I’ve been meaning to write about this for a while now…but as usual, something else comes up.

But needless to say, driving in Korea is more than a bit different than back home.

Let’s start with the similarities:

• They drive on the right-hand side of the road, like us.
• They have traffic lights & stop signs, like us.
• Ahhh….
• …..ahhh….
• ………ummm….
• Well, there may be a few more similarities I’m forgetting – but it’s 6am, and I’m not really awake yet. I’m sleep-blogging.

But what you really have to pay attention to are the differences.

Oh yeah, those’ll get ya if you’re not careful.

So here they are…the ones I can remember this early in the morning…in no particular order.

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Number One!

Children do NOT stop to look both ways before crossing the street.

While I can’t imagine this happens in big cities like Seoul, the first thing they taught us in our Driving in Korea class was that the children are not taught to stop. Instead they’re told if they hold their hand up, all the drivers will stop for them.

(I’ll give you a minute to read that one again.)

So yes, they’ll walk right out into the middle of the street without batting an eye & it’s our responsibility to watch out for them.

I’ve been trying for months to catch a picture of a kid with his hand up, but the reality is…I’ve not seen one do it yet. Oh they’ll walk (or run like these two) right out into the street in front of you. But I’ve not seen a single hand go up yet.

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Number Two

Red lights are optional.

[awkwardly clearing throat]

Since my brand new next-door neighbor is an MP (Military Policeman) - a very nice man with a good sense of humor who’s seen the blog, let me clarify that for you because I’d really rather not get in trouble today if at all possible.

Tomorrow?…well, ok maybe – I’ve just got too much crap to do today to get in trouble. So!…

Driving on Base: Red lights are most definitely NOT optional. You follow the rules just like home. You stop at stop signs. You stop at red lights. Except all the speed limit signs are in KPH not MPH.

So when the sign says 40 & you’re driving your American-made car, don’t look at the big numbers, look at the little numbers. Because 40, my dear friends, is really about 20 miles an hour.

(Needless to say, it took a lot of getting used to at first.)

Driving in Seoul:Red lights are most definitely NOT optional. While I don’t know if it’s an exact comparison, Seoul is big – like New York City big. And you can’t just go around willy-nilly running red lights when you don’t feel like stopping. Someone will hit you.

And I’m pretty positive the Korean Police would rather you follow the rules as well.

Driving in Anjung-Ri & all little points in-between: Well, that’s a different story. But yes, red lights are optional. And apparently it’s a judgement call thing.

The light to get into the base? You stop. The light at a major intersection? You stop. All the other lights?…not so much.

It’s rather frightening at first because the in-grained compulsion to stop at a red light could actually get you hit. But that’s where these little gizmos come in – big mirrors aimed for the drivers on the side roads to see if someone’s coming the other direction.

So you can always tell who’s new around here by how they respond to certain red lights. The locals, the long-timers…if they’re responsible…will slow down just a bit to make sure no one’s coming from the opposite direction. But no, they don’t stop. The wackos out there will fly by you at full-speed. So if you’re sitting there at a red light, you’re a sitting duck.

I’m just sayin’.

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Number Three

This man has the right of way.

Doesn’t matter if it’s a man or woman. Any little farmer pushing a cart or driving farm equipment has the right of way.

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Number Four

Watch out for Binjo ditches.

A binjo ditch (hope I’m remembering that word right) is a concreted irrigation ditch that drops a good 2 to 3 feet down right where the shoulder of the road should be.

In the summer they’re easy to miss because all the vegetation grows up, around & over it. So if you find yourself on a one-lane road & realize you need to turn around…keep going until you find a spot you can turn around otherwise your car will wind up in the ditch. And good luck getting AAA to come out here.

Oh sure…you can see the binjo ditch on the right…But what about the one on the left?

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Number Five

If you’re military, you have to have a military-issued Korean drivers license.

Getting an international drivers license through your insurance company won’t cut it. Don’t get me wrong, you could probably still drive around Seoul & the country-side…it just won’t work for getting on post. And that applies to active duty & their spouses.

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So there you go…my top five things to know about driving in Korea…at least the top five I can remember right now.

Now for the obligatory legalese.

[rattled off quickly]

Obviously, I am NOT an authority on the subject, nor should you tell the MP that pulls you over ‘but Jennifer said…’ and I’m too broke to bail you out should you get arrested by the Korean police – so don’t call me. Well, ok – you can call me. I’ll come visit you & bring you cookies.

These are just the observations I’ve made since arriving in May & in no way reflect the current laws & actual customs of the country.