But what an experience to obtain it. I had to get up early and go to work with Doug to get a driver to take us to the Licensing Department, we arrived at the department by 7.30 am. Already there was a long line up at the door that does not open until 8:00 am. This should have been a good indicator that the process was not going to be easy.
Firstly we had to go have some photographs taken so after taking our lives into our hands by crossing a very very busy 4 lane highway (this is the main road in and out of Port of Spain and of course it was rush hour) we arrived at a very dismal looking building and climbed the stairs to have our photos taken. $80 TT dollars later we were both the proud owners of 4 questionable photos each (we only need 2 for the license). We risked life and limb to cross the road again.
We followed our driver's instructions and went to the appropriate line up, when it was our turn we were told that we should have made an appointment to take the test. All is not lost as our driver Anthony made a quick phone call on his cell phone and like magic we were processed - apparently he knows the person in charge. We were eventually ushered into a room, not unlike a school room with small desks, and were told to take a pencil.
The written test began, the first part was multiple choice - no problem I know I got 100%. On to part two where it told you you were only allowed 1 incorrect answer - these were all questions regarding hand signals with true or false answers. HAND SIGNALS.........no one told us about these, in Canada we do not use or are tested on hand signals. I was desperately thinking back to the UK driving test and trying to rack my brain for the answers, I know I failed this part miserably. Third part was road signs and you were allowed two incorrect answers. Pretty easy, and I was quite confident with my answers. We finishd and then had to wait for the test to be processed. Meanwhile our Canadian colleagues who were taking the test asked what the heck are hand signals? They had no idea, and everyone of us agreed we had failed. Our driver asked how it went and we explained, he said "weren't you given a list of the hand signals beforehand"? There were quite a few open mouths at this stage. Once again the trusty Anthony called his friend and told us everything was Ok and don't ask.
Firstly we had to go have some photographs taken so after taking our lives into our hands by crossing a very very busy 4 lane highway (this is the main road in and out of Port of Spain and of course it was rush hour) we arrived at a very dismal looking building and climbed the stairs to have our photos taken. $80 TT dollars later we were both the proud owners of 4 questionable photos each (we only need 2 for the license). We risked life and limb to cross the road again.
We followed our driver's instructions and went to the appropriate line up, when it was our turn we were told that we should have made an appointment to take the test. All is not lost as our driver Anthony made a quick phone call on his cell phone and like magic we were processed - apparently he knows the person in charge. We were eventually ushered into a room, not unlike a school room with small desks, and were told to take a pencil.
The written test began, the first part was multiple choice - no problem I know I got 100%. On to part two where it told you you were only allowed 1 incorrect answer - these were all questions regarding hand signals with true or false answers. HAND SIGNALS.........no one told us about these, in Canada we do not use or are tested on hand signals. I was desperately thinking back to the UK driving test and trying to rack my brain for the answers, I know I failed this part miserably. Third part was road signs and you were allowed two incorrect answers. Pretty easy, and I was quite confident with my answers. We finishd and then had to wait for the test to be processed. Meanwhile our Canadian colleagues who were taking the test asked what the heck are hand signals? They had no idea, and everyone of us agreed we had failed. Our driver asked how it went and we explained, he said "weren't you given a list of the hand signals beforehand"? There were quite a few open mouths at this stage. Once again the trusty Anthony called his friend and told us everything was Ok and don't ask.
So we waited probably 1 1/2 hours or more before obtaining a pass, we then had to go to another building and line up to pay our fee at the cashiers office - there were probably 30 people ahead of us and one cashier open. Another hour later we had paid out $535 TT each and then had to go to another building to have a photo taken for the license (the two spare ones couldn't be used. It was now approximately 11:00 am and we had to wait until our names are called. The waiting room had standing room only, and as you can imagine, we waited a long time before we were called. We then had to go through a very strange process, plus photographs, and at approximately 12: 30 pm and $1150 TT lighter we were the proud owners of a Trinidad Drivers License.
Think of it this way...it took you less time to get your T&T licence than it did your Canadian one :)
ReplyDeleteBut much more painful.
ReplyDeletehave you driven anywhere yet?
ReplyDeleteI have been driving since we got here, we had international driving permits, however they are only valid for so long so we were advised to take our tests.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI am a Trinidadian who returned to Tdad after living in the USA for 45 years. I refuse to go through that painful process, and then have to drive on the roads with these aggressive impolite drivers. I take taxis and call friends and relatives.
ReplyDeleteTrinidad believes in implementing red tape in every procedure, and they all seem to "lime" on the job.