Not German

When I spotted this rig, past experience dictated that its inhabitants would speak German.

“BL” seems like it would indicate Belgium, which has a small German-speaking population.

But in fact it indicates the Bratislava district of Slovakia.

Bratislava, 2008 — Photo from our visit to Bratislava in 2008

Pretty well traveled:_____, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Czech Republic, _____, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Spain, Finland, Luxembourg, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Gibraltar, _____, Norway. Starting upper left, diagonally down to the right, any idea what those three are?

Anyway, in true Euro travel style, it appears equipped for anything.

I still chuckle when I see these massive fuel-guzzling monsters, remembering this.

The unbearable lightness of travel (German style)

Welcome to another season of German one-bag travelers. The one bag, of course, has to have four monstrous wheels, weigh several tons, consume lots of fuel, and be prepared to assault any terrain.

If this looks familiar, perhaps it’s because you saw this post, or this post, or this post.

If you wonder why I even pay attention, consider the last time I was in Germany (2008). We spent several weeks in Europe. I bought a couple of paperback books in Paris, which added to the weight I was carrying. For the flight home, my luggage was up to 6.5 kg (14.3 pounds) … probably the weight of the taillights of this monster.

À chacun son goût.*

*Jedem das Seine, the German version, goes back centuries, but doesn’t play well now due to its incorporation in the entrance sign to Buchenwald concentration camp from WW II.

To each its own

Trippy and tippy VW bus, Piriápolis, Uruguay

Somebody went to considerable effort to make a VW bus much more likely to tip over.

The German touring rig to end all German touring rigs

As I have mentioned before, when you see a conspicuously over-wrought, out of place, ready-for-all-comers vehicle here, its owners probably speak German.

German monster touring vehicle in Atlantida, Uruguay

In case you missed the license plate (or couldn’t guess), there’s a little flag on the side. Ja wohl!

Der deutsche Angriffsfahrzeug

German touring vehicle in Uruguay

Whenever you see a vehicle like this, even without looking at the tags you can tell what language its occupants speak. Not French. Not Italian. Not Spanish (maybe), maybe English mit einem Akzent. They may be from Switzerland, but they will definitely speak German.

These things always make me think “assault vehicle” (hence the blog title). At the very least, the concept of “blending in with the locals” apparently doesn’t figure prominently in some people’s weltanschauung.

Couchsurfing redux, redux

We got involved in Couchsurfing when we lived in Mexico, and hosted a number of interesting, and fun, people.

One time it was Sara and Sébastien from Paris, en route by bicycle from Anchorage Alaska to Ushuaia, at the southern tip of Argentina and the southernmost city on the planet. When we hosted them, we had no thought of moving from Mexico. When they learned we were in Uruguay, the became our first return couchsurfers before heading back to Paris.

Similarly, Marjorie and Jörg, retired five years and traveling extensively in the Americas from their home in Lörrach, Germany, stayed with us in Mexico, and when they learned of our move promised to include us in their South America trip. We shared their delightful company for a few days as they got ready to head home, while this rather impressive refitted Toyota Land Cruiser parked in our driveway.

As an added bonus, they taught me some new German words: Grünschnabel, Quatschkopf, Quasselstrippe, and Frostmemme. You’re on your own for the first three; the last means someone who’s always cold. I’m not sure I’ll be using them any time soon, but you never know.

They are, after all, kind of catchy.