# 70 As a stranger drove away with our van

February 9, 2022: Sevilla

J. We had been wanting to have our brakes checked for a while. Not because they don't brake anymore, but because we don't know how to tell when they need to be replaced. (If you know, please let us know! 😊) Also, they sometimes squeak when we go down a very steep hill or when we exit the highway and have to brake hard. So, we took the opportunity that there are many small repair shops in Sevilla where you don't need an appointment. The mechanic at the first shop we visited was very accommodating and checked our brakes right on the street. Result: Everything is great, but unfortunately, he doesn't know why it squeaks. We were told to come back in the afternoon so he can test drive our car. When we stood on the street in t-shirts and watched him drive away with our van, it suddenly dawned on me that he not only drove away with our car, but also with our apartment, all our belongings, our valuables, documents, and passports. I don't know why we didn't go with him. So, we kept an eye out for our van, after all, he was just going for a short ride. It turned out that there were a lot of white vans driving around in this industrial area. The 7 minutes until our van turned the corner felt like an eternity.

After some further investigations and some difficult attempts at communication using Google Translator, it turns out that the brakes may be somewhat unevenly installed. This is not dangerous and we can still drive safely. Of course, we can also replace the still functioning brakes now for €550. We decided against it. Our mechanic in Hannover also assured us on the phone that we don't have to worry about it, after we conducted some tests under his telephonic guidance.

So, we spent a warm sunny day in the industrial area of Sevilla. Quite an experience. Now we at least know that our car is in good condition and we are looking forward to seeing more of this city in the coming days.

P.S.: We also found out that we can order from Amazon without an address and have the packages delivered to an Amazon locker. This allowed us to finally buy a windbreak so that we can cook outside even in windy weather and save gas. Of course, we tried to support the local economy first and have been driving to all the stores that were listed as camping stores for weeks. Unfortunately, it seems that there are no camping stores here and no sports or hardware store had a windbreak for sale.

Day 117 - Total tour 7,595 km

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