10 years after my first attempt to learn to drive in London, England, I decided to move to Rockville, MD (Maryland), USA and try again.

The first and most obvious consideration is that Americans drive on the right-hand side of the road and British people drive on the left. Certainly a big change right there.

Also the procedures in the United States are slightly different because it is broken out into 50 states and each state has its own set of rules for learning to drive. I proceeded to move out of Washington, DC (not wishing to repeat the London experience) and move to Rockville, MD - the suburbs.

As I started my lessons, I discovered that Maryland had recently changed its structure to make it a more lengthy process to be able to obtain a license. First of all I had to study my driving handbook and then take a written test and obtain my learner's permit. I then had to take 40 hours of driving lessons in a minimum of four months and also take the 'Rookie Driver' course consisting of 6 more hours of driving lessons and 30 hours of classroom time. I actually did these backwards because I was new at this and the whole process took me a little over six months!

One minor hurdle I ran into was with the 40 hours of driving instruction. These could be completed with a parent or mentor, but as my parents live in England, that was not an option and because I was a 'mature student' I actually wanted to go through a professional school. I did manage to find a school to teach me; however, this was rather a costly process.

Some of the benefits that I was able to experience though, were having three different instructors and trying out four different cars. Also, because I was in the USA, I was able to drive around the beltway (the English equivalent to the motorway I think) and become comfortable with that style of driving. England does not allow learner drivers to drive on the motorway. I also learned to drive on an automatic and this made the whole process considerably easier.

I have now completed the process and passed my test and comparing it to the experience I had in London, England, I must say this was definitely a more positive one.