Across The Atlantic

Aaron Miller

Across the Atlantic But First, We Have to Get There - Words and images by Aaron Miller Grüße aus Stuttgart! In my inaugural article as Chesapeake Region’s European correspondent, I thought I would start by framing just how different, and difficult in some ways, it is to be an American in Stuttgart. I’m fortunate to be an American soldier, and therefore reap the benefits from decades of experience working with the Germans to accommodate U.S. service members temporarily residing in Germany. What that means in a practical sense is there are rules, many rules, which either have an exception, exemption, or a separate process for Americans under military orders. In our break-neck schedule to pack up our entire home, sell our house, and physically move to Germany, we missed a few minor but critical steps. Luckily, so far it doesn’t appear that we caused any permanent problems and we’re tantalizingly close to getting to motor around Germany in our Porsches. But first, we had to get there. On a gray but humid day in early June, we dropped off our 996 C4S to the Vehicle Processing Center (VPC) in Baltimore for shipping at Government expense to Boeblingen, Germany, a suburb outside of Stuttgart. The process was straightforward if at a relaxed pace. The VPC processes vehicles for shipment worldwide to other VPCs for Federal employees from every Agency under the sun. In a sea of minivans and pocket SUVs bound for Honolulu and Hanoi, our 911 stood out. The process starts with a cleanliness inspection of the exterior, interior, and trunk compartments. Naturally, I was filled with mirth when I popped the frunk and the technician told me he didn’t need to see the engine, just the trunk. Following years of complaints of “Where is my vehicle?!?” The contractor operating the VPCs developed an app to allow customers to track in broad terms the location of their vehicle. I made it a daily ritual to check the status of our shipment and I excitedly sent a message to many of our friends when the car was listed as “Ocean - Active” and “Vehicle Arrived at Port.” In typical bureaucratic fashion, the job got done but far from quickly. As of this writing, our car appears to still be on the ship, pending transfer to a truck to finish the journey to Stuttgart.

Atlantic (cont’d)

On the topic of bureaucracy, Minta’s agency declined to pay for her move on the grounds the Army had already volunteered to cover the costs. While a one-way plane ticket is inexpensive, the lack of an additional vehicle to be shipped at government expense created a headache. Some internet research revealed “shipping a second vehicle during PCS” to be a common problem and there were companies specifically catering to the U.S. Government employees desiring a second vehicle at their cost. Coordination was haphazard, but eventually we received a location (right next to the VPC, haha) and date to drop off our Cayenne. Ultimately, the cost was reasonable at approximately $1800 for a one-way Roll-on/Roll-off shipment. Unlike shipping the 996, the port in Baltimore seemed to be focused on keeping the riff raff out than deeply inspecting the vehicles for cleanliness. Fortunately, the contractor guaranteed a delivery date in Boeblingen less than 30 days after drop off, an Amazon Prime-esque timeline compared to the 996.

Speaking of navigation, my initial driving experience from the airport to the Army base very nearly ended as quickly as it began. My new coworker and sponsor recommended I rent a vehicle from the Stuttgart airport to make looking for housing and general mobility easier. Not all of the locations I needed to visit for inprocessing were on my current base, so I would need to transit to the other American bases in the area. There are shuttle buses, but like he said, “Waiting on the bus is a drag, man.” Determined to control my own fate, I rented a “VW Golf, or similar” online prior to my flight. I took the evening flight from Washington Dulles to Amsterdam, ostensibly a red eye but with a six hour change in time. Landing at 6:30am, I had neglected to sleep on the flight and instead enjoyed a few new release movies. After enjoying a nice espresso, I took the short 70 minute hop to Stuttgart and proceeded to wait an eternity for my checked bags. Having already cleared customs in Amsterdam, I met my coworker and grabbed the keys to my rental car; Avis saw fit to arm me with a Skoda Kamiq “compact SUV.” For size reference, our recently departed VW Jetta Sportwagen was more generous in every dimension. My coworker gave me the guidance, “I’m going to my car, when you come out of the garage stop in the crosshatched area and I’ll meet you and you can follow me to the hotel.” Rapidly acquainting myself with a tiny-feeling parking garage and Skoda navigation entirely in German,

Atlantic (cont’d)

Aaron Miller

I completely missed the standing area and was immediately left with a choice of going back to the airport, or getting onto the A8 autobahn! I zigged when I should have zagged, and found myself in the far right lane of the A8, confused, with no idea where I was going as my navigation nearly shouted instructions at me in German. I lamely tried to find a place to pull over and figure out what the hell just happened. Simultaneously, my coworker called to ask me what the hell I was doing (I had no idea), and where I was (I had no idea). My years of studying the German language in high school and college immediately failed me, but thankfully Google maps took pity and navigated me to Panzer Barracks, my initial home in Germany. Arriving in one piece and finally catching up with my coworker, he laughed it off and commended me for taking the scenic route from the airport. It certainly wasn’t an inauspicious introduction to our temporary adopted country and fortunately things only went up from there.

I’m still checking the shipping app every day for status updates on our 911, and I’ve taken up car spotting as a pastime of opportunity while I travel to my in-processing appointments. I was pleasantly surprised to discover both a 964 Turbo and 993 C4S on different days outside of my new office. Both in daily driver condition, so I hope there’s an enthusiast American who takes the opportunity to press them into service at every chance. I’m looking forward to joining that crowd too, just as soon as I figure out the convoluted vehicle registration process.

*Want to follow along on our adventure between articles? Like to see pictures of Germany? Check out our Instagram @pnkpnzr968 where we’ll be posting car-related content!*

On The Road to Germany.