I decided in late afternoon that I really, really wanted some ice cream. No place to get it except the Co-op grocery store about three miles away in Castleton. Co-op stores are very popular in very small towns and carry the essential groceries people living in the area need, and a few luxuries, as well. The smaller the town, the smaller the Co-op, and i knew this one was very small, but off I went, hoping that the town would not be very busy.
Drove through the town and missed the store, so had to turn around in the moors and come back again. I could tell immediately that I was going to be in trouble because absolutely none of these pubs, restaurants, and tiny stores had any sorts of parking lots. But I really wanted some ice cream. Note that even though this is a two-way street, the parked cars have created a one-way-at-a-time street.
A few steps missing here, but just past these two rows of parked cars above, I found the tiny Co-op, but there was no place to park on my side of the road, namely the left side. So, I did what the Brits do, and dove across the street to park on the wrong side, except there really is no such thing as the wrong side based on how the people here park. (My rental is the blue car below.)
I should have gotten parked closer to the curb, but my goal was to race into the store, grab my ice cream, and be gone before anyone came behind me. And yes, parking in the driving lane is perfectly legal because there are no double yellow lanes on the curb. And it is also perfectly legal to park facing whatever way you choose to face.
Oh, oh. Someone has parked behind me, and I have not had any parallel parking experience in the past 10 years!!
Whew! Luckily the van in front of me and the car behind me have left me about 3' of room each. However, my problem now is that I am supposed to pull across the oncoming traffic in the right lane and start driving in the left lane, and my driver's seat is on the far side of the car, next to the curb! Did not plan on this. This makes it very hard to see if anyone is coming towards me in the right lane. Also, I can only partly see behind me in the left lane.
So, I backed up a couple of feet, pointed my tires towards the far left lane, and took my chances. Made it, and I was even in the correct left lane, and no one is coming towards me.
Success, and heading back to my little farm cottage where I am staying! And no moving cars in view at all.
Whew!!
My Fitbit said I walked 2,960 steps and 1.2 miles. Hard to keep remembering to track this, but I think it is a good record of my activity.
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