Three things that surprised me in Stuttgart (the rest are pleasing):
– there is neither Uber, Lyft, nor anything similar. Taxis are called by phone and you wait. The hotel has a box with a button for quick calling. I waited 25 minutes for such a taxi on Saturday morning.
– many places do not accept cards. Taxis are ready to accept a card only with a minimum charge of 20 euros. In the restaurant Shani shabu, they told me they only accept local cards, and today I had to leave Café am Hospitalplatz without paying for my cappuccino because these friends do not accept cards. Now I ask right away.
– Wi-Fi in Germany about eight years ago was very poor – it required a SIM card and SMS everywhere, which is not an option for a tourist without roaming. Now it’s no longer like that, but it’s just worse than many other places. I have stayed in two hotels here already. Both had issues. In the more prestigious one, Maritim, Wi-Fi is only for clients. Right now, I am sitting here as just a guest, using paid Wi-Fi because there is no free option. So, the one for clients is also strange – one and a half megabits per second.
I plan to rent a bicycle next. There is not a single bicycle rental spot in the entire city, except for those city ones with hourly rates. The only virtual rental point delivers the bike to the hotel for twenty euros or for free to the station. No insurance. Who these guys are – unclear, but the local tourist info recommends it. I’ll try it.
Hi, I'm Rauf Aliev. 