Back in the saddle

Sorry internet, I've been a little slow in posting. My seasonal allergies have been horrendous this past week. I find myself writing a bit less as well as I seem to be more involved in UK outside life than I was in DE. However, I was in DE recently for a wedding, so plenty of fodder now...

New friend Ian and I took the overnight boat from Harwich to Hook of Holland and then drove Mr. BMW through Holland (with a very long lunch break/tour) to arrive at our destination in Podunk, NRW in the afternoon. As I knew it was Himmelfahrt, I was in no rush...this was new friend Ian's first (and last?) trip to DE, so you can imagine how impressed he was driving through he Ruhrgebiet to arrived in a closed Podunk.

I kicked off the interactions with the Hotel Frau auf Deutch, having had to knock on the kitchen door to find her in the recommended 10 double, 4 single room hotel. She was pleasant enough, here's the key, here's the room, etc.

H: And what about the car? (We parked in the town square in front of the hotel which was covered with bott's dots so that you knew where to park. I saw signage, you could park there excluded 0415-18.00 Sat and 07.00-18.00 Wednesdays)

Frau: You can park in the spot behind the hotel (there were two tiny spots next to the building which were reached via a one-way alley). The kitchen worker, she leaves at 18.00.

H: oki doki

We decided to move the car at 18.00 and then take a stroll around. Her car was still there at 18.00, at 18.15, and at 18.30. As it was Thursday and there were plenty of other cars in the Square as well, I said F it, since we're going out anyway at 09.00 on Friday morning.

Friday morning, we head to breakfast at 08.40. As always, breakfast for me is a coffee fill-up and maybe some bread with cheese for the pocket, for later.

Frau: Is that your car!?! (gesturing to the square with 20+ cars parked.)

H: Yes, the GB plate is our car (wondering when the 'good morning, can I get you tea or coffee' would come)

Frau: You must move it immediately!!!

H: (I may be getting soft living in the UK, but I lived in DE long enough to play this game, and it wasn't hard to get back into the saddle....knowing very well I'm legally in a free parking zone...seeing the moving van on the other side of the square but no paper signage posted and thinking--someone F'd up here, but it wasn't me. And knowing that it would blow my schedule to go through the myriad of one way streets to get back behind the hotel, just for 10 min.)
H: The hotel parking space, it was not free at 18.00. (insert solid stare here.)

Frau: Yes, the girl, she left late. (Not mentioning that 'the girl' obviously reports to her.)

H: We leave at 09.00.

Frau: (cluck, cluck, mumble mumble)

H: (insert German disinterested shrug which says 'not my problem.)

Frau: Grrr....ok, but you must move at 09.00.

H: That's fine. And where shall we park later when we return in two hours?

Frau: Behind the hotel, the spot will be free.

H: Supi!

Frau: Tea or coffee?
I purposely wait until the church clock is chiming 9 before moving the car at this point. Some random person drives up and takes the spot. I wonder if she is now going to bark at him?

--2 hours later we return. Sure enough, the spots are both full. Back to the square I park, and march inside.

H: Haaaaaalo! Where should I park now?

Frau: (frownly) Goes to window to see who is in spots. You can go over there, the boat club parking.

H: (irritated and wondering as this is plastered all over with signs to not be here illegally, and with a lockable gate...having visions of being locked in on Sunday morning when we need to leave for our boat).

Frau: (marches off to bark at whoever parked in the spots, I hear the German tirade and two minutes later someone scurries out to move their car.)

(Heather not surprised.) At this point I can only giggle at such interactions since I no longer live there and acknowledge them as cultural differences in how things are done. :-)