Out with the old!

On Wednesday, 23rd May, we finally received all the documentation from our friends in Wuppertal that did the conversion work on the car to bring it into line with German specs. I was keen to get to the local car registration office early on Thursday morning and get the regular license plates but on checking late Wednesday night to see what time the office opened, we discovered it was not until until 9.00am on Thursdays. The rest of the week it is 8.00am. A nine o'clock opening was too late to go directly there before work since I am usually in work by 7.30am and didn't want to take off more time than I had to. I was also not allowed to drive the car to the place, it had to be public transport which further lengthened how much time I would lose. At least on Thursday's the office is open till 6.00pm so with careful timing of buses and trains I reckoned on leaving work just 1/2 hour early and still having plenty of time to do the business.

As it turned out however I was stuck in meetings all afternoon that seriously overran their anticipated time. I didn't get out of the meeting till almost 4.45pm, way too late to make it, even by taxi, to the registration office.

So on Friday I made another attempt to go, leaving on an almost familiar routine of two trains and a 15 minute walk to get to the office at 7.40am and be third in the queue the same as when I got the five day temporary plates that had expired on Sunday 20th (hence why I could not drive the car there).

I again had to select a 'ticket' to get served, I had a choice of three tickets and chose the top button although I was not at all sure that ticket was for the service I wanted. Fortunately, it turned out an inspired correct choice.

My number was soon displayed and I went to the correct station to be served by a young girl who was obviously being trained in the job as she had an older women sitting the other side of her checking and advising. I was so grateful as I came out with that well known phrase 'nitch spracke Deutsch, spracken sie English?'!!

She replied, in good English, that she would try and she was not quite, but close to, fluent in English, phew!

After lots of data entry and a few (English) questions, my license plates were authorised. I went out of the office to the 'shop next door' to get them made, then it was back into the office to pay the fees, another strange procedure but at least now I had my new plates in my hand. A quick walk back to the railway station and, presto, today there is a taxi looking for a passenger. I take the taxi and in fifteen short minutes he drops me at work.

The English speaking clerk and the taxi were answers to prayer today. Last time I went to the office to get the temporary plates I took the train to Rangsdorf then had a 3o minute walk to work across fields. Friday was warmer and no day for walking the fields in sun on the way to work if I was to arrive sweat free!

So it was out with the (five day) old plates and on with the new plates.

Now the plates are on the car and we can easily assimilate into the rest of Berlin traffic without drawing attention with our USA plates. We did get personalised plates, though only enough to get UK in the middle to get a hint of our origins.

No doubt I will put a picture of the new plates here at some point but my camera batteries are dead at the moment.