|
- Essentials (A Brief Summary)
If you read nothing else in this guide, you ought to at least know the essentials here...
- California-Speak
Some help with understanding what Californians are saying -- and how to help Californians understand you...
- A California Primer
California's a large place by European or East Coast standards, and spans a surprising variety of landscapes and cultures. Most foreigners probably think of palm trees, deserts, Hollywood, Disneyland, Bay Watch, and (maybe) Yosemite when they hear the word "California", but there's a bit more to it than that...
- Absolute Basics
An assortment of fairly basic observations and tips about California, mostly for foreigners and people unfamiliar with California's ways....
- The Law
California's road rules and driving laws are mostly fairly sensible and unsurprising; it shouldn't take long for out-of-staters to master the important points...
- California Driving Habits & Quirks
I can't pretend that bad driving is indigenous to or even unique to California (far from it), but it does seem to have much more than its fair share of lethally stupid, maliciously reckless, or just plain careless drivers. The sad fact about the worst California Drivers is that, as readers keep pointing out, they have all the attitude of the average Boston or New York driver, and none of the ability...
- Useful Organizations
You might find some or all of the organizations mentioned here useful...
- Roads and Traffic
California has a lot of roads. This is a guide to how to identify them, use them, and cope with the traffic encountered on them...
- Driving On the Wrong Side of the Road
For Britons, Australians, Japanese, and the rest of us brought up to drive on the left hand side of the road, there's the added dimension of having to drive on the "wrong" side of the road in America...
- Road Conditions (Fog, Rain, Snow, Ice)
Road conditions vary enormously from day to day and region to region within California. Some roads span the state through desert, lush valleys, high mountain passes, and snow-covered plains; you may need both snow chains and air conditioning in the same hour while driving through areas like the Owens Valley. In mid-winter, you may even need snow chains to get across the mountains only 40 miles from the palm trees of downtown LA...
- Parking
Parking rules are enforced at a local level, but there is a pretty consistent set of state-wide laws and associated parking signs...
- Maps, Atlases, & Guides
There are hundreds of different maps of California for all different purposes; the ones mentioned here are those that I've found useful for driving over the years...
- Accidents and Breakdowns
The two most important things to remember here are: 1) join the CSAA or ACSC so that towing is reasonably cheap and easy; and, 2) try to avoid driving in a bad part of town so that you don't break down or have an accident there...
- Crime
While California is an often-violent place (cities like Oakland, Richmond, East Palo Alto, bits of East LA., and Compton are the murder capitals of America, with death rates much higher than those of New York), as a tourist you are likely to be insulated from most of it. But don't be complacent...
- Desert Driving
Don't be intimidated by the idea of driving through the desert -- there's nothing in California like the ordeals and rigors required to drive through the African, Asian, or Australian deserts...
|
|
