Before I arrived in Ireland I had two thoughts about driving here:
1. It won't be that bad driving on the left. It will be relatively easy to pick up. (And to the people who told me this,I would like to tell you I don't appreciate your lies)
2. I'm a pretty decent driver. I haven't had an accident since high school, no speeding tickets in years, and I've driven successfully in other countries.
Within the first 30 minutes of pulling out of the rental car parking lot I realized both #1 and #2 were severely wrong. Also, the rest of the group had swiftly changed their minds about each having a go behind the wheel in Ireland! Nobody wanted to drive at all, in fact, nobody even wanted to be in the minivan! In that 30 minutes we came close to having a couple of accidents, we were honked at twice, and another driver dropped the f bomb on us (the lanes are so narrow that we could just read his lips, no need to roll the window down to yell)
They pretty much force you to buy insurance, and I quickly realized why! You can opt out of insurance but you have to put a hold for 5000euro on your credit card. None of our cards would work for an amount that big... So we begrudgedly bought insurance. Again, it took less than 30 minutes for everyone to agree it was better to have insurance anyway!
For starters, the driving on the left side of the road isn't that bad. Honestly, if it were only that I would've been happy. Here are the other concerns when driving in Ireland:
Roundabouts: yes, we have them in the States, but they are nothing like here. Here they use roundabouts in place of almost every four way stop light. And not only are you driving clockwise, but there are different lane usage rules. Sometimes it's a one lane roundabout (very straightforward, my favorite type) but there are also two and three lanes. The inside lane can turn out any time they want (on two lane roundabouts). That was the first almost accident, when someone on my right turned left directly in front of me causing me to slam on my brakes so as not to run into him. I thought he cut me off, obviously he shouldn't have done that, right? Nope, I was in the wrong. The outside lane must exit in the roundabouts here. Oh no, I didn't learn that from a sign; it was all good old fashion trial and error! And lots and lots of prayer!
Shifting: I've been driving a stick since I was 15 years old (no need to calculate how many years that is :) I wondered if shifting with my left hand would be difficult. Well, it wasn't awful, it was a 6 speed, so that was a bit different, and it took a while to get used to the gears and shifting with the left, but really it was just one of the many contributing factors of stressful and dangerous driving in Ireland.
Narrow roads: if you're imagining a narrow lane in the States, let's say one lane bridge that's a good image to start with, now cut 2 to 3 feet off and you have the average lane width in Ireland. Usually there was 6 to 8 inches on each side of the vehicle. Ugh, don't get me started on parking in tiny spots while steering from the passenger side of the vehicle! Narrow roads, so narrow we started a game called "1 lane or 2?" Narrow roads are especially fun when coming upon a bus and you have a stone wall instead of a shoulder! It doesn't help that since you are not used to steering from the right side of the vehicle It's very difficult to know how close left side of the car is to the edge of the road. I wish I would have taken a picture of how narrow the roads were at certain points. Sometimes your whole lane was parked cars and you just drive around them in the opposite lane of traffic.
Road signage: ok, visitors to the U.S. probably think we have poor signage as well. Here sometimes there is a sign, sometimes not, sometimes after the roundabout and sometimes there are 10 things written on the sign in a small font so you don't have time to read them all as you drive by. The role of the navigator was almost as stressful as being in the driver's seat. When we drove into Dublin (providentially after 5 days of practicing in smaller places) it took everyone in the van reading road signs out loud, Katie reading the map, and me driving to get to the hotel. Like other places in Europe, the street signs are small and on the corners of the buildings. Also, the names of the streets change every block or two! I literally could not have done it alone. That day driving into Dublin my stomach was in knots as we got close. Like I said, the first 30 minutes I was driving, when we left Dublin the first day of the trip were really bad. Amazingly, it got better throughout the week and I didn't have a panic attack when I saw a roundabout since I have learned the rules for driving in them.
And what does this arrow painted on the road mean? It's in my lane but for people going the opposite direction to read?! Never really figured out that one.
Note: after every stoplight in Dublin, the two lanes (going the same direction) will merge into one lane, then expand again into two, after the next light merge into one again. There are no signs for any of the merging, it's just how it goes. Also, vehicles are allowed to drive in the bus lane, in fact they have to sometimes because it's also the turn lane now and then.
Katie's guide book said you can buy an "L" to put in your front and back window to show others that you are a Learner driver. Best 2 euros I ever spent! Katie and I felt like we have a protective shield around us. I'm sure the Irish drivers appreciated the heads up to stay away from us! Other drivers were more patient and we didn't get any honks or vulgarity with our protective L on display.
GPS. I checked my Garmin in the states and since it gave me accurate directions from corpus Christi Texas to Dublin, Ireland, I thought it would be fine. No. What a pain! So, if you plan to use your GPS while driving in England or Ireland you must buy a sim card for it. We were looking and asking everywhere for a road map because the one we had wasn't detailed enough. Finally found one in Cork when Katie had the brilliant idea to check a bookstore. It was 11euros, but we probably would have paid 50 for it. We felt like we had found gold. If/when you come to Ireland buy a good map, the one in your guidebook will now be enough.
Driving was quite exhausting and Katie and I realized it was really wearing us out. After an hour or two of driving we needed a break! A pale comparison to my cross country long distance hauls in the States. We kept our hands on the wheel and our eyes on the road the whole time. About day three I felt comfortable enough to turn the radio dial or adjust the air conditioning. Driving in Ireland is not for the faint of heart, but it was all worth it because we were able to see so much more of the country!
P.s. The last day before we drove into Dublin each of the girls did take a spin in the driver's seat. And because they have witnessed everything Katie and I were driving in they were satisfied with a country highway as their driving experience in Ireland.
These "Look Left" and "Look Right" signs were painted on the crosswalks in Dublin. We saw many people almost step out in front of a bus or car... wonder how bad it was before they painted directions on the street!