Re: National Geographic, June 2004

>> 5. Have you ever driven 600 miles with 3 kids under 6 in one of the
>midgets
>> you suggest?
>
>Yeah, driven round France with two kids in a Morris minor - size of original
>VW -we also had two bikes on top- and have had 4 holidays in France with us
>and two teenagers in either an Escort or Contour, which have even carried
>you at times.

I'll basically have to take Michael's side on this.

I've lived here in Japan for almost 7 years, but originally
I came from California. I also lived in Colorado for some
years too. Farmers in rural areas in the US probably need
a good 4x4 in for some situations. I recall that some mountain
roads in Colorado were unpaved and in bad weather in particular,
a 4x4 is of value. So where Burgy lives, there is some real
possibility that a 4x4 has some use, but most urban Califoria?
Get real!
 
In Japan, not only is gas more than $4/gal (120yen/l),
taxes, insurance and toll roads (and parking!) add a lot
of additional cost. Apartments don't usually come with
a parking space, so you have to buy that for an extra $300
per month. Traffic is a real pain and it can cost you
$1/15min to park in some places, I have yet to develop
the courage (or madness) to drive in Tokyo frankly.

However, the transportation system is reasonably efficient,
so when I really need to drive, it has been sufficient
(and much cheaper) to simply rent a car for a few days
and drive.

But one thing that I realize is that it would be difficult
to modify what is already existing in the US. In Japan,
housing has built up around the railroads (and subways).
In the US, it built up around the freeways. So in some
respects, we have boxed ourselves into a difficult situatation.

One of the main things I have had to learn as a USAian, is
that "space" and "convenience" are considered a luxury in
most places of the world. You have to be a very important
person indeed to even have a parking place in some places.
It is not much fun to have to jam onto a rush hour train,
and an experience all of its own. In some respects though,
that is probably something we need to learn.
Received on Fri Nov 5 18:37:12 2004