Tag Archives: cars

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Twice in a week…

Ever since we moved back to Germany in 2014, I’ve avoided doing a lot of driving. I have a 2009 Mini Cooper Convertible sitting in the garage now. The battery has died three times since we moved to Wiesbaden because I so seldom go anywhere. Bill has his Volvo, which we purchased in 2019 and picked up in Sweden. Those were the days! I miss being able to fly somewhere without a bunch of hassles. Normally he would be driving the Volvo today, but he had to go on TDY (temporary duty yonder) for three weeks, and his company makes him rent cars when he goes on business.

Since the Volvo is in the driveway, I can’t get my Mini out without moving it. I also had two chores to do this week. First, I had to drop off a fecal sample at the vet’s office on Monday. Then today, I woke up realizing that there were a few essential items I needed. I can walk to the Rewe if need be, but I also had an empty rack of beer to deposit. So I got in the Volvo and headed off to the store, after carefully dog proofing the house. I can’t say “beagle proofing” anymore, since one of our dogs is definitely NOT a beagle.

This may seem like not much of a big deal… except prior to this morning, I had not been to the grocery store in over a year. I quit going because of COVID-19. Bill goes, because he’s out and about anyway. I used to enjoy grocery shopping, back when I was single. Now, it’s a real chore. I hate wearing a mask for many reasons, which I won’t get into here. And I hate dealing with confrontational people. I actually looked into using the home delivery service, but that requires a 50 euro minimum order. All of the appointments were also booked for the next ten days or so. And really, it’s ridiculous not to just go to the store… I mean, in another life, I wouldn’t have thought twice about it.

Bill had given me a few tips about the new rules. Everybody has to wear a mask and use a cart. I noticed in the drink market, people didn’t use a cart. I did, because I decided to get more beer. I don’t need to be drinking beer. In fact, I usually avoid drinking when Bill isn’t home. But this has been kind of a shitty week. Early Monday morning, I skinned both of my knees. One of the knees was already skinned from a mishap two weeks ago, so I undid a week’s worth of healing. All week, my knees have hurt– stinging, itching, and oozing stickiness. Beer helps dull the pain and annoyance of being so clumsy and having ugly knees.

I drove the mile or so to the store. It’s probably not even that far. It’s literally around the corner. I parked the car, put on my mask, and loaded the empty beer rack in the cart, along with the many empty water bottles and odd aluminum can we had. The Pfand refund totaled about 6 euros. I got my beer and a couple of cans of soda in the drink market. Then I loaded that stuff in the car and went back into the grocery store, which is in a separate building. When we moved here in late 2018, our Rewe didn’t have a drink market. It was just built in 2019. It’s nice, since it’s very well stocked.

I picked up my items at the grocery store, doing all I could to avoid the floor cleaning guy. It surprises me he’d be doing that work during regular business hours, especially since there were a number of people shopping, but what do I know about how things run around here?

When I got home, I was confronted by my lack of driving practice. Bill’s Volvo is much bigger than my Mini is. Consequently, it’s a lot harder to park it, even though it has parking assist and tells you how to park. I don’t quite trust it myself. Every day, I watch Bill expertly maneuver the car into the driveway, making it easier for the landlord to get in and out. I had to make a few passes, having parked the car in front of the house because of the groceries. I noticed the landlord drove up in his little car and looked a little annoyed that the Volvo was parked in front of the house, even though we’re allowed to park there if we want (and for the rent we’re paying, it shouldn’t be an issue, anyway).

But sure enough, I got the car parked… and there were no scratches on the car. The dogs were delighted to see me, and I can make something decent for dinner. Lately, I’ve been skipping dinner because I just can’t be arsed. I hate it when Bill is gone. The saddest part is, last night he was messaging me, proposing that we plan a trip to Stuttgart and get our teeth cleaned. We badly need to get them cleaned, since it’s going on two years since we last saw Dr. Blair. But this is not the kind of thing that should be a field trip. And yes, I know we could find a local dentist, and we might go ahead and do that at some point. We just like Dr. Blair. He’s the best dentist either of us has ever had. And we like visiting Stuttgart… and miss the days when we could do that without a bunch of bullshit.

I miss the days when we could go out and do stuff… and I’d have things to write about besides our new dog and random trips to the grocery store. I hate these marathon TDYs. I hate being clumsy. And I hate that Angela Merkel and her minions are keeping things locked down until March 28th. Fuck COVID-19.

Anyway, yes I’m proud of myself for taking care of that little chore. It would have been better if I could have driven the Mini, but it needs air in the tires and Bill has yet to find a place with a functioning air pump. So that’s another project for when he gets home… in two fucking weeks.

In other news, I’m thinking about buying a new car… one that can accommodate the moose dog, Noyzi. He doesn’t fit in a Mini Cooper. Also, as you can see in the featured photo, our trash guy smokes while he works.

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East Germany

Volvo, Mark Knopfler, and East German adventures… part four

Thanks to having missed our early morning taxi appointment that we were never informed we had, our Monday morning got off on the wrong foot.  When we got to Volvo’s visitor’s center, we could see a sign that welcomed us as one of a group of people there to get new cars.  According to the sign, everyone was from the USA, although I saw one name that had an umlaut and looked German or Swedish, one that was obviously Italian, and at least two others that were Hispanic/Latino.  Strange that a country so clearly full of immigrants is having so many of these recent problems with immigration.

Welcome to new car payments!  Yea!

Anyway, after we dropped off our bags and Bill handed over paperwork and German license plates for the new car, we had lunch in the visitor’s center.  Bill had salmon, and I had Swedish meatballs with lingonberries.

Volvo style salmon.

 

Just like at IKEA.

I had a chance to check out the small Volvo gift shop, too.  You can buy everything from jackets with logos on them to models of your favorite Volvos.  Alas, they only had XC 90 models; there weren’t any XC 40s or XC 60s.

If you’re really a Volvo fan, you can buy a model for your desk.

They even had a toy car for your kids… but  it had no seatbelts!  We heard on the tour that every car has a little Volvo in it, since Nils Bohlin, an engineer at Volvo, invented three point seatbelts.  The company gave away the patent for free for the good of everyone.

Old Volvo.  According to Wen, the Chinese tour guide, Volvo means “I roll” in Swedish.

Ha ha ha… Volvo style “Members Only” jacket…  

Just like the factory.

Later, were met by a tiny Chinese woman who was tasked with handling our factory tour.  The woman, whose name was “Wen” (or at least that’s what it sounded like her name was), spoke heavily accented, but otherwise excellent, English.  She took everyone’s cameras and cell phones, as photos are not allowed on the factory tour.  I happened to have an iPhone, iPad, and digital camera on me, which got locked in a drawer with everyone else’s electronics.

We were loaded up in a “train” like vehicle that had plastic curtains that could be dropped down for protection against wind or sparks.  Then, after we donned plastic safety glasses, the vehicle drove us through parts of Volvo’s vast factory, which Wen told us is larger than Vatican City and Monaco.  I’m not sure if she meant the factory was larger separately, or together.  It was impressively huge, though.

On our tour, we learned that Volvo cars are mostly made by robots.  I’m sure that’s how most cars are made today.  It was impressive to see the robots work, as well as the cleanliness and relative quiet of the factory.  I was also glad to see that the employees appeared to be reasonably happy.  Some of them waved and had real smiles on their faces.

I didn’t know this before Monday, but Volvo is actually owned by a Chinese company.  I knew it was once owned by Ford, but Ford sold it when it took a loss.  So, since 2010, a quintessentially Swedish company has been owned by a company that is decidedly not Swedish.  As we were picking up our new SUV, we were told that prior to the 2020 models, our car’s make was produced in China.  However, the Gothenburg plant now makes XC 60s.  We saw more than a few of them being made in the factory.  Our car was made there maybe a couple of weeks ago.

This was what I was there to see…  our new car.  And no, the one in this photo isn’t it.

The tour was interesting, although I was very ready to see our new wheels.  After we picked up our electronics, Bill and I were met by a charming, handsome, and very personable Swedish guy who showed us all of the cool stuff featured on our new car.  It took about an hour for him to demonstrate the many different ways the seats can be adjusted, opening the trunk by waving a foot under the car, and programming the iPad like control panel on the dashboard.  He even helped me pair my iPhone with the car’s infotainment system.

Learning new tricks.  This car doesn’t even have a paper based owner’s manual, nor do you put a key in any ignition.  You simply have the key on you and it starts up with the push of a button.

There s/he is!  Since it’s Bill’s car, I’ll let him decide the gender.  He says it’s a male.  Whatever it is, it’s a pleasure to ride in the 2020 XC 60.  Bill loves driving it, too.

Once we were checked out on the new car, Bill and I set off for our next destination, Copenhagen.  It took about four hours to get there and involved a 20 minute ferry ride from Sweden to Denmark.

One last look at Gothia Towers as we made our way south.

 

This was our first time driving in Sweden.  It was mostly a nice drive, although I couldn’t help but notice our industrial it looked.  I was expecting prettier views as we made our way southward. The new car has a place for a SIM card to go, so pretty soon I’ll have a hot spot in the car.  However, for the time being, I used Gig Sky again and amused myself reading the news, Facebook, and playing games.  I can’t believe how much “smarter” the new car is compared to our 2006 Toyota.  I remember thinking the Toyota was “smart” back in 2006.  Makes me wonder what I’ll think of our next vehicle… in the 2030s?

Our first ferry ride.  It cost 55 euros.

Approaching Helginsborg, Denmark…

Where you wait… they have restaurants and duty free shops on the ferries.  We only had time for a drink and a pee.

 

Welcome to Denmark!

From the ferry, it was maybe another hour or so to get to Copenhagen.  I had wanted to stay downtown, so it would be easy to walk around, but I was also concerned about adequate parking facilities.  I rented a room at the Adina Apartment Hotel in Copenhagen, an Australian chain that has sprung up in Europe and offers pretty good facilities for families.  We stayed in one in Berlin, when Bill’s mom visited us in December 2017.  Since it was just the two of us, and only for a night, I got us a studio apartment.  It was small, but basically comfortable.  Here are a few photos.

There is parking right outside this hotel, but it’s off limits to Adina guests.  Instead, you can book the huge parking garage just around the corner.  This hotel is close to the train, which will get you into Copenhagen proper.  We decided we were too tired to mess with that and stayed in.  Maybe if we’d made the earlier group, we would have walked around Copenhagen.  We have been there before, anyway, even if it was ten years ago.

 

They do have room service, but you can also use the microwave and fridge.  There is a restaurant on site.

 

Decent shower.  Nice head.

 

Sofa and bland art on the walls… but there’s also a little balcony for smokers and/or fresh air.

 

The restaurant has a full bar and beers on tap.

Mmm…  “The Chubby” was interestingly named.

I had a steak with Bernaise sauce.  It was okay.

Bill had fish and chips.  We ate a lot of fish and chips on this trip.

Time for bed.

 

The Adina Hotel worked fine for a night.  If I were going to be there longer than a night, I think I’d go for the one bedroom apartment.  The studio was a bit cramped, even for just two people.  I wish we’d gotten in earlier, so we could have walked around Copenhagen.  Unfortunately, we just don’t have the same stamina we used to have.

But I did get to enjoy some danishes in Denmark.

 

We checked out after breakfast and were soon on our way to our next stop, Rostock, Germany.

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Volvo, Mark Knopfler, and East German adventures… part one

For the past week, Bill and I have been engaged in an epic road trip.  What started out as just plans for a long weekend in Leipzig over the Independence Day holiday, eventually turned into a car buying odyssey in Sweden, with stops in Copenhagen, Denmark and Rostock, Germany.  Our road trip will end on Sunday, but since this is going to be a long story with lots of pictures, I’ve decided to start writing about it today.

If you’ve been following my blogs, you may know that over the past couple of years, Bill and I have been attending a lot of concerts.  Although I really love music, it’s not that often that I go to concerts.  I don’t like crowds, spending lots of money for uncomfortable seats, or having people’s armpits in my face.  However, even though I don’t enjoy being in huge crowds, I also realize that a lot of my favorite musicians are getting old.  A few have already died before I ever got the chance to see them live.

I didn’t have a lot of money or generous boyfriends when I was younger and more tolerant of crowds, so I missed a lot of my best concert going years.  Likewise, for Bill, it’s only been recently that we’ve been able to afford to get tickets for good seats.  I don’t like paying a premium for seats in the nosebleed section.  I can just as easily listen to a live album at home.

In any case, 2018 and 2019 have been unusually active concert going years for us.  Since a year ago, we’ve seen The Rolling Stones, Paul Simon, Bonnie Raitt, James Taylor, Roger Hodgson (of Supertramp), Scottish Music Parade, The Irish Folk Music Festival, Elton John, The Eagles, and tonight, Mark Knopfler (of Dire Straits).  In 2017, we saw Sting, and in 2016, we saw Van Morrison…  or, at least I think it was 2016.  I can’t keep the dates straight anymore.  In 2015, we saw Diana Krall, and in 2009, we saw Lyle Lovett.

I like going to concerts in Europe.  People tend to be more considerate here, for the most part.  Also, they don’t seem to have as many rules.  At American concerts, it costs an arm and a leg to buy a beer.  People lose their shit and have less regard for people around them.  Although I may be proven wrong tonight, I’ve found that people aren’t like that so much on this side of the pond.

I bought the tickets for Mark Knopfler last fall, as we were preparing to leave the Stuttgart area.  I decided to get them for the Leipzig show, even though Knopfler is playing in Mannheim tomorrow, and Mannheim is much closer to where we live now.  I chose Leipzig because I’d been wanting to visit there.  Also, the date for Knopfler’s show in Leipzig seemed to make better use of the long weekend.  Originally, I had just planned for a three night break.  I was excited about this show, especially, because I’ve been wanting to see Mark Knopfler for years.  I missed him when he came to Germany in 2015.  His music means a lot to me for a lot of reasons.

Bill booked our dogs at the Tierpension Birkenhof in Darmstadt, and I got us a nice room at the Grand Hotel Steigenberger, which is one of Leipzig’s nicest hotels.  Had we not been able to book the dogs, we planned to find a self catering place where they could hang out while we went to the show.  Fortunately, the dog sitting situation is less severe in Wiesbaden than it is in Stuttgart.  We had no issues getting them a place at their new boarding facility.

For months, we waited for our trip to Leipzig, planning for just the three nights.  Then, in the spring, Bill decided he was ready to get a new car.  Our thirteen year old Toyota RAV 4, which was an excellent vehicle that served us very well in many countries, was beginning to need costly repairs.  It was time for a new car.  Bill wanted a luxury SUV.

In late April, we visited Capitol Motors Volvo in Kaiserslautern, as well as the BMW dealership, to see what kind of wheels we were going to buy.  Volvo won, so we ordered a beautiful 2020 XC 60 SUV in denim blue.  It’s a T6 Inscription, which is the top of the line trim.  Our dealer told us the car would be ready to pick up on July 1st.  Realizing that it had been way too long since our last proper vacation, I proposed to Bill the idea of flying to Gothenburg, Sweden, picking up the car at the factory, then driving it back to Germany.

Some readers may be aware that U.S. based Volvo dealers offer a great program for people who want to fly to Sweden, pick up their new cars, enjoy a European vacation, then fly home and have the car shipped to them.  Well…  over here in Europe, Volvo buyers, even through military sales, don’t get the same love.  If you are reading this from the United States and are thinking of having a Volvo sponsored European vacation, I recommend that you read this guy’s blog about it.  It’s not that I don’t want you to read my account, too.  It’s just that because we purchased our car in Germany, our experience was somewhat different.  However, we did get a very nice military discount.  I think Bill said we got our new Volvo for about $8,000 less than we would have paid if we hadn’t bought from military sales.

Since the car was going to be ready so close to when our Leipzig concert was planned, I proposed turning our car delivery into an epic trip.  Since Volvo was not going to be paying for our flight to Sweden and would only put us up for one night in a Gothenburg hotel, we decided to just come up to Sweden on our own, spend two nights in Gothenburg’s best five star spa hotel, pick up the car, and make our way to Leipzig.  I did some research and determined our itinerary.

We’d spend two nights in Sweden, since our only other visit there was at the end of a four night Baltic cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas.  We ended in Stockholm, and Bill had to fly right back to Germany to go to a meeting in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.  Consequently, we really didn’t see more than the port and the airport in Sweden.  I wanted to do better than that in Gothenburg, which is on the west coast of the country.

Next, we’d spent a night in Copenhagen.  We were able to see Copenhagen on that same Baltic cruise.  I would have liked to have done more than one night there, but we had to make our travel plans fit so that we’d be in Leipzig by July 4th.  After Copenhagen, we’d take the ferry across the Baltic Sea to Rostock.  I had wanted to visit a former East German prison museum there.  Since it looked like a cool town near the beach, we’d stay two nights in Rostock.  Then, we’d make our way to Leipzig for the three nights I planned there months prior to our decision to buy the car.

It’s all worked out seamlessly, so far.

As usual, I’m going to write a blow by blow account of this adventure and will include lots of pictures and TMI commentary.  I hope you’ll follow along, if I manage to capture your interest.  Otherwise, this will just serve as a diary of one of our more interesting trips as a married couple.

Somewhere over Gothenburg, just as we’re about to land…

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Dueling test drives and muy buena comida…

This morning, Bill and I rose early and made the long drive to Kaiserslautern.  Our mission was to test drive a BMW and a Volvo.  Yes, that’s right.  It’s time to buy a new car.  Our trusty SUV is getting expensive to maintain, although it still mostly runs fine.  It’s time for an upgrade.

We purchased our 2006 Toyota RAV 4 brand new in Northern Virginia about a year before we moved to Germany the first time.  In those days, we didn’t have much money.  Bill was paying a lot of child support and we were paying off a lot of debt.  I remember being freaked out about financing the beautiful, brand new car.  I was afraid we wouldn’t be able to afford the payments.  I also remember the stress of the car purchase itself.  We went to Koons Tysons Toyota and spent the whole morning dealing with a very aggressive car salesman who was determined to make a sale.  He made a sale, but it was not a pleasant experience for us.  However, the Toyota has been an excellent vehicle.  We’ve rarely had any problems with it and it’s been all over Europe.

Back in 2006, Bill’s credit rating was a lot lower, mainly owing to financial baggage from his first marriage.  I had a perfect credit rating, but I wasn’t the breadwinner.  We took the loan out in my name with Bill’s financial backing.  In time, we refinanced and got a lower interest rate.  Bill’s credit rating improved dramatically.  It’s now almost as good as mine is.

Then, in 2009, we bought my Mini Cooper on our way out of Stuttgart the first time.  We ordered the car from the dealer and it was built expressly for me.  I don’t drive it that much, although we did take it to Kaiserslautern this morning.  At ten years old, it only has about 36,000 miles on it.  It’s still a cute car, but it’s not practical for every job.  I imagine I’ll be ready for a new car in a couple of years.

Both of our car loans were paid off early, just as my student loans were.  I am the queen of paying off debt ASAP.  This is a good thing, since we’re going to be financing a large loan for our new car.  One thing I like about buying from military sales, though, is that it’s low stress, hassle free, no pressure… We bought the Mini from Dennis Huntsman, who worked in Stuttgart for years.  When we came back to Germany in 2014, he was still in Stuttgart and remembered Bill.  He has since moved on, but our buying experience with him was so good that we’ve decided to buy our new car through military sales again.  K-Town has many, many, many car dealers that cater to Americans, so that’s why we went there instead of staying in Wiesbaden.

Bill emailed Capital Motors Volvo and got us a 10:00am appointment, and got us a noon appointment at the BMW dealer.  Having visited both dealers today, I have to admit that I was a lot more impressed by the Volvo dealer.  In fact, I think we’re pretty much set on going Swedish this time, even though Bill says that he enjoyed the power of the BMW.

The Volvo dealership was quiet when we arrived just before 10:00am.  A salesman named Andre greeted us and Bill explained what we were looking for.  Andre was very professional and listened carefully, assuring us he could give us a deal on our trade in, too.

 

Right next door is a picture framing shop.  I had to take a picture because my dad ran a picture framing business from our home in Virginia.  He sold it to his employee before he died in 2014.  I never learned how to frame pictures myself, but I get a kick out of seeing framing businesses and sharing photos of them with my old friend, Deborah, who owns my dad’s business now.

Bill handed over his license and photo ID.  Andre took a photocopy, then took us out to the XC60 to show us some of its features.  The model we tried today was top of the line and is priced at about $47,000.  That’s a lot of money, but it’s likely we’ll keep the car until well after it’s been paid for.  That’s what we’ve done with all of our prior cars.

I sat in the backseat while Andre showed Bill how to operate this new fangled auto.  You don’t even have to put the key in an ignition.  It has power and touchscreen everything, and drives (and rides) like you’re sitting in your living room.  I tried the front seat and the back.  Very comfortable… and it should be for the price!

 

The 2019 XC60.  I don’t know if we’ll go with a 2019 or a 2020.

We ran into one of Bill’s co-workers, who is looking at a XC90 model for his wife.

 

We left the Volvo dealership very impressed.  In fact, I was feeling like I didn’t even need to see the BMW.  We tried it anyway.

A prestigious brand… and I am already familiar with BMW’s power, since I drive a Mini Cooper.

 

Bill decided to test the X3.  It’s currently on sale nicely loaded for about $45,000.

 

We stopped at a rest stop so I could try the back seat in both cars.  This sign caught my eye.  Guess they have problems with marauding wild animals.

 

I was significantly less impressed by the BMW experience.  The lady who took care of us isn’t a salesperson and didn’t seem to have much knowledge about the BMW product.  She was mostly concerned with making sure Bill signed the paperwork.  She didn’t show us any of the car’s features, nor was she mindful of the rainy weather when she left us waiting for her in it while she copied Bill’s information.

Finally, I just got in the car and waited for her to come back to talk to us.  We were limited to 20 miles for the test drive, and if I had wanted to test drive, I would have had to give her my license, too.  By contrast, Andre said I could drive the car if I wanted to; he only needed Bill’s license.  And we were not limited in how far we could test drive, although we took both cars on the same loop that included a stretch of the Autobahn.

Still, it was a pretty car and drove well.  While the Volvo was ultra high-tech with lots of features designed to make the ride comfortable, the BMW had mostly more conventional controls (except for when we needed to go in reverse) and more power.  It was “sportier”, and not quite as cushy, although it was more responsive.

When we got back to the BMW dealership, Bill had to take a minute to figure out the controls enough to put the car in reverse.  He didn’t have that problem with the Volvo, which almost seemed to drive itself.  The BMW is definitely a nice car, but if I was “team Volvo” before we tried the cars today, I was even more “team Volvo” after comparing both dealerships.

When we got in my Mini to go have lunch, I said “As far as I’m concerned, the Volvo is a winner.”  Not only did I like the vehicle better, I also liked the sales experience better.  The salesman at BMW wasn’t in today and won’t be in until later this week.  And after we turned in the car, the German lady who helped us– whose name I never caught– made a point of walking around the car to make sure there were no scratches on it and really didn’t say or do anything to convince us we should buy a BMW.  Andre was more professional on many levels.  He encouraged our interest, without pressuring us.  He was a good ambassador for the brand, but let the car sell itself.  And he treated us like he valued our business.  So, I think Andre gets the nod.

Your address for real Mexican food in Germany.

 

It’s got plenty of parking, plenty of seating, and some of the wait staff is trilingual– English, Spanish, and German!

Bill’s former co-worker, Steve in Stuttgart, told Bill about Cantina Mexicana, an excellent Mexican restaurant in Kaiserslautern.  Now that we’ve been there, we can recommend it, too.  I haven’t had Mexican food that good since our first (and last) trip to El Mero Mexicano in Fellbach, near Stuttgart.  El Mero Mexicano is owned by actual Mexicans.  I’m not sure who owns Cantina Mexicana, but damn, was it good!

Bill checks the menu.  This is a large restaurant with lots of normal height tables, though we were seated at a tall “pub” table.  The seats were not very deep, which was not so good.  I don’t have long legs, so it was hard to perch on the chair.   

 

They brought us some tasty tortilla chips with five different salsas, ranging from the regular tomato kind to a spicy habanero version… and a green tomatillo salsa, too.

 

We were hungry, so we had an appetizer.  This was the dip sampler, which included queso, guacamole, and frijoles.  All three dips were killer, but I especially loved the queso!  We didn’t finish it, so we brought it home.

I had the fajita quesadilla, which was a large tortilla filled with marinated steak, grilled peppers and onions, iceberg lettuce, and cheese.  It was served with guacamole, sour cream, and salsa.  I didn’t finish it, but it was very good.  I brought the rest home!

Bill had the Chicken Tingo with potatoes.  It came with rice and refried beans.  He was also very happy with his dish, though he also filled up too much on chips and salsa.  

 

I noticed this Mexican restaurant was offering things I haven’t seen in German Mexican restaurants, including El Mero Mexicano.  They had tostadas, burritos, chimichangas, fajitas, and enchiladas, for instance, while El Mero Mexicano’s menu appeared to be more authentic Mexican.  This is a very kid friendly restaurant.  There’s a children’s bathroom and play area, as well as a children’s menu.  And there’s also plenty to keep the adults happy.  You can enjoy a wide range of tequilas, for instance, if that’s your thing.  It’s my thing, but I stuck to beer.

Our bill came to about 34 euros, which I thought was a good deal.  You can pay in cash or with a credit card.  We drove home in dismal rain, talking about the cars and how pretty soon we’ll be stepping up to new wheels and a new car payment.  Who knows?  Maybe I’ll be writing about a factory tour in Sweden before too long.

We see so many of these ugly apartment buildings in Germany… it reminds me of living in Eastern Europe again.  I kind of wonder who decided to paint these buildings like this.  On the other hand, Armenian apartment buildings were never this nice.

 

I don’t enjoy test driving cars or the whole car buying experience, but I must say it was a pleasure to meet Andre today.  I look forward to taking custody of one of his cushy Swedish rides very soon.

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anecdotes

People in Hell want ice water…

My cute little Mini when it was still pretty new…

Ever heard that expression?  The first time I heard it was while watching a movie about Patsy Cline.  Or was it Loretta Lynn?  I don’t remember.  All I know is that the movie was about a country singer.  I looked it up… it’s a quote from the 1985 film, Sweet Dreams, which starred Jessica Lange as Patsy Cline.  It’s a good film with some surprisingly funny lines in it.

Anyway, I’m inspired to write about how “people in hell want ice water” today because it’s PCS season.  For those not familiar with the military lifestyle, allow me to explain.  PCS means permanent change of station.  Summertime is prime PCS season for military folks around the world.  It’s when military families everywhere move to a new place to a new job.  Bill and I have been through it multiple times over the past twelve years.  We did spend several years in the Washington, DC area because he had two jobs in a row there.  But after that, we were constantly moving.  In fact, for the last seven years of his career, we never got the full three year tour in one place.  Three years is about how long the average job runs for a service member.

Now, if you are moving to a place in the United States, a PCS can be a bit of a pain in the ass.  But it can also be a good chance for a road trip.  Almost two years ago, Bill and I moved from North Carolina to Texas and I got to see a part of the country I had never seen before.  It was kind of cool, since most of the rest of our time was spent in the southeastern United States.  But we only lasted a year in Texas before Bill retired and we moved back to Germany.

An international move is a major pain in the ass.  Yes, it’s exciting to move abroad, but there are many more steps that have to be accomplished before your move is successful and complete.  The first time we moved to Germany, I had to start the process while Bill was in Iraq.  However, we had plenty of time to prepare and there was a lot of support.  The second time, of course, we moved as civilians.  We got little help from Bill’s company, aside from a paltry moving allowance.  It was okay, though, because we’d been here before and knew kind of what the process was.  And we had Facebook to help us.

This morning, I noticed someone posting about how they were looking for a car.  They want a cheap, older, yet still reliable car that seats four.  If you were in the United States shopping for a vehicle, that wouldn’t be so hard to find, right?  But when you are in Germany and most people have only shipped the one car the government will pay for, you quickly find out that reliable used cars are a hot commodity.  You may find yourself paying much more for a car here, just because they are in shorter supply and there’s a higher demand.  You might not get a car you like, either.

So I get a big chuckle when I see people in the States posting about wanting to buy a cheap but reliable used car in Germany as soon as possible.  It’s not that it’s impossible to do that, but more that there will likely be stiff competition for the “cheap yet reliable” used cars.

I must admit, last year when we were planning our move back to Stuttgart, we thought about only shipping one of our two cars.  We have a 2006 Toyota RAV 4 that we bought brand new in March 2006.  It’s paid for and reliable and we knew it would work here because we brought it the first time we lived here.  It also still has fairly low miles because for the first year and a half we owned it, it was my car.  I don’t drive very much.  I think we have cracked 100,000 miles by now, but for a nine year old vehicle, it’s not as long in the tooth as it could be.

The other car we own is a 2009 Mini Cooper S convertible.  We bought it here as we were leaving last time.  It’s paid for and wicked fun to drive.  Sadly, it still has low miles because it’s my car.  It needs some repairs, which I hope we’ll get next week.  Though it’s six years old, it’s only got about 23,000 miles on it.  I think it needs a new clutch, which it may get next week when we take it in for services (Minis are rather labor intensive cars).

Now, as we were planning our move, Bill and I thought long and hard about which car to bring.  Do we bring the tried and true RAV 4 with its ample seating and reliable track record?  That would be good for hauling around guests and our dogs, but it’s more expensive to fuel up and harder to park.  It’s also not as much fun to drive.  Or do we bring my less practical but way fun, easy to park, and fuel economical Mini Cooper?  It’s not as stress free as the Toyota is and won’t accommodate as many  people or as much stuff.  But I can put the top down and enjoy the autobahn during the two or three warmer months we enjoy here.  😉

Either way, Bill planned to either lease a car here or buy a cheap one.  We managed to get by alright with one car last time we were here, but it was frequently a pain in the ass for me (and for Bill, too, because he’d have to take off work to shuttle me to the dentist and the eye doc).  We did save some money, though, thanks to only needing to gas up and pay insurance for one car.  The Toyota was very new back then, so repair costs were very minimal.

As we were contemplating what to do, it occurred to me that in our case, paying to ship both cars was a better idea.  First off, both cars are paid for, so if one of them gets dinged, big deal.  They’re our cars.  Secondly, the cost to ship the cars door to door from San Antonio to Boeblingen was about $4000.  We would definitely have to ship at least one car, so we’d already be spending a chunk of money.  Thirdly, if we didn’t ship a car, we’d have to find a place to store it.  Not shipping a car, going only by a rough guess, might save us a couple thousand bucks… but a couple thousand bucks won’t buy a reliable hoopty in these parts.  And we also don’t know how long we’ll be here.  It could be until next summer or it could be until ten years from now.  As it is, I’m kind of fretting about some of the stuff we have in storage.

So I said, “Bill, let’s just send both cars over there.”  We did.  They were picked up in San Antonio in late July and we got them in mid September.  It took a bit longer than we expected and the cars arrived a bit dirty.  But the shipping company did let us put about 100 pounds of stuff in each of the cars, which did help us out a bit.  We were only allowed to move 5000 pounds of furniture here.  Good thing we don’t have kids!

When it comes time to move again, Bill may decide to buy himself a BMW, which he has been eyeing for awhile.  That may mean our older, yet reliable and low miles RAV4 may be on the lemon lot market.  Or maybe we’ll get rid of the Mini…  who knows?  All I can tell you is that finding used cars among military folks in Stuttgart is a bit like the infamous housing hunt.  It can take awhile and end up being expensive and frustrating.  On the other hand, buying our Mini from Cars International outside of Patch Barracks was hassle free.  Dennis, the guy who sold us the car, still works there and even recognized Bill recently after bumping into him.  I was impressed he remembered him after five years!

My advice to people moving here is to think long and hard about whether or not you really want to leave your spare car at home.  It could be that in your situation, it’s better not to ship the second car.  Or it could be a much better idea to ship it rather than trying to buy something used in Germany.  It depends.  If you have a fairly decent car that is paid for, you’re probably better off shipping it.  If your car has a big lien on it, it may be better to sell or store it.  Also, consider when you’re moving… PCS season will bring a lot of people looking for cars, but as people move in, people are also moving out.  If you come after PCS season, the pickings could be slimmer, but you may face less competition.

As summer approaches, I look forward to more posts that make me think of funny sayings…

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