We are so excited to finally have a car after over a year of getting around on 2 legs or 2 wheels. 4 wheels feels like a breeze. Our missionary friends who left Japan gave us their used mini van. It is small enough to get around easily and fit in our very narrow and low driveway and big enough to seat 8, although a little snug. We still had to pay the expensive yearly car and road tax which costs about $1,100. Having a car has come in handy transporting things and shopping, as well as saving us money on train fare.
When I first came to Tokyo last year I said I would never drive. It was scary. Tokyo is a city made up of little villages with dirt paths that used to be traveled by carts. Now this most populated city in the world is a paved crazy maze of cars, truck, bikes, pedestrians and mopeds.
I blame my leeriness to drive on my poor depth-perception, but I think anyone would agree that it is hard to navigate on what is more like a wide congested sidewalk, than a street. When I first started driving I would make sure one of the kids was in the front seat to tell me how close I was to the edge of the road (which is lined with cement walls, rails or bushes). Once when I asked how close I was, as I was trying to pull to the edge of my side to let another car pass, our son answered, "Got a piece of paper?" We have laughed about it ever since. God graciously pushed me gently out of my comfort zone and stretched me to be able to get around a little.
We took these pictures and video last summer when we borrowed our friend's car. We had just got our GPS, affectionately named "Sully" (from the TV series Dr. Quinn-Medicine Woman that our family watched last year). Our "Navi" (short for navigation) as the Japanese call it, helps us get around. I hope that these pictures and video give you a little taste of the driving in Tokyo experience.
