For Faith, a Nigerian fashion startup founder and part-time consultant, her fashion dreams have seen her move around the world. From the quiet but sometimes chaotic city of Abuja, where she grew up, to the City of Angels (LA) and now, London. When she lived in LA, it was her, Google Maps and her beloved Laquisha, a 2016 Toyota RAV4, against the world. But now in London, she’s gotten pretty used to just using the Tube. She’s driven in a few other cities across the globe, but LA’s wide, scenic roads still have her heart.
When did you leave Nigeria and were you driving before you left?
I left Nigeria in 2015 and yes, I was driving then. My first driving experience was in Abuja with a Toyota Camry, tryna learn how to manoeuvre through the hustle and bustle of the city. I was about 14.
What are some of the common ways to get around in LA and London?
I’m the queen of google maps, so that’s what I used in LA for the most part. I also used Waze over there ‘cause it was nice to have alerts of traffic, police, traffic cameras, etc.
But now in London, I use the tube predominantly, so no driving here.
It’s not very essential to drive in London.
What do you look out for when you’re buying a car?
The price, and brand of the car are most important to me. I like using brands I’m familiar with such as Toyotas, Hondas and Mercedes.
What car do you drive currently?
I don’t have a car unfortunately.
I sold my baby last year, her name was Laquisha and she was a 2016 Toyota RAV4 . My sister had it for about a year or so before I inherited it from her and just paid the full balance that was left on the car.
How difficult was it to get all the requirements you needed to drive in LA?
Well, I drove in LA for about 5/6 years and I failed the driving test 3 times. I don’t know why it was that hard for me, but I finally got my California licence. Getting a licence in California costs $98, but that doesn’t include the insurance you have to pay for your car monthly and the yearly registration haha. Driving is expensive lowkey.
Prior to getting it, I was using the international driving licence from Nigeria but it only allows you for a very short period
Is it better to lease or to rent in LA and London?
In London, I’d say it’s better to rent here, but it’s still kind of pointless ‘cause you might as well just Uber if you really need to drive and the public transport system is quite good, so that’s enough for me
What is the best part of driving in your city?
I can’t answer this for my current city but in LA I loved how big the roads are. Driving was also very therapeutic for me; you get to see so much and be in control.
What is a traffic rule in LA that took you a lot of time to get used to?
I got used to pretty much everything. I blame it on having to retake my driving test and written tests so many times; I learned a lot and got used to making sure I don’t make any mistakes haha.
Tell us something interesting or unique about driving in your city.
Unique.. I can’t really say about LA but it’s so weird to drive on the right side in London, I hate it
Have you ever gotten a traffic fine? What was it for?
Yup! Speeding—a few times.
What’s the traffic situation in LA like during rush hour and how did you deal with it?
It’s always a lot of traffic. With my work being flexible, I tried to beat it by either leaving earlier or later.
How did you handle aggressive drivers or road rage in LA?
I tried to maintain my calm, but sometimes I cussed them out from my car.
What’s the craziest thing that’s happened to you while driving there?
Being pulled over by the cops with a bunch of friends in the car, coming back from a night out. It was scary ‘cause of all the crazy things you see in America, but thankfully it was all okay.
What’s the biggest challenge of parking in LA, and how did you typically find good spots?
Parking in LA is awful! If the parking situation for a place is bad, that’s enough reason for me not to go. I don’t care if I’m bailing on people ‘cause finding parking alone could take 30 minutes-1 hour and it’s just frustrating for no reason.
What’s the best city you’ve driven in and why?
Best city…maybe Alicante (in Spain) because the scenery is beautiful and it’s easy to drive there. But I do love driving in LA.
Recently, I visited Montenegro and absolutely loved driving there ‘cause of the scenery as well. It was very beautiful.
What’s the worst city you’ve driven in and why?
Hmm, Abuja. Everyone is mad there.
If you had an unlimited budget to rent one car for a day, what would it be?
Hmmm…to rent, I lowkey wanna try that ugly ass Tesla cyber truck just out of curiosity. But based on preference, Ferrari Purosangue or Porsche Cayenne . The latest versions of course!
