Car Wash or Carjacking?

Just as I’m getting comfortable living here, I had a “Not in America” experience at a car wash recently.   I thought the toughest part would be finding a full service car wash near our apartment in Tel Aviv.  I know space is severely limited in the city, so I was unsure if there would be anything a short drive away.  I lucked out and found one that was about 20 minutes away by car (maybe 10 by bike as everything faster on a bike than by car in this city.) Mega Wash was finally going to get our car looking presentable after a month looking like Jim and the kids had a road trip to Eilat and it had not been cleaned since.

I was greeted at Mega Wash by a man who said something to me in Hebrew.  I asked if he spoke English and he just laughed.  Most people speak English in Tel Aviv, but a lot of people don’t…he was one of them.  After trying to understand each other for 5 minutes, and several honking horns behind me later, I finally realized he wanted me to put my car in neutral and get out.

Once out of the car, I went to the counter.  There was a woman sitting behind it, but she didn’t look up as I approached.  I asked if this was where I pay.  She looked at me strangely before asking the customer behind me if he spoke English.  Luckily, he did!

I told him I was there to pay.  She asked him what type of wash I wanted.  “What Type?”  He said. “Outside? Inside? Inside AND Outside?” I said, “Oh yes, inside and outside.”  Then she asked hm to ask me if I had a Jeep.  I said no, it was a white Mercedes.  He laughed and explained “Jeep” is slang word in Hebrew for SUV.  But since I didn’t have a “Jeep” a small car is called “Private”.   So I paid for my “Private” car and waited.

I was still close to the counter when the same man paid and uttered the word VIP.  I thought VIP might be like a frequent car wash membership, but I noticed he paid more.  I asked what the VIP got you and he said they just wipe down everything inside like the seats, dashboard, etc.  “Oh!” I said, “I want that too!”  So, I paid an extra 50 shekels and got my VIP wash. 

The man told me not to forget to give them my ticket when my car came.  When my car came, I walked out with ticket in hand, but a woman jumped into my car first.  She was speaking to them in Hebrew so I didn’t understand, I just saw her holding up a ticket to show the man.   I told him that was my car and he said something to the woman in Hebrew.  She responded holding up a ticket.  I started to panic!  This woman was trying to steal my car and told the man in Hebrew it was hers!  I told him again, loudly and several times, THIS IS MY CAR! THIS IS MY CAR! I started to panic.  The nice translating man approached and said, “It’s ok…she WORKS here and is just going to park your car.”  I could not have been more embarrassed! Everywhere I looked there were men working around me.  The woman was dressed in a skirt and nothing about her said she also worked there.  Again, MORTIFIED!

Looking back, I think if I spoke the language I would have been able to hear certain cues that indicated the woman was part of the staff.  Without those cues…it was one of the most embarrassing situations I have experienced here!

One comment on “Car Wash or Carjacking?

  1. Keep up the fantastic work! Kalorifer Sobası odun, kömür, pelet gibi yakıtlarla çalışan ve ısıtma işlevi gören bir soba türüdür. Kalorifer Sobası içindeki yakıtın yanmasıyla oluşan ısıyı doğrudan çevresine yayar ve aynı zamanda suyun ısınmasını sağlar.

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