Fewer young people aged between 17 and 20 are obtaining a driving licence today. That hesitation is understandable: the test can be intensely stressful, from difficult lessons and stalled engines to the pressure of the final examination. Yet, looking back, the licence can prove far more valuable than it first appears.
The author recalls being intimidated by the driving instructor, the size of his BMW and the repeated difficulty of starting the car smoothly. The final lesson went so badly that tears came before the vehicle had even stopped. The licence also cost around 2,300 euros, paid from the parents’ savings. Nevertheless, receiving the instructor’s congratulations brought both relief and tears, as the prospect of freedom finally opened up.
That freedom became tangible ten years later in Namibia. The journey towards the Atlantic coast crossed terrain where roads were often little more than rough tracks. Traffic was sparse, Namibia uses left-hand traffic, and the four-wheel-drive vehicle absorbed some of the uneven ground without hiding every pothole. The landscape stretched between rock and pale, sandy or gravelly surfaces, with the coast visible in the distance.
The travellers had mostly driven in Germany and, at most, elsewhere in Europe. Limited driving experience, university life and poorly paid student jobs had kept owning a car out of reach, while the old nervousness about driving had never entirely disappeared. In Namibia, however, the driving responsibilities were planned in advance. One passenger was familiar with left-hand driving and local road conditions, while the other initially remained tense in silence as the vehicle bounced across the track.
When the road eventually gave way to largely unpaved terrain, internet access repeatedly failed and the navigation system stopped working. There was little choice but to continue straight ahead. During a break, surrounded by an immense landscape and with no people in sight, the travellers felt both insignificant and liberated. They finally gathered the courage to change drivers.
The fears associated with driving disappeared within minutes. The driver navigated around potholes and small rocks with ease. Later, on mountain roads, even tight bends no longer caused panic. The vast landscape, once intimidating, began to create a sense of freedom and confidence.
For two weeks, the two city dwellers took turns at the wheel, sometimes exhausted and sometimes energised. Audiobooks and rock classics accompanied them. By the time they returned to the airport, they felt proud: without the car, they would not have seen so much of Namibia or discovered what it meant to confront an unfamiliar country with confidence.
The driving lessons and examination had once felt like an ordeal. Yet the licence made that journey possible and helped turn fear into independence. For that reason, the author says they would choose to obtain it again.
Sources: FAZ.