Just because it bothers me to have to plop in an e instead of using the umlaut in the title.
I took the test to get my Driving In Germany If You're Attached To The Army License. No idea what it's actually called, but I don't think it's an actual German license and it's not just a regular Army Driver's License. I know that because I still don't get to drive a tank or anything.
Now that I've studied the book for a few days and took the class, the rules all make sense to me. But, being used to a completely different system, it all seemed very illogical at first. Like, check this out:
Which two cars have to wait?
Car 3 and Car 2. Seriously. In the States, when a car is on a straightaway, and another car wants to turn on to it, the car who wants to enter the road has to wait. Right? In Germany, at an unmarked intersection, the car to the right always has right of way.
Here's another one:
What order should the cars proceed in?
Car 2, Car 3, then Car 1. Ha ha ha, I know, right!? It's a long story, but the reasons why make sense to me now, so I won't bore you with them.
Craziness notwithstanding, I got a big fat A and my license. I don't have a car here yet, but whatever. The Man's command wanted me to have my license if we were going to live off post and now I have it.
While we were on post, I popped in to the PX to check out their bike selection and almost bought a Lamborghini. How fun is that!?
Isn't that pretty!? It's actually really cheap as far as bikes go, has all the gears I could need and appears to be very sturdy. But, we didn't want to buy anything until we checked out the big bike store here in Sindelfingen.
The next big decision is what kind of trailer to get for Cheeseball.
A bugger would be safer, more convenient for bringing home things like groceries with Cheeseball and would be better for her when it rains. Which it does here. Quite a lot.
A trail-a-bike would be a better learning tool for her, and she's way behind the power curve here. Kids her age are pedaling all over the place, and it seems like a favored way for families to get around. In fact, I was shocked to find out that where the sidewalks aren't marked for bicycle traffic, children are allowed to ride on the sidewalks anyway up until the age of 8. 8!?!?!? Once 8, they have to ride on the street, just like adults. Fortunately, the sidewalks are marked for bicycle traffic on most roads and certainly all very busy roads.
I'm not sure which will go with yet. Mom says BUGGER! and Dad says she needs to learn, put her on a trail-a-bike. We'll see...
Technorati tags: Germany, driving, bike
2 comments:
What if you got a bugger, but also got Amelie her own bike? Guess it should be used, since she'll likely outgrow it quickly, but then she could sometimes ride with you and sometimes ride along in the bugger.
Yes, I think that's exactly what we'll do. Maybe we'll end up with all three things eventually - a bugger, a trail-a-bike and her own sparkly, pink bike. For now, though, just the bugger.
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