Getting a Driver's License in Spain - Quite an Experience!

This Thursday I am slated to take the written driver's exam that will count toward getting my Spanish driver's license.  I thought I would outline the steps and the costs of obtaining a driver's license here.  It would also be interesting to compare this to getting a driver's license in the U.S.  However, since there are 50 different ways to get a U.S. driver's license (each state issues their own driver's license rather than one license that comes from the federal government), I chose my former state of Virginia to compare their procedures with the Spanish ones.

Why Am I Getting a Spanish License?

Good question!  There are two reasons.  First, as a Spanish resident I need a Spanish license after living here 6 months.  This makes sense and all U.S. states have similar requirements and sometimes require the new resident a shorter window to obtain their new license.

The second reason is that I had to break all ties with Virginia, which included returning (electronically) my VA driver's license.  I won't go into the reasons why I needed to do that here.  Suffice it to say that I am now unable to drive until I obtain a Spanish license.  Fortunately, I don't have a car and the need to rent one here is infrequent.  However, I would like to have the option to do that whenever I need to in the future.

Can I Exchange my U.S. Driver's License for a Spanish One?

Well, no.  Spain has agreements with all EU (European Union) and EEA (European Economic Area) countries and with a list of about 23 other countries (many from Latin America).  Citizens from these countries have to initiate this driver's license exchange within six months of their residency here.  The U.S. is not included in this list.  Although I cannot verify this, I think one of the reasons is because there is no US national license but rather 50 state licenses that Spain would have to make agreements with.  Bottom line is that I need to go through all the steps to get a Spanish license.

Comparisons - Spain vs. VA

I thought it would be easiest to put this in a chart to compare the two systems:

Steps	Spanish Cost	Virginia Cost	Explanation (assuming you are an adult who does not have a license)
Sign Up with a Drivers School	80 euros (min)	N/A or $15-40	·     Spain: I think there might be some exceptions, but generally candidates are associated with a driver’s school.  I did the minimum so I did not sign up for classes but I had access to online practice tests and 2 tutorials.  Each school’s prices are different. ·     VA: driver’s school is optional.
Take Medical Test	35-50 euros	$0	·     Spain: you must go to a doctor certified to examine you.  They will test your vision, your blood pressure and your eye-hand coordination using a specialized machine.  They will write down any prescription drugs you are taking. ·     VA: a vision test is given at the DMV
Take Written Test	90 euros	$32	·     Spain: a 30 question multiple choice test.  Passing is 90% or greater (max questions missed = 3). ·     VA: Split into two parts – the traffic sign test consists of 10 questions and you must pass it 100%.  If you pass, you take the general knowledge test and must earn 80% or greater.
Take Driver’s Test	Included in above cost	Included in above cost	·     Spain: One of the reasons why you need to be associated with a Drivers School is because you need to have a vehicle with two sets of pedals, one set for the driver and the other set for the Driver’s School instructor who will be accompanying you.  The evaluator sits in the back seat and observes you and tells you where to drive. ·     VA: You bring your own car (or someone else’s)
Maximum Attempts	3 total 90 euros to obtain another 3 tries	3 for written ($2 for re-takes) 3 for driving	·     Spain: You have a max of three attempts.  If you fail the written test once, you must pass it the second time.  Having passed the written test the second time around, you must pass the driver’s test the first time.  If you pass the written on the first try, you are permitted two attempts to pass the driving test.  ·     VA: After 3 tries on the written or driving tests, you are required to take a Driver’s Ed course.
Languages	N/A	N/A	·     Spain: offers the written test in Spanish, Catalan, Valencian, Galician, Basque, German, French and English. ·     VA: English, Spanish

Perhaps I'll write another time on the differences of the rules of the road.  Please wish me luck on my test on Thursday.

My Easter Gift

My Easter gift for 2015 was having Chris here for 10 days!  This time I was able to be completely free to be with him.  I took a couple of days off of class and school was out the week of Easter.  We had a great time together spending a lot of time with each other and with friends.

We started off the very first evening at our local wine bar (bodega) to welcome Chris.  Many of our friends came to say hi, sip some wine and socialize.  Later some of us went to our weekly Tuesday night dinner.

We did some very special trips this week.  Our friend Oscar B. invited us to go south of Barcelona to the province of Tarragona, where the typical Catalonian Calçotada meal came from.  It always

starts off with calçots, a type of mild green onion, which is larger than what we would see in the States.  It is cooked over a wooden fire, so it is black on the outside but tender inside.  After stripping away the outer leaves, you dip the calçot in romesco sauce, a nut and red pepper-based sauce also originating from Tarragona.  After a healthy amount of calçots (I had about 15 or so), they then serve different types of sausages (butifarras), lamb chops and vegetables (artichokes and potatoes).  We finished it off with typical crema catalana, which is similar, but not the same as creme brulee.  We were stuffed.  Besides the meal, we also went to some of the pueblos around the province which included a fascinating visit to the Monastery of Poblet, which is still an active monastery with Cistercian monks.  In the town of Valls we got to see a prequel of Holy Week with a procession of Roman soldiers, penitents dressed in navarenos (penitential robes)  and pasos (floats) carrying sculptures of Jesus, Mary and others.

On one of our days together, we visited Montjuic, which is a broad shallow hill with a relatively flat top overlooking the harbor, to the southwest of the city center. The eastern side of the hill is almost a sheer cliff, giving it a commanding view over the city's harbor immediately below.  We had lunch there and went to the top to visit the fortifications (Castillo de Montjuic) that dates back to the 17th century with 18th century additions with beautiful views of the city.

The following week my friend Jordi organized a tough but beautiful hike along the Costa Brava.  Ten miles of rugged coastline from Tossa de Mar to Lloret de Mar.  Some of the vistas were breathtaking with many small coves of beaches and rocks with the Mediterranean Sea crashing on their shores.   It was a long and day, leaving the house at 8 am and not getting home until 9 pm that evening.  But it was worth it!

Chris and I also spent time looking at what our summer will be like as well as the Fall.  He will be back on June 29 and will spend the month of July here, taking Spanish classes in the morning 5 days a week for four weeks.  I can see some improvements in his Spanish already and this will really push him forward in breaking through some of the barriers of communicating in another language.

We also figured out Chris's school schedule next year in Kiev, Ukraine and mapped out all the days and weeks that he will be off so that we can spend time together.  It looks like we'll start our occasional rendezvous near the end of August, when Chris has his first full 3 day weekend.  We're currently thinking of meeting up in Amsterdam.

All in all it was a fabulous visit.  We will have to wait another 12 weeks before we are together again!

Here are some other photos of Chris' trip here.