My first adventure on the open road. We're still alive. I declare Victory.

About 45 minutes ago, Ocxie (my housemate/coworker; which do I call him?) asked me if I was hungry for breakfast, meaning that he’s hungry too. Of course I was. The only difference this morning, from any other morning here so far (all what, ten of them?) is that, for whatever reason, I was feeling more ballsy than usual. I asked Oxcie for the keys to the car.

WOAH.

I’d been meaning to ask someone to take me out for my first time on the road for about a week or so. Then, every time I’d have the thought, I’d find a good reason to put it off. I’m not talking about heading out onto the somewhat-lawless and disorganized Acehnese roads on a motorbike; I did that my third day here, for a good 45-minute ride back from the beach, and it was fine. I had a motorbike in Saigon, one of the motorbike chaos capitals of the world. Didn’t mean it wasn’t a challenge, both driving on the left (yes, they drive on the left here) and weaving through a herd of cows. It just means that I could do it with a reasonable degree of safety and confidence.

Taking the car, an ageing, boat-sized SUV, is a different matter entirely. I drive stick, but I had never done so sitting with the wheel on the right and the stick on the left. It kind of trips you out, getting a concept of where the front of your car ends on the other side. I got in and started the thing with a belch of smoke. We lurched around the SFCG front yard area, without stalling, and creaked out onto the road. COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. I kept trying to hit the turn signal bar. I turned on the wipers. The signal thing is on the right, doofus. Cars coming from the left, put it into fourth by mistake, made it to the rice cart. Got our breakfast, wiggled a U-turn across four lanes of motorbikes. Stop to let the trucks go by, then through the crowd of bikes like parting the waters. Bumbling, fumbling, stopped traffic cold, made it across, avoided the ditch, rumbled back up to the house. Made it.

Hot rice with spicy chicken for breakfast. Goes great with a side of shaky nerves and a well-used American driver’s license. For today, I declare victory.