The Stupidest Carwash I Ever Did

Cape Kamenjak – a coastline of coves and beaches at the southernmost tip of Croatia’s Istrian Peninsula. I park our rental car and we stroll down to the warm waters of the Adriatic Sea. After an afternoon on the beach, we return to the car. It is blanketed in dust and sand.

I am embarrassed at how dirty the car is. How can I drive it like this? I don't want to be seen as a snobbish tourist with no regard for a vehicle’s appearance. I can’t return it to the agency in this condition!

We drive north, bound for the hilltop village of Motuvan. A small sign at the side of the road catches my eye. It’s a carwash! I slow down and pull in. The cost is only a few Croatian kuna so, why not? A few minutes later, we are back on the road in a sparkling clean car. Little did I know what awaited us.

A few words about car-washing. As you can see from my adventures in Croatia, I am embarrassed when my car is dirty. What bothers me about car-washing is having to pay for it. Why fork out cash when you can wash your car by yourself?

At home, I enjoy the effort, I tell myself, as I struggle up the hill with heavy buckets of water to where my car is parked. Oh, one other thing I forgot to mention. In Israel, where water is precious, we take all possible steps not to waste it (or at least I do). One shouldn’t use a hose to wash a car, or so I believe. I lift up a bucket and throw water on the car and then scrub off the grime with soap and brush. Another bucket and the car is clean.

Well, somewhat clean.

When I splurge on a more professional job, I drive to Abu Gosh, the Israeli Arab village near my home. Recently, I arrived at the small lot early on a Friday morning. I was the first customer of the day. Two young boys attacked my car with vigor, vacuuming and washing with a power spray. Their boss, a teenager maybe a few years older, sat at his outdoor desk playing with his phone. When the car was finished, he got up to inspect the work of his employees. He then sprayed a mist on the car's four hubcaps and seemed pleased at how this made them shine.

It only cost 50 shekels ($14) to get the car washed, inside and out. The end result, as far as I could see, was good. The car was clean. But I could have done it myself!

Back to Croatia

After the carwash, my rental vehicle is as good as new. Now we can continue on our journey. A short while later we see the sign indicating the direction to Motuvan. But there’s another sign. Construction work ahead. For 15 kilometers. The road is unpaved. Gravelly.

As I drive, slowly, the car tires kick up the dirt, covering the car in a new layer of dusty brown. When we arrive at the parking lot at the bottom of the Motuvan hill, the car is as filthy as it was at the beach. Maybe even dirtier.

A clean car lasts for a fleeting moment. It makes you, the driver, feel good, but you know that the feeling won’t last. Don’t despair! The next carwash is just down the road. Or you can always use a bucket.

Our car, clean for now.