I’d like to pick this topic up again since the last time I wrote about it here Driving in Vienna
I miss driving in Los Angeles for the sheer purpose of speed. I like to drive fast. I like to whip my car around corners. I like to stomp on the gas and feel me head snap back just a bit. I like to get in the car just to drive. There are some really great roads where I grew up. Some really curvy roads. Some really dangerous roads where I could float my car around a blind corner and feel the adrenaline rush through my veins as I thought, “Oh, I really hope no one comes around this corner right about now.” I’ve even gotten into a bit of street racing with another car as the driver realized that I was driving for the sheer pleasure of speed. He got in on the game and we raced for some minutes. It was fun!
Here in Vienna you just can’t do that. First off, the streets are tiny! Going 35 mph (50kph) feels like you are going fast because everything is so tight.
That and there is just too much going on out on the streets. Pedestrians, streetcars, bicycles, buses and other cars. You’d kill someone!
I had one last bit of hope when I finally got ready to drive on the freeways around Vienna. I thought surely I can go my usual freeway speed of 80mph (120kph).
A few weekends ago I decided to take the car to my hair salon rather than take the Ubahn like I always do. Just to enjoy the car and driving. I brought my GPS (navi) with me, plugged in the address, and jumped on the freeway. I stomped down on the gas like I usually do and was thrilled to see the needle of the speedometer race upward when I heard a loud “Brrrriinnnggooo!!!” I thought, “What in the world?” I’m driving and don’t want to get distracted so I ignored the noise. Then it happened again “Brrrriinnnggooo!!!”
It was early on a Saturday so I risked a quick look at my GPS (navi) to see that on its screen it had a big red circle with the number 80 on it. I thought, “Hmm… what can that mean? Why is it telling me 80?” I thought about it for a second as I allowed my eyes to wander over to the speedometer and to see that it was as 80mph (120kph) and I thought, “You have to be kidding me.” I let my foot off of the gas pedal and let the car ease down to 45mph (80kph). My GPS was quiet.
For the entire 30 minute drive, my itch to drive fast was at constant war with my GPS. Every time my foot got a little bit heavy, the GPS let out a load “Brrrriinnnggooo!!!” I sighed, eased off the pedal, behaved for a few minutes until I heard again, “Brrrriinnnggooo!!!” That was my entire drive to the hair salon.
It ain’t easy being an expat.
