhhh To start, I had to take a course online, pass the test and get a certification after which I went to the DMV office to take another test to get my learner's permit.

After weeks of driving with my husband I finally took my actual driving test and passed. That was June this year and now I am already driving the interstate by myself. So far I consider driving to and from Tampa International airport my greatest progess in relation to driving. Traffic was bad, I missed my turn but I worked my way to find the right exit to the airport to pick up my husband. Of course I have the GPS to thank for, it screws me up sometime but hey, I never had a single incident since I was driving so I am happy with it.

Edited November 22, 2008 by jom

[StoryAngel 4]

Get a sat nav! Honestly, it's the most helpful thing once you learn to trust it. You don't have to worry about counting roads for your turn, reading street names, knowing when to merge.

I have a Garmin nuvi 660 and it's been an absolute godsend. Shortly after I got here my hubby was in the hospital for a week, and the only way I could get to see him was to drive 30 mins to downtown Houston... I would NOT have been able to do it without the GPS! It does take some getting used to, but it's been wonderful to have some independence and freedom. We also pay an extra traffic subscription so the Garmin will direct us around traffic hotspots and jams. I've been here 8 months and I still don't like driving downtown or in rush hour traffic, but the GPS has been a huge help and I'd highly recommend getting one. We tried a TomTom and a Garmin, and for us the Garmin was better.

[britty 1]

Definitely get sat nav if its not already on your car. I had it in the car but also got a new cell phone with GPS so that even walking around I would know where i was. Volunteering is a great idea while you wait for your EAD. I volunteered with a local cat sanctuary and also walked and played with the dogs at the dog home. I met lots of people, and two of those are good friends of mine now. It made such a difference having somewhere to go in the mornings, and to have some purpose and structure to the day. Bear in mind though that volunteering with homeless animals will probably mean you will try and take some home. I did !

[MargotDarko 0]

we will be in california too, and I had the options of learning to drive in England before i leave and getting my driving licence (finally after many years of procrastination) or waiting till i get to CA. My finace tried to explain the rules of their roads to me when i was there and it frazzeled my brain, you can turn on red on this direction but not the other, pull out into the box junction and sit there for a few mins. it was too much, then trying to work out the roads and directions of how to get where. which i'm usless at the best of times. i decided to wait till i'm there, but i think i better save for lots of lessons.

i dont evey you going through it already. i know its gunna be a must do, but its not one i'm looking forward to having to do.

perhaps your hubby can buy you a sat nav for xmas prezzie

yea you can turn either left or right even if the light is red knowing that the road is clear coz its their right of way. Also their lanes are confusing sometimes if you stay in the middle it will eventually go to the left or right so I really have to know or memorize where im going otherwise I'd be lost. I have been here for less than 3 weeks and I'm happy that I'm somehow getting a little grip about their rules. I'm also depressed a little bit coz I have so many what if's in my brain! like "what if i can't memorize the road?" "what if i dont get a job?" It's really pressuring... I have been studying google maps but It's different when you are actually driving.

I've never heard of being allowed to turn left if the light is red, unless a green arrow accompanies it. I know you can make a right turn on a red light (although this differs from state to state).

I'm guessing she means either a flashing red light (where you can turn left if there's no oncoming traffic) or left onto a one-way street from a one-way street.

[Stardust72 0]

I bought a car shortly after arriving here. But I did have to get used to the driving. The rules are different here than in Holland and sometimes the roads look different too. I also got sat nav for my car so I can find my way anywhere. I love it and it has helped a lot to get me acquainted with the area I live in. I am mostly used to driving here now. I used to be nervous about it in the beginning, but I no longer am. I go everywhere and I don't need anyone's help and that's a great feeling

[SunDrop 59]

Yup, the Garmin is the one SO has. I've got a TomTom and actually, he likes mine better. But that's probably because his has some shrill, hysterical american woman yelling at him to turn NOW turn NOW and she's perpetually 'recalcoooolatING!' whereas mine has the dulcit tones of 'Shaun' the placid Irishman. We refer to the Sat Nav as Shaun, and discuss bringing him on trips with us. LOL... ok. Now you all know how sad and pathetic we really are.. hehehe.

[sweetbutterfly326 0]

hello to everyone here in visajourney! Just wanna share my experience.. I arrived in USA on 11/06/2008 and since then we been working on our papers. We haven't submitted our AOS yet coz our papers are not yet complete. For the meantime, I'm stuck here at home.. I'm also waiting for my SSN to arrive which will be i think next week.

Right now, my husband is teaching me the driving rules. I have an international driver's license but as soon as I have my SSN i will apply for CA driver's license. I find it so difficult to adjust. I can't seem to memorize the place right away. I know how to drive but I just don't memorize the place so its so hard. One time, I took my husband to his work and I was in the wrong lane coz I didn't know I would make a turn or It was late when i found out... lol that was on the freeway! I failed to merge coz it was a short one and traffic.. oh well i ended by taking another exit! By the way, we live in Fremont, CA.

Also I'm thinking to volunteer either for Animal Shelter, visit lonely seniors or foster canines and felines. I have been browsing online. Do you think I can volunteer while waiting for my SSN to arrive? Thanks

I'm just so depressed right now! hope to get it over with.

It's a tough adjustment to make. You are free to volunteer and there are lots of agencies that need help, so long as you don't accept any pay. Allow yourself 3 months to feel more comfortable driving in California. In most states, when you apply with an international driving license, you still need to start with a learner's permit and then take the state driving test.

You know what just keep it up your not just the only one feeling that way, that's just normal for us that never grew up here everythings new to us specially you since your just so new here, Im not driving yet but I have a driving permit already hubby letting me drive to work & back & some other places just so scary at first cause I have to force myself to drive 55MPH for the first time in my life cause it posted 55MPH im shaking to death hubby kept telling me "push the gas honey, you can do that" hahahahah so I dont have a long line at my back...but I am not ready yet to take the test...I will just take my time to memorize the rules cause no matter if you know already how to drive but you don't know the rule then you will really get panick so just take your time remembering the road rules & Good luck...God Bless

[sweetbutterfly326 0]

just a reminder guys DON'T rely on ur tom2x's all the time cause she'he doesn't know when their a road construction & she will tell you go to a scary places sometimes...human brain still good compare to those technology...but still helpfull though.

[Uncle Wally 2]

Driving in America is simple if you follow one simple rule: Don't spill your beer.