My resignation from N1 was approved last week. I will be moving in December after finishing my semester responsibilities here. So, from time to time, I will write about preparations for the upcoming move.
This week, I was back home for a few days to celebrate the festive season. I met some friends and relatives, who are happy about the upcoming move to New1 city and have generously offered congratulatory best wishes and lots of well meant advice. Most of what they say now is exactly what they said two years ago when I was moving to N1. For example,
"You will enjoy the intellectual/cultural atmosphere at N1 city,"
"we will certainly visit you there,"
"the traffic is bad,"
"you should buy a car and learn driving"
and, of course, the classic
"We know so and so over there. Here is their phone number. You must get in touch with them. They are verrrrrrry nice people."
None of the above, except the bad traffic, came to pass. I never really got a chance to enjoy the cultural atmosphere of N1 city, my relatives never visited me, I did not buy a car and I certainly never bothered to contact the people whose phone numbers were given to me. Not that I missed any of the above, but I do find it amusing that the above comments are being repeated verbatim!
But, one advice that I am taking very seriously this time is that of buying a car and learning to drive.
Ideally, I would love to just keep a bicycle and not have to worry about car maintenance, heavy traffic , parking etc. I managed fairly well with a bicycle at my postdoc locations and at N1, but this does not seem feasible at New1 city.
Strictly speaking, one could manage without a car there, but having one does present many advantages. For example, if needed, I can stay in the department till late to finish any important work without having to worry about safety issues and keeping a car does provide an extra degree of freedom for shopping, traveling etc.
I learnt driving as soon as I turned 18 and was very fond of it. But, I lost touch after I went to North America. This week, my father has been giving me lessons every morning. It seems that just like cycling and swimming, one does not really forget driving. However, my main challenge has been to overcome the initial hesitation.
As an 18 year old, I was indestructible - no amount of traffic and no fear of damaging my (father's) car bothered me. But, I am paranoid right now [1]. The roads are practically empty in the morning, but it took me two days to even try driving at 3rd gear or above. Also, I will need some serious practice before I can be confident about parking [in fact, I find parking much harder than driving properly].
My plan is to take some driving lessons again after I move to New1 city, even though my father feels it is not necessary. Some of my colleagues at New1 have suggested some reliable teachers.
The next question is to decide which model. I am thinking of a Hyundai i10 sportz.
i10 seems to be a favourite with most of my colleagues and this model has an added advantage of automatic gears [2]. But, some of my friends think that once I overcome my initial fears and get more driving practice, I might not care so much for automatic gears. So, I am still giving this more thought.
But, each time, I start to think about cars and driving, my first inclination is to think of reasons not to buy a car and strategies to manage comfortably without one. Sadly, this time, I have no option but to overcome this fear!
Comments/tips/driving stories are most welcome!
[1] To begin with, this time, I am practicing on my brother's car, and not my father's good old Maruti 800. That itself is a scary proposition!
[2] The other day, my sister-in-law joked that I need not fear driving as driving a car with automatic gears is as easy as driving a toy car at Appu Ghar.
This week, I was back home for a few days to celebrate the festive season. I met some friends and relatives, who are happy about the upcoming move to New1 city and have generously offered congratulatory best wishes and lots of well meant advice. Most of what they say now is exactly what they said two years ago when I was moving to N1. For example,
"You will enjoy the intellectual/cultural atmosphere at N1 city,"
"we will certainly visit you there,"
"the traffic is bad,"
"you should buy a car and learn driving"
and, of course, the classic
"We know so and so over there. Here is their phone number. You must get in touch with them. They are verrrrrrry nice people."
None of the above, except the bad traffic, came to pass. I never really got a chance to enjoy the cultural atmosphere of N1 city, my relatives never visited me, I did not buy a car and I certainly never bothered to contact the people whose phone numbers were given to me. Not that I missed any of the above, but I do find it amusing that the above comments are being repeated verbatim!
But, one advice that I am taking very seriously this time is that of buying a car and learning to drive.
Ideally, I would love to just keep a bicycle and not have to worry about car maintenance, heavy traffic , parking etc. I managed fairly well with a bicycle at my postdoc locations and at N1, but this does not seem feasible at New1 city.
Strictly speaking, one could manage without a car there, but having one does present many advantages. For example, if needed, I can stay in the department till late to finish any important work without having to worry about safety issues and keeping a car does provide an extra degree of freedom for shopping, traveling etc.
I learnt driving as soon as I turned 18 and was very fond of it. But, I lost touch after I went to North America. This week, my father has been giving me lessons every morning. It seems that just like cycling and swimming, one does not really forget driving. However, my main challenge has been to overcome the initial hesitation.
As an 18 year old, I was indestructible - no amount of traffic and no fear of damaging my (father's) car bothered me. But, I am paranoid right now [1]. The roads are practically empty in the morning, but it took me two days to even try driving at 3rd gear or above. Also, I will need some serious practice before I can be confident about parking [in fact, I find parking much harder than driving properly].
My plan is to take some driving lessons again after I move to New1 city, even though my father feels it is not necessary. Some of my colleagues at New1 have suggested some reliable teachers.
The next question is to decide which model. I am thinking of a Hyundai i10 sportz.
i10 seems to be a favourite with most of my colleagues and this model has an added advantage of automatic gears [2]. But, some of my friends think that once I overcome my initial fears and get more driving practice, I might not care so much for automatic gears. So, I am still giving this more thought.
But, each time, I start to think about cars and driving, my first inclination is to think of reasons not to buy a car and strategies to manage comfortably without one. Sadly, this time, I have no option but to overcome this fear!
Comments/tips/driving stories are most welcome!
[1] To begin with, this time, I am practicing on my brother's car, and not my father's good old Maruti 800. That itself is a scary proposition!
[2] The other day, my sister-in-law joked that I need not fear driving as driving a car with automatic gears is as easy as driving a toy car at Appu Ghar.
12 comments:
"We know so and so over there. Here is their phone number. You must get in touch with them. They are verrrrrrry nice people."
I'm glad there are n>1 people other than my wife and I who find this really irritating :)
The 'stop-go-bump-hump' traffic on our roads makes an automatic convenient. Stick-shifts, if driven badly, ruin the clutch with such driving. If you can afford it, don't go for the smallest car. Driving away on weekends can be a pleasure and a mid-size is better for longer distances. Enjoy!
Due to knee troubles, I tried biking in a city near N1 once. (Walking from a bus stop to where I was going was impossible, and I didn't want to spend all my money on cab fares.) In the areas I frequented, people (men) got to know me as the strange woman on a bike, and asked me for years afterwards where the bike was. When I had to go longer distances, people looked at me like I'd sprouted another head or two, including one gentleman who stuck his head out a passing bus window so he could gawk. This is unfortunate and very strange, since a woman on a bike in even a slightly rural area is not a bizarre sight at all.
Have you considered a motorcycle?
You seem to be one of the few who lost touch with driving *after* moving to America. I would say, if you enjoy driving, get a car, if you don't, don't bother. But much depends on the city and the quality of public transport, and, of course, its safety at night. Anyway, it sounds like you have decided to get one for sure.
Agree with Vijay on the clutch -- with bad driving habits and city traffic, clutches often wear out within 2 years these days. On the other hand, the added power you get from manually downshifting can be useful in city traffic, and fuel economy is better with manual transmission. Most drivers who are comfortable stick-shifting do not choose an automatic, in my experience.
Regarding which car to buy -- Hyundai and Maruti are safe choices, in that you can service them anywhere and they have decent resale value if need be. If you need to go over bad roads, you may want a slightly bigger/sturdier car than the i10. I got a Fiat Punto two years ago and, given the state of some of the roads I use daily, it was an excellent decision. The Hyundai/Maruti equivalents would be the i20 and Swift (in fact the diesel Swift uses a Fiat engine.) Or even a low-end SUV like the Renault Duster?
(ps -- I'm unable to prove I'm not a robot -- this is my fourth attempt to get past the captcha.)
Vijay and Rahul, thanks for the inputs.
Rahul, I wish I could avoid buying a car because I really do not enjoy driving. But, at the moment, it is a necessity. Thanks for the suggestions about the models. I will be making a final decision by Diwali about it. Both you and Vijay have suggested going in for a bigger car.
Barefoot, at N1, it is not at all unusual for a woman to cycle. In fact, almost all people (including old men and women) in this locality cycle.I don't think I have ever been gawked at for cycling, but I sure will turn a lot of heads if I were to ride a motorcycle on an Indian road :)
I just re-started cycling this week, actually -- lets see how long that lasts. I've gone through phases where I cycle to work 4 days a week, but after a month of that I relapse into the car habit. My wife rides a motorcycle and it does attract attention, both positive and negative -- but it's more stable than a scooter on bad / slushy roads.
Regarding the car, a major point, of course, is to test-drive the thing before buying it. And you can also find some useful reviews on the team-bhp.com forums. In particular, check, for whichever models you are considering, how good that brand's service is in the city you're moving to. (Eg, while Hyundai has service centres everywhere, a lot of them are rather flaky if you believe reports on team-bhp.)
I think BD meant kinetic Honda or something like. They are pretty decent and handy as compared to car.
An interesting poll on team-bhp, on which hatchback offers the best ride quality on bad roads. Right now the Fiat Punto (which I own) is creaming the rest in this admittedly unscientific survey, and no other car fares notably. The members at that forum (I am not one) seem quite knowledgeable and Fiat tends to be popular there despite its dismal sales figures -- one reason I opted for it.
But, as one of the commenters says, the flip side is the Punto has an unusually large turning radius (5.4m vs 4.8 for many competing cars). I'm used to it now but initially taking U-turns was tricky.
Sure you will still keep cycling around..once in a while if not each morning. Cycling in N1 is such a treat..one can trek right on the road ;-)
Continue your lessons and learn well the stick-shift anyway (it could come in handy in an emergency), but consider for yourself the Reva Electric. It's clutchless, noiseless, has the smallest turning radius, and after the Mahindra acquisition, perhaps will have good service available everywhere in India. A good alternative to biking, with the safety of an enclosed car.
Extra Credits: If you are like a typical prof in India, you could boast/debate about the enviro-friendliness of an electric. (No, I don't care for the "ecology" movement etc. (in fact hate most of it), though this is not a forum to detail my views.)
Ajit
[E&OE]
Do you need to apply thru proper channel when you are in probation?
an anonymous new prof in new India
Anon @ 10.39 am, No, it is not necessary. But, sometimes, the places to which you apply (for example, if you are applying between sister institutes) prefer that your current institution knows about it.
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