Good News, Bad News

Today I took my scooter driver's license test--and passed half of it. The other half, the driving half, I failed.

It was kind of funny: 3 of us went to take our tests today. One person got it (Rachel), one person passed the written but not the driving (me), and one person didn't pass (Andrew). The irony of the situation, though, is that our experience on a scooter runs in the opposite direction: Andrew is basically a pro, I've practiced a fair amount, and Rachel had previously been on a scooter twice. Proof, to me, that the scooter test has very little to do with actual skill and more to do with common sense, ability to comprehend poorly-translated test questions, and ability to overcome nerves and LOOK UP NOT DOWN on the straight-line test.

Driver's license tests in Taiwan are WAY different than in America. First, you show up and hand over your ID and a photo of yourself; then you wait (just a few minutes, in our case) for your turn to take the written exam, which is in fact on a computer. If you pass that (required 85%; 40 questions), the computer displays a smiley face and the moderator gives you a driving test time (mine was 3:00, 40 minutes after I finished my test).

You are then welcome to join the milling dozens of scooters on the practice course, driving in endless circles on a course that looks--but isn't--identical to the actual test course. So that's what I did, join the mob practicing, and failed every run for the first 15 minutes or so, before occasionally getting it right. And then Rachel came out, triumphant from her test (she'd forgotten her ID earlier, and had to go back for it), and ready to practice as well.

At 3pm, a moderator rounded up all us unruly scooter-practicers and explained the course to us. And we discovered that, unlike the practice ring here everything had a sensor, beginning with a big bump at the start of the already-hard straight line test!

(Caveat to explain what the straight line test is: you get on your scooter and have to drive within two narrow lines, maybe a foot and a half apart, for a couple hundred feet, and must take 7 seconds or longer for the whole process, which means that you're going really slow. Which, as you may know if you've ever been on a bike, is really hard. And if your feet touch the ground, or if either tire touches the sensor on either side, you can't finish the driving test. You get one more shot, and if you fail again, you have to wait a week.)

So yeah, the moderator explained in Chinese (Fonda translated for us), and then Rachel went back to practice while I watched the lined-up examinees take their turns. Here's a video of one girl I watched who didn't quite make it, just to give you a frame of reference:

Yeah, she failed. And how do I know? First of all, if you make a mistake, a big flashing light and buzzer goes off to tell you (and the world) that you screwed up. Also, as you see at the end of the video, the moderator gives her her paperwork back. That is never good--it means sorry, good try, come back next week.

(If the previous video doesn't show up--it's been screwy lately--here's a more professional video of the standard Taiwanese scooter test):

I had a similar experience. Rachel and I went last (she went before me), to avoid pressure of people behind us, but even so I just couldn't make it past the straight line test, and that's at the beginning of the test. The rest is easy--stop at a rail road crossing, turn right, stop at a stop light, turn right again, stop at a pedestrian crossing, and you're done. Again it's no touching the lines, but they're farther apart and there's no time limit, so it's easy! I could have--and did in practice--easily pass that part. But the straight line hates me! The moderator was nice and gave me advice before my second time, and even gave me a third try--unheard-of!--but still I failed. I'll try again next week, or, if all else fails, just get a low-power scooter, which only requires the written exam.

In other news, I'm *actually* unpacked/reorganized/cleaned now! Just need to make a final Ikea/Carrefour run for a comforter, some returns, bed risers and actual sleeping pillows, and I'm set! Oh, and I need to install my new curtains. Pictures coming when it's done!