Transport Tales

On the planet of Zakra,light years away from our own little Earth,automatic driving lessons begin as soon as a child has reached his or her third birthday. Of course, a year is a very long time on Zakra: the amount of time in one their days is roughly equivalent to three days in our own Earth time.

The reason for automatic driving lessons is very simple: on top of the ground is a very very big amount of radiation. In fact the only way to move about on Zakra is to get in a car and be driven around.

For young drivers and old drivers the rates and lessons are very cheap because everyone wants people to be able to drive: drive to work or the hospital or the local supermarket!

Before the third birthday of any given child, before their automatic driving lessons can commence, the theory test is already completed. Every child begins to learn driving theory at the age of one: they learn it as soon as they are able to utter the words 'Mama' and 'Dada'.The theory and the automatic driving lessons are exactly the same for womenas they are for men: there is no difference between the way that the two genders are taught to drive.

The whole automatic driving lessons system works on the whole very well on the planet of Zakra. With all the radiation buzzing down onto the surface of the planet every second of every day, it is the only means of protection for the people that live there. Thousands of years ago, someone tried using a type of sun cream to stop people from becoming micro waved. I hasten to add that it did not work. The sun cream was banned within weeks of it being put out in the shops, and the alien who invented it was thrown into prison.

Naturally the people of Zakra are some of the best drivers in the entire galaxy. The art of driving has become an irreversible part of their culture. They are renowned for their skill, and many other aliens flock to their planet in order to learn how to drive properly and cheaply. It is a major source of income for the people of Zakra. However, Zakra and its automatic driving lessons, not to mention the theory tests all done in childhood, is merely a single planet in a galaxy full of weird and erratic planets!