So you may remember that nearly three years ago I began the process of getting a driver’s license in Japan. You can read about the experiences here, here and here.
The quick summary is that it is extremely difficult to pass the test, and almost as difficult just to schedule a driving test. Each time you do that you must apply either in person or by postcard – apparently telephones and internet have not yet come to Hyogo prefecture government offices.
Since completing grad school I have more time available to schedule a driver’s test, so about a month ago I started the process again. The good news was that my paperwork was still on file so I didn’t have to go through my passport checking to ensure that I was a valid license holder. The bad news was that my previous written and visual test results were only valid for six months, and that had long since passed.
The first day I went back to the license center they told me that about the six month rule, but because it was afternoon they had closed the office that handles the written and visual tests for foreigners. That meant that my trip was wasted, and I had to go back home empty handed.
I came back a few days later and passed the visual and written test, and I was allowed to schedule a driving test for two weeks later. That took about four hours, and then I went home empty handed.
My driving test (which was actually my second time) went really well. I had a lot more confidence since I had at least some experience on the course (even though it was several years before). This time I was the first driver in the car, which was a little bit of extra pressure. Unfortunately at the only stop sign on the course the instructor asked me to wait while he got out of the car, took out a tape measure, and said that I had stopped 10 centimeters over the line. Fail! So I had to schedule another test and then go home empty handed. During the trip back it seemed like every car I saw rolled right through the stop signs. Ugh.
Which finally brings me to yesterday, the day I finally passed the driver’s test. Everything went much the same as before, except this time I had memorized the pattern well enough that I made zero mistakes. I was thrilled to finally pass, and I didn’t even mind waiting around another three hours for them to issue the license on the spot.
I’ve said before how ridiculous the process is, and how it is completely unrelated to actual driving skill. I noticed something this time after passing the test that confirmed for me a lot of the conspiracy theories rolling around in my head. The foreigners all take the test at the same time, and yesterday there were about 20 foreigners taking the test. They come from all over Hyogo – everyone taking a day off to travel from as far away as Osaka to take the test. At the end of the test six people had passed out of the original twenty, and we were led upstairs for the next step in the process.
The “a-ha!” moment is when we were led into a tiny room to turn in our paperwork and wait, and there were just SIX chairs in the room. Exactly the same amount of chairs as people that passed. I’m sure sometimes they have more people that pass, and sometimes they have fewer, but by using this room for us to wait it seems pretty pessimistic to me. I’m sure if the people that failed the test realized that that even if they passed they’d never fit in the waiting room anyway, they’d completely understand. Conspiracy! Elvis is alive! The grassy knoll!
Anyway, by 4:00 p.m., after spending eight hours in the license center, I left the building for the last time holding a shiny new IC-chip embedded Japanese driver’s license. Woo-hoo!
I met up with Kuniko in Kobe and together we went off to IKEA to buy some bookshelves and bar stools for the new place. We celebrated the new license with a simple dinner in the IKEA restaurant – lots of roast beef, meatballs and salads… yum.
Now that I have a license, I guess I should practice driving in real situations in Japan. It is nothing like the closed course at the license center, but I’m looking forward to practicing around Okubo. Also, it will help during the upcoming move.
Anyway, that long, sad chapter is finally over. Time to get busy with other things.
