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Upon arrival at the Shannon airport, we made our way to the rental counter to pick up our cars: A Daewoo Lanos and a Toyota Corolla. Even though these are brands of cars that are available in the U.S., we could clearly tell that these weren't the same. Models made for Europe are always a bit different - and we were looking forward to that fact! Bring on the cool European cars!!
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Wheel on the right, drive on the left.
It was an odd feeling - sitting in a right-hand-drive car for the first time (as either a driver OR passenger). Plus, we found ourselves constantly reminding each other, "Drive on the left!". Road signs were in both English and Gaelic, the country's 'official' language (although everyone spoke English). It was kind of odd that speed limit signs
were in miles per hour but distance signs were in kilometers and gas was measured in
liters. The cost of gas was almost $4 per gallon (and we complain about our recent
'high' gas prices). Needless to say, I saw no land yachts or SUVs during the entire
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Racing gloves but no driving suit? C'mon!
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Narrow country roads, and trees that grow
funny due to the strong winds.
As we made our way from the airport to where we'd be staying, we were surprised by the driving conditions. The backroads in this area were very very narrow, often with limestone fences on both sides, and never had a shoulder. Any other vehicles that we encountered often required one of the cars to back up until a wide spot in the road was found where both could successfully pass. Add to that a lot of dirt, potholes, and muddy water, and you've got some great conditions for a bit of rally-style driving that we knew was sure to come (stay tuned!). We were quite happy that the winter weather was in
the 50s most of the time, with occasional wind and light rain. For me, having no
snow was a welcome sight - compared to Wisconsin that is, which had temperatures in the
20s and several feet of snow on the ground. Links of Interest:
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