A Car Wash...Really?
It's funny the things you find satisfaction in and consider little victories when living in a foreign country. Who knew that a feeling of such delight could accompany the simple act of getting your car washed?
For U.S. service members here in Stuttgart there isn't an automatic car wash on any of the posts, and there is only ONE car wash bay that can be used during the winter months. It's one of those do-it-yourself spray down wash stations and I'm told the lines to use it can be quite long. So that means option B is to figure out how to use the plethora of car washes around the area, most at gas stations but several stand alone facilities too.
When learning how to do things like the locals, there is always the language barrier (which challenges me more than I probably let on in this blog) and then also having to figure out how to maneuver the particular challenge, whether it's getting your car washed, bagging and tagging your produce properly, or any other number of things.
Fearing that the winter slush and salt were eating away at our basically still new Volvo, I determined that it was time to get her a proper wash. Now don't go thinking the car hasn't been washed since October. I have washed it a few times but it was during warmer weather and it was at the do-it-yourself stations on post that are now closed for the winter. Mother Nature has been doing the work since December.
So doing what I could to prepare myself for this weird, and yes, probably pathetic, new experience, I queried some of my co-workers this week to find out how to use the German car washes. Of the 4 people I asked only one could tell me definitively what to expect. Two others hadn't used the car washes and the other one had only used one once and someone had to help. Needless to say I wasn't encouraged.
So this evening...I determined to get the car washed after work. Armed simply with one bit of information...I had to go inside first to pay and get my ticket...I ventured inside a local gas station. A young boy was at the cash register, appeared to be working with his father, and when I said 'car wash' the American way he looked a bit perplexed. His father piped in from the register next door, explaining that I wanted a "Waschen." Then I had three wash options to chose from. Of course I couldn't tell what the different washes included but figured the middle option was a safe bet. So I went with 'Silber'.
After getting my receipt with a 7 digit code and a little packet (wasn't sure what that was for), I drove around back. There were a few cars ahead of me so I was able to watch other people use the machine ahead of me. That is a very handy tactic in a foreign country. Just sit back and watch others use a machine, whether a ticket machine or something else, and that will usually help you figure out what you're supposed to do.
Well, I'm happy to report that I only needed help once and that I now have a clean car. When I got home I opened the packet I'd received with my ticket and it was two pieces of cloth, one was wet and one was dry. I couldn't tell from the print on the package what they were for so I used them to clean the rearview mirrors and windows. Thinking maybe they were to get rid of the spots. Once I got into the house though I used Google Translator and discovered the cloths were actually for cleaning my windshield blades. Oh, well, I was close enough.
For U.S. service members here in Stuttgart there isn't an automatic car wash on any of the posts, and there is only ONE car wash bay that can be used during the winter months. It's one of those do-it-yourself spray down wash stations and I'm told the lines to use it can be quite long. So that means option B is to figure out how to use the plethora of car washes around the area, most at gas stations but several stand alone facilities too.
When learning how to do things like the locals, there is always the language barrier (which challenges me more than I probably let on in this blog) and then also having to figure out how to maneuver the particular challenge, whether it's getting your car washed, bagging and tagging your produce properly, or any other number of things.
Fearing that the winter slush and salt were eating away at our basically still new Volvo, I determined that it was time to get her a proper wash. Now don't go thinking the car hasn't been washed since October. I have washed it a few times but it was during warmer weather and it was at the do-it-yourself stations on post that are now closed for the winter. Mother Nature has been doing the work since December.
So doing what I could to prepare myself for this weird, and yes, probably pathetic, new experience, I queried some of my co-workers this week to find out how to use the German car washes. Of the 4 people I asked only one could tell me definitively what to expect. Two others hadn't used the car washes and the other one had only used one once and someone had to help. Needless to say I wasn't encouraged.
So this evening...I determined to get the car washed after work. Armed simply with one bit of information...I had to go inside first to pay and get my ticket...I ventured inside a local gas station. A young boy was at the cash register, appeared to be working with his father, and when I said 'car wash' the American way he looked a bit perplexed. His father piped in from the register next door, explaining that I wanted a "Waschen." Then I had three wash options to chose from. Of course I couldn't tell what the different washes included but figured the middle option was a safe bet. So I went with 'Silber'.
After getting my receipt with a 7 digit code and a little packet (wasn't sure what that was for), I drove around back. There were a few cars ahead of me so I was able to watch other people use the machine ahead of me. That is a very handy tactic in a foreign country. Just sit back and watch others use a machine, whether a ticket machine or something else, and that will usually help you figure out what you're supposed to do.
Well, I'm happy to report that I only needed help once and that I now have a clean car. When I got home I opened the packet I'd received with my ticket and it was two pieces of cloth, one was wet and one was dry. I couldn't tell from the print on the package what they were for so I used them to clean the rearview mirrors and windows. Thinking maybe they were to get rid of the spots. Once I got into the house though I used Google Translator and discovered the cloths were actually for cleaning my windshield blades. Oh, well, I was close enough.
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