Driving

We call it the Shunting system, they just keep shunting the car infront and behind until they fit their car in. I hate parking in the street down in Torrevieja (that's if you're lucky enough to find a space) I'd rather pay and park in the underground car park

Roach wrote:The Spanish way of parking though is funny. Very laid back lol.

Chrisdee wrote:We call it the Shunting system, they just keep shunting the car infront and behind until they fit their car in. I hate parking in the street down in Torrevieja (that's if you're lucky enough to find a space) I'd rather pay and park in the underground car park

Roach wrote:The Spanish way of parking though is funny. Very laid back lol.

I think shunting is a parking method used for many years both in Spain and other countries, I myself worked for an Italian over 40 years ago in the UK, he had an e type Jaguar and when he would give me a lift we would find a parking space and gently bump the car front and back to get the car in, if I said anything all he said was that was what bumpers were for!!

I think bumpers should be made of rubber, bit like on dodgem cars, a band all the way around.

polop wrote:, if I said anything all he said was that was what bumpers were for!!

That's the system they use in Valencia. If you park your car in the street, you have to leave the car in neutral and the handbrake off. Then people shove the cars back and forth to squeeze another one in.

I think we need to take into account the cultural differences between our countries. Of course, both the UK and Spain have 'rules of the road' and UK road users will wag their finger at another driver breaking those rules (whilst happily breaking one or two themselves). It's part of the UK's culture to be bound by rules and, to one extent or another, abide by them. A reason Brits queue.....

Spanish drivers don't break their rules in a deliberate way, there's no malice in it - they just don't attach the importance to them that we do (and, it seems, neither do the police). If you wag your finger at a Spanish driver, they probably won't notice and, if they do, won't have a clue that the gesture was intended for them. One of the things I love about driving in Spain is that there's very little road rage.

The best thing we can all do is become more Spanish: slow down, chill out and learn to drive defensively - when Paco, our neighbouring farmer, learned to drive 60 years ago, there weren't all these foreigners clogging up his roads

Paulr wrote:I think we need to take into account the cultural differences between our countries. Of course, both the UK and Spain have 'rules of the road' and UK road users will wag their finger at another driver breaking those rules (whilst happily breaking one or two themselves). It's part of the UK's culture to be bound by rules and, to one extent or another, abide by them. A reason Brits queue.....

Spanish drivers don't break their rules in a deliberate way, there's no malice in it - they just don't attach the importance to them that we do (and, it seems, neither do the police). If you wag your finger at a Spanish driver, they probably won't notice and, if they do, won't have a clue that the gesture was intended for them. One of the things I love about driving in Spain is that there's very little road rage.

The best thing we can all do is become more Spanish: slow down, chill out and learn to drive defensively - when Paco, our neighbouring farmer, learned to drive 60 years ago, there weren't all these foreigners clogging up his roads

I've seen some British drivers on the roads here how just haven't got a clue and to 've honest with you shouldn't be behind a wheel of a car.