Page 52 - Jan2023

Germany, continued from page 51
As a car guy there were some takeaways. I was very interested in
the vast number of models of vehicles I saw that are not offered in
the US, particularly the small, interesting and (I assume) fuel
efficient ones. In Germany fuel cost twice as much as it does in the
US, but diesel was a cheaper than standard petrol (as it should be).

Since Americans are used to driving everywhere, I was also struck
by the ease of getting around in the cities. The public
transportation system was impressive. The rail and bus systems
could pretty much get you whever you needed to go, even if it was
to a rural area, and it wasn't too terribly hard to figure out, even for
our first time in the country and with our very, very limited
knowledge of the language. (lots of use of Google translate).

Aside from that, I noticed that the culture seemed to take a great
deal more pride in their culinary offerings then what we are used to
at home.
All of the food looked carefully prepared, intentionally assembled
and plated, no matter if it was being served at a small subway
convenience center, or a fancy restaurant. We only had two dishes
that were a disappointment, and, considering the duration of the
visit and that we ate out for every meal, although people frequently
criticize German food, we thought it was really great.
We purchased tickets for a guided tour via TrabiWorld. This involves
a lead car operated by a tour guide and however many attendee
cars following. The tour guide tells you all about Berlin as you
make your way around the city while piloting your own vehicle.

The Trabant, the pride of the East German auto industry post war,
has its quirks and is a no frills automobile but they were beloved by
the people who owned them. Like the Volkswagen, they were the
"people's car" in the Russian sector of a divided city.

The shifter is 4 speed on the column, and, luckily, the company
had a station setup in the courtyard where you could practice
moving the lever through the gates before you hit the road. There
was no indicator to tell you what gear you're in, you just need to get
a feel for it.

We were there in early winter and the temperature was around 2
degrees centigrade. The heat in the car was practically nonexistent
and you really had to coax it along at first when starting off were
cold because of the small two-stroke engines. I compare the
experience to driving a manually clutched 4 speed snowmobile on
wheels. It was an experience but great fun.

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