Useful items done in Ukraine before arrival?

[slim 1,530]

I forget to figure out HOW she was going to get to school from our isolated island home

On that note, get an international DL. In some states you can drive for a while or transfer it directly.

If you don't drive already, get drivers training in UA. It's much cheaper and it'll be easier to transition to driving here.

We take a jaunt down to Costa Rica to get dental done.

Less money and nice little vacation at the same time.

That's a splendid idea!

Not always better

That's not what my wife says. She says the doctors here "so stupid and horrible and know nossing, blat. I will be go Russia for real doctor."

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

On that note, get an international DL. In some states you can drive for a while or transfer it directly.

If you don't drive already, get drivers training in UA. It's much cheaper and it'll be easier to transition to driving here.

That's a splendid idea!

That's not what my wife says. She says the doctors here "so stupid and horrible and know nossing, blat. I will be go Russia for real doctor."

Alla HAD an international drivers lisence, or whatever it was. I am absolutely sure she used her "bloop Bloop eyes" and $20 to get it as she could barely keep a car on the pavement, I MEAN on the pavement! The first three times or so were spent largely driving on grass, gravel, etc and she hit everything standing still near the road. Mailboxes, a fire hydrant, shrubs, you name it. She would STOP if a person on a bicycle was approaching. So even with the purchased lisence from Russia she was not able to get herself to work (we used it as her "learners permit" until she got an actual learners permit)

[slim 1,530]

Alla HAD an international drivers lisence, or whatever it was. I am absolutely sure she used her "bloop Bloop eyes" and $20 to get it as she could barely keep a car on the pavement, I MEAN on the pavement! The first three times or so were spent largely driving on grass, gravel, etc and she hit everything standing still near the road. Mailboxes, a fire hydrant, shrubs, you name it. She would STOP if a person on a bicycle was approaching. So even with the purchased lisence from Russia she was not able to get herself to work (we used it as her "learners permit" until she got an actual learners permit)

But if they come over with nothing at all, they may not be able to get even a learners permit until after they take formal training. It's different in every state but most states will allow the international DL to be used. And as you've pointed out, that's invaluable for "practice" since it's not likely the training over there was all that good.

[ONA 133]

I'm not sure about Ukrainian DL, but Russian international DL is basically a book with translations of Russian DL to all kinds of different languages and it's not valid without the actual DL. I have it. I was driving around with it last year. I never used it this year, cause I don't have a job and if I'm going somewhere, I share a car with somebody else. It depends on a state, cause in Maryland you're only allowed to drive for 60 days with an out-of-state DL. And if you never have been licensed in the US you have to complete some kind of short educational program, it doesn't matter for how long you've had your out-of-country license. So basically the only benefit of having my DL for almost 2 years now is that after taking the knowledge test and the driving test I'll be able to get the actual Maryland DL, skipping the learner's permit and the provisional license stages.

As for the training - it's good if the driving school is good. My biggest problem was that I was trained to drive in the city and sit in traffic, not speedy driving on a highway It's also hard to get used to some differences in rules, for example, in Russia there's no turn on red, never... and in the States you're allowed to take a right turn on red. Stuff like that confused me a lot.

[james&olya 1,121]

I'm not sure about Ukrainian DL, but Russian international DL is basically a book with translations of Russian DL to all kinds of different languages and it's not valid without the actual DL. I have it. I was driving around with it last year. I never used it this year, cause I don't have a job and if I'm going somewhere, I share a car with somebody else. It depends on a state, cause in Maryland you're only allowed to drive for 60 days with an out-of-state DL. And if you never have been licensed in the US you have to complete some kind of short educational program, it doesn't matter for how long you've had your out-of-country license. So basically the only benefit of having my DL for almost 2 years now is that after taking the knowledge test and the driving test I'll be able to get the actual Maryland DL, skipping the learner's permit and the provisional license stages.

As for the training - it's good if the driving school is good. My biggest problem was that I was trained to drive in the city and sit in traffic, not speedy driving on a highway It's also hard to get used to some differences in rules, for example, in Russia there's no turn on red, never... and in the States you're allowed to take a right turn on red. Stuff like that confused me a lot.

Olya's international DL (with her Russian DL, of course) allows her to drive here in Michigan as long as the Russian DL remains valid! She was a reasonably good driver already but it was entertaining helping her learn to drive an automatic! She was sure automatics were harder to drive and at first they really were! Now she wouldn't go back to a stick.(I prefer a stick shift)

[ONA 133]

Olya's international DL (with her Russian DL, of course) allows her to drive here in Michigan as long as the Russian DL remains valid! She was a reasonably good driver already but it was entertaining helping her learn to drive an automatic! She was sure automatics were harder to drive and at first they really were! Now she wouldn't go back to a stick.(I prefer a stick shift)

I don't have an experience driving automatics. I'm sure it's gonna be hard for me. I like a stick shift, but my husband wants to get a car with an automatic transmission for me I'm not even excited about getting a car now.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

I don't have an experience driving automatics. I'm sure it's gonna be hard for me. I like a stick shift, but my husband wants to get a car with an automatic transmission for me I'm not even excited about getting a car now.

Alla said that also. And I have a pickup with a 5 speed so she had her choice but I bought her a used mini-van with automatic. The problem here came in that Vermont is virtually all hills and mountains. The east end of downtown Burlington is 400 feet higher than the west end. Think "San Francisco lite" Which resulted in a lot of awkward moments. Witin a couple weeks she had given up on the idea of a manual transmission.

We learned on manual transmissions when I was a young man and it is good to know, no doubt, but it is a bit much I think when you are also dealing with learning to drive, unfamiliar roads, langauge issues (at least for many of the women) Kind of like drinking from a fire hydrant IMO. I say go with the auto trans for now

Edited September 25, 2011 by Gary and Alla

[alex330 0]

I don't have an experience driving automatics. I'm sure it's gonna be hard for me. I like a stick shift, but my husband wants to get a car with an automatic transmission for me I'm not even excited about getting a car now.

Maybe ask him to throw a turbo in the car for you?

[ONA 133]

Alla said that also. And I have a pickup with a 5 speed so she had her choice but I bought her a used mini-van with automatic. The problem here came in that Vermont is virtually all hills and mountains. The east end of downtown Burlington is 400 feet higher than the west end. Think "San Francisco lite" Which resulted in a lot of awkward moments. Witin a couple weeks she had given up on the idea of a manual transmission.

We learned on manual transmissions when I was a young man and it is good to know, no doubt, but it is a bit much I think when you are also dealing with learning to drive, unfamiliar roads, langauge issues (at least for many of the women) Kind of like drinking from a fire hydrant IMO. I say go with the auto trans for now

I know, I heard so many agrguments for the automatic transmission, that I agreed. Although, last year I was driving around here in a car with a manual one and I was just fine.

Maybe ask him to throw a turbo in the car for you?

[baron555 934]

There is NO such thing as an International Driver's License. There IS an International Driver's Permit but as stated it is just a translation of the Russian DL into other languages.

Illinois does not recognize any of that anyway and Alla needed to take and pass the eye and written exam before she was given her Learner's Permit, which was good for one year. Partly because of her uneasiness, she waited about 10 months before she took her Driver's Exam and passed.

Oh, and she has no problem using an automatic.....there's nothing to shift.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

There is NO such thing as an International Driver's License. There IS an International Driver's Permit but as stated it is just a translation of the Russian DL into other languages.

Illinois does not recognize any of that anyway and Alla needed to take and pass the eye and written exam before she was given her Learner's Permit, which was good for one year. Partly because of her uneasiness, she waited about 10 months before she took her Driver's Exam and passed.

Oh, and she has no problem using an automatic.....there's nothing to shift.

Whatever it is, Alla had one. Vermont accepts it for up to 60 days so we used it as her "learners permit" and she started learning to drive the day after she arrived for a frightful 30 minutes or so.

Vermont also does not require any training for anyone over 18, because in Vermont, if you are over 18 you are injected with knowledge how to drive. AND they allow anyone with legal permission to remain at least 6 months to have a drivers license. So Alla got her drivers license before her green card, about two months after she arrived. she has had 3 accidents, 1 each winter, though 2 were not her fault. In the third she launched her car off an embankment into a cranberry bog. Impressive. Did you ever see "National Lampoon's Vacation"? Yeah, like that. Cranberries absorb crashing cars real well and she was not hurt and the damage to the car was very minor

She promises this year she will NOT drive when it snows (all three times it was snowing) and will take the bus or (more likely) a taxi.

So far Pasha is doing very well and he DOES have a twin turbo Volvo S80T6 that is like an 'effin rocket sled! I'm telling you Phil, the old 442 has nothing on this thing! All jet black except for cool aluminum rims.

[alex330 0]

So far Pasha is doing very well and he DOES have a twin turbo Volvo S80T6 that is like an 'effin rocket sled! I'm telling you Phil, the old 442 has nothing on this thing! All jet black except for cool aluminum rims.

Ah, I owned an old Buick GS with a 350 rocket swapped in from a 442 years ago. Loved that car..... but yea, cannot compare to the new cars

[1HappyGuy 45]

I taught my stepson on an automatic to get his drivers license and then taught him to drive a stick. It is a 5 speed 4 wheel drive pickup which he loved at first. He could drive up into the mountains and go off road, but of course as he began to have more friends the driving became all paved roads and city driving. Now he wants an automatic with 4 doors for all the friends, etc. I hope he will give me back the pickup instead of trading it in on something else.

[slim 1,530]

I like a stick

And they wonder why we love RUB women!

a twin turbo Volvo S80T6 that is like an 'effin rocket sled! I'm telling you Phil, the old 442 has nothing on this thing! All jet black except for cool aluminum rims.

That is a sweet, sweet ride.

[ONA 133]

And they wonder why we love RUB women!

Man, I was typing and I thought that somebody would probably post a comment on that phrase

Why wouldn't I like it anyway?...