I'm sorry Frau Barrie, but she has a dog...

I'm laughing because a friend of mine just posted a blog about the German's love of dogs and horses...how right she is!

As you know we had a horrible time getting to and from Spain for our spring vacation.  On our flight home the 2 boys and I were on a 1:00 flight, my husband on a 5:30 flight, all due to the strike on the airlines.  No problem, I thought, we'll get on our way and he can get some work done.

I get the boarding passes and take a look at our seats, even the thought of the last row was not going to get me down.  What I see was 12c, 21d and 39b.  Okay, this is not going to work.  My oldest can be on his own, no problem.  My youngest can even be on his own, no problem...but me~no way!  My kids have flown with me enough that they actually know how to talk me through my fear of flying, crazy isn't it???

So, this will be easy to fix.  Off I go to the check in desk...

"Sorry, the flight is full and I can't change the seats."  she says.

"Well, my son is only young ~note I don't state his age, as I don't want to lie~ and he really needs to be with an adult!"

"I'm sorry, but you'll have to ask the flight attendants what they can do Frau Barrie!"

I can do that.  The flight attendants will totally understand.  So off we go.  On board, we all take our respective seats and I mention to the flight attendant that my "young" Son is quite a few rows behind me.  He assures me that he will get someone to move.

Once everyone has boarded Mr. flight attendant comes back to me and states that no one can move, and he will have to stay on his own.  He explains that the person next to my son "has a dog" and therefore they have their choice of seats.

Really?  Did he just say that?  Did he just say that the dog got preferential treatment over my child?  I mean I am a dog lover, but seriously?  So no worries if the plane goes down and my son doesn't know how to get off of the aircraft, too bad for him...as long as the hund is okay!!!

After turning bright red and demanding that my minor sits next to me, amazingly it was arranged, but it made me think how crazy and extreme the love of dogs here in Germany is!

I have heard a story about a friend who was pulled over by the police for having her dog in the front seat.  She showed the policeman that her two children, both in booster seats were in the back.  The policeman actually made her move one of her girls to the front seat, move the dog to the back, put a seat belt on the dog, and then gave her a ticket for this infraction!

Go into any restaurant and you will see water bowls for dogs, dogs sitting at the feet of their owners and even the occasional dog on the chair, but ask for a children's menu and you are looked at like you have 3 heads!

Dogs at airports are often seen, like the one below who actually stood behind his "people" at the Air Berlin desk and waited patiently.  I have to say, the dogs in Germany are very, very well behaved....makes me wonder if I should leave my kids at the kennel and bring the dog on vacation next time???