Travel: Which way do you go?

Which way do you go?

In Ireland, the signposts won't help much, even if you're driving on the correct side of the road. Be prepared to be confused by them - if you can even see them.

By ROBERT N. JENKINS, Times Travel Editor

The elderly man gingerly stepped into the roadway, looking in my direction, then waved at someone hidden by the hedge on his property. I slowed down -- in time to cross the dividing line and avoid the car backing from his driveway into the road.

That was one of the few hazards encountered as I drove 710 miles on the left side of the dividing line during my visit to Ireland. Only twice did I forget and pull out from a parking lot into the wrong lane.

But the chance to enjoy the scenery was constantly tempered by the need to hug the roadside while approaching the next blind curve. Often bordered by hedges, stone walls or trees, even the second-highest class of roads in Ireland may be no wider than a couple of midsize cars. When a piggyback freight truck or a tractor hauling a hay wagon rounds a curve, you don't mind hearing the bushes scrape the passenger side of your car.

At least as bothersome as having to pay attention to the road rather than the scenery was the regular challenge to spot and correctly read the road signs.

Especially in the rural area, signs at intersections would list the nearest villages in each direction. The sign would first state the place name in Gaelic, then in English, with the mileage noted. But sometimes the distances were in kilometers, sometimes in miles (a kilometer is 0.62 of a mile). Motorists quickly have to read the signs to see which measurement is being used.

More troublesome, however, is that at many three- and four-way intersections, the signs for each direction are posted at the same height on the same pole, and thus tend to block one another from motorists' view.

To picture this, imagine that you are driving north on the R705 and arrive at its intersection with the east-west R702. Facing you are the signs pointing to the east and west, and they block the sign telling you what is ahead of you on the 705. In the spaghetti maze of poorly noted country roads, it may be that you need to turn at this intersection to take the shortest route to your destination, but you cannot read the distances until you are passing the sign, at 30 to 40 mph.

Other tips about driving in Ireland:

Specify that you want an automatic-shift car. Many of us are familiar with manual shift, but in Ireland you not only sit on the right-hand side of the car to drive, but also you would find the stick shift on your left. Using your left hand to shift can be very trying, as I learned on an earlier trip to the British Isles.

Be ready for, but not frightened of, the traffic circles called roundabouts. These are circles most often painted in the middle of many intersections, in lieu of traffic lights. Many roundabouts offer three or more turnoffs, and every road approaching a roundabout has a yield sign, so that motorists in the circle have fewer problems maneuvering around the circle and onto their chosen road.
The trick is to spot the correct turnoff on the road signs posted before reaching the roundabout. Rush hour makes roundabouts more difficult.
In Ireland, U.S. auto insurance is not accepted by rental companies. You must either buy their insurance or let the rental companies place a huge charge against your credit card, until the car is safely returned. (Avis disclosed at the Dublin airport that it would levy a $5,000 charge against my card; its "optional" insurance was an outrageous $20-plus per day.)
A lien of thousands on your credit card, combined with expensive hotels, meals or purchases, can easily top out a card before you return the car; carry at least two cards with you.
Americans have had only a taste of high gasoline prices recently; Europeans live with them constantly. Expect to pay at least twice as much for gas there; however, most rental cars are compact and quite fuel-efficient.