Here in New Zealand, they drive on the left side of the road. Here are a few helpful rules to remember if you ever have to drive on the flip side:

Rule 1: Don’t Die.

Rule 2: Don’t cause others to break Rule 1.

Rule 3: Don’t drive down the right side of the road. Ever! Not even in neighbourhoods when you forget because they don’t have lines telling you where to go (not that this has happened to me).

Rule 4: The driver’s seat is now on the right side of the vehicle. It is embarrassing to get into the wrong side of the vehicle (both for the driver and the passenger).

Rule 5: Forget everything you know about depth perception. After spending my entire life knowing that cars to my left are about 3-4 feet away and cars to my right are about 8-10 feet away, I’ve come way to close to clipping cars on my left (which now need to be 8-10 feet away if I don’t want the passenger seat to fly into those cars).

Rule 6: Never get too comfortable. If you do, you’ll probably make a turn and end up breaking rule 3.

Rule 7: Pray often that Jesus really will be your co-pilot. Sing “Jesus take the wheel” if it helps.

Rule 8: The blinker is now on the right side of the wheel and the windshield wipers are on the left side of the wheel. Be prepared to turn on the wipers every time you make a turn. If you want to avoid embarrassment, try driving in the rain.

So far, driving has gone pretty well. If you enjoyed this post and you’re really into safety, I would like to recommend this safety video we saw on our flight across the Pacific: