Parking shmarking

I’ve got to say that as much as I love living in Europe, the parking situation is a real bitch. We had our first introduction to the European method in Norway, when we got a hefty fine (about $50 US) for not pre-paying the parking fee in the lot. (Read the back story here). We didn’t know – the sign was written in Norwegian and in the States we’re used to paying on the way out, not on the way in. They weren’t impressed with my nice letter asking them to please return my fifty bucks minus the parking fee, and their reason was that the parking signs are international. Sure, I’ll grant you that the big blue P is recognizable, but the rest of the machine posted at the exit from the lot (the exit!!) is just words. Words we couldn’t understand. As far as I know, there’s no international sign for pay first, then park here, except on weekends when it’s free, and don’t forget to print your little receipt and display it in your front window. In fact, there is nothing on the big sign except Norwegian text (!!) and the machine itself just has a couple arrows. Click the pictures for a closer look:

So really what they should have is a sign with a number 1, followed by a picture of coins, then a number 2 showing a receipt in the car window, then number 3 with the person walking away. Number 4 is obviously the same guy, pockets like elephant ears to show they’re empty, bending over and dropping his pants next to his car as he gets the royal treatment. You get the idea.

Of course now we are parking savvy and we’re sure to pre-pay and always look for the little machines before we leave the car. Here, though, it seems that the majority of the machines only allow one hour at a time. So, you want to drive instead of bike into the city to shop for weekly groceries, and you have to run like hell through the market to get back in time. Or, even more fun, you leave your half-filled cart and run back to get a new ticket for another hour. Today at lunch, Sara actually had to leave the table mid-baguette and walk back to our parking spots to feed the meter for us and our guests. And yes, I know this is how it works in big cities in the States, but come on! If you can pay for your parking with a credit card, you’d think you could request that 2nd hour. Just an idea.

image: nynerd.com