The wiper thing is marque dependent, even within countries. I live in East Africa, drive on the left. German cars (I've driven a few) seem to have wiper stalks on the right and indicator control on the left. Toyotas (and I guess other Japanese cars) I've driven have it on the opposite side. Whenever I drive a friend's car, I always hit the wipers a few times at the beginning of a trip before I acclimatize.