Gabriele and Wally
Photo: Fabian Palencia
So Gabriele, what are you driving these days?
I’ve been attending CarPark events in Brooklyn since the beginning, so last year in October, I was inspired to join the fun and picked up a gorgeous early Porsche Boxster S from 2000. I’d been keeping an eye on the market through the summer and when I saw Wally online I knew I had to meet her in person. I wasn’t disappointed. She’s silver over metropol blue leather, six-speed manual, of course, heated seats and a convertible. It was love at first sight!
If you know me, you know I don’t like to leave things to chance. So one Friday afternoon I called every single garage in the neighborhood because I knew Wally and I were destined for each other. Everyone can tell parking is challenging in NYC, and if you live in Park Slope as I do, you probably have experienced how competitive it can get during alternate side parking hours. As you can imagine, I dropped everything and sprinted right over when I heard a coveted spot was becoming available nearby. Thank goodness!
Wally is short for the high German name Waltraud, and she lives up to it by ruling the road. She’s certainly not a garage queen. I drive her everywhere and she leaves every other car behind at the lights.
We have a ‘family car’, but I don’t like driving automatics at all, so getting back to a stick shift just felt natural. And like most New Yorkers, I haven’t been much of a driver since landing in Park Slope over twenty years ago, relying instead on my electric scooter or public transport (ed: ahem, and lifts from Rob) to get around between our real estate appointments.
Tell me about your first car.
Growing up in Hamburg, Germany I rode everywhere on my bicycle, rain, hail or shine. However, if you have been to Hamburg, you know it rains quite a bit. Once I left home and went to university it just made more sense to get a car, so I kept an eye on the classifieds (clearly before the internet!).
Balduin was a burgundy Fiat Panda, a great friend and the perfect car for me as a student. He was super cute, with clean lines and excellent trunk space, and frankly, he was all I could afford at the time. I traded in long bike rides for zipping around town and was easily able to bring leftovers from visits home to mom back to my apartment. It’s a well-known secret that I don’t like to cook, but I do love driving on the German autobahn.
Great memories…
Growing up we would take road trips across the country and across the continent, as far away as Scandinavia. The white noise on the autobahn was perfect. I’d sit in the back seat and watch the scenery go by, or pass the time reading a book.
Nowadays it’s all about having the top down. Even on colder days. I just put on a cozy woolen hat and turn the seat heating up. Problem solved! But what I really love is the wind in my hair (so does my puppy, Jadan) and the sun on my face. It’s like being on a roller coaster when I drive Wally. When we accelerate I get that feeling of exhilaration in my tummy, and with the top down it’s like I’m in the midst of everything, but still apart, taking it all in as the keen observer that I am.
Favorite destination?
Jadan and I love to go to the beach. If it’s just the two of us she rides shotgun on the seat with the wind whipping her soft floppy ears and a smile on both our faces. Whenever my husband Marc is in the car she is a perfect angel, curling up in the footwell, making herself invisible, which really is not easy for a Golden Retriever. But as soon as he is out of sight she sits up on the seat next to me to enjoy the view and the breeze, and yes, of course, she’s wearing her seatbelt!
I love that Wally has not one, but two trunks. So when we get to where we are going, I unpack the picnic basket and a Pendleton blanket and just relax. It’s the perfect escape!
How do you take your coffee?
I’m a skinny latte girl, and I love that cars and coffee go together so well. We started with the @CarPark events in Prospect Park and later Industry City from the very beginning a few years back and love the color and the spectacle. Everyone is so welcoming and happy to chat about their pride and joy (at least the one they have there on the day), which now that I think of it may have something to do with the coffee…
Indeed! So where do we find you?
I’m always around Park Slope, which is where my husband Marc and I live with our two children, and Jadan of course. Maybe we can meet up, in a socially distant way, one weekend at Cars and Coffee. Hayfields is a lovely drive up the Hutchinson River and Merritt Parkways so if you see me say hello. Otherwise, follow my adventures on Instagram @gsewtz.
