I started riding on the roads when I was 6 years old. Was I nervous? Don't know ... I don't remember. But I don't think I was because I have continued to ride on the roads ever since.
We've been riding MUPs a lot lately, following the Rhine Cycle Route through the Netherlands and in Germany, and I miss riding on roads. On the MUPs we've had to be 100% focused on what we're doing all the time because of the other cyclists and the changing conditions of the MUP surface. Whereas, on the roads where I've lived in Canada and Australia, I can relax a little bit and look at the scenery a little bit.
Do you have any quiet country roads in your area?