Parking Revisited

Since we've now been in Sant Cugat for a few months, I thought I might revisit some topics. Not only have I started taking pictures, but I also have learned some secret tricks that the locals use to make life easier. One area where I have improved is in my ability to find parking. One sure bet for finding parking near the kids' school is to go into the park. The curb around the park has some tapered ramps allowing for easy access for bikes. These are perfect places to have the car jump the curb and enter the park's walking/biking paths. You can then park between trees alongside the path. Not only can you find a spot this way, but there is the added advantage of making it impossible for a tow truck to be able to drag you away (it just can't fit between the trees). In the photograph you not only see several people using this parking strategy, but you can also see an SUV driving down the walking path looking for an open spot.

There is also another parking strategy that I have yet to try. Apparently, after a tow truck pulls someone away, it takes quite a while before it's back on the prowl. Just the other day I saw a savvy spanish driver taking advantage of this information. There are a few prime spots right in front of the bakery (of course they are all illegal). When I drove by, I saw someone patiently waiting for the tow truck to finish removing a car from one of these spots so that they could parallel park into the newly cleared space.