The Flying Dutchman and Other Folktales from the Netherlands

Copyright © 2008 by Theo Meder

The following story was told in Amsterdam some ten years ago. It goes like this:

Along the canal, there was one open parking space. This parking space was approached from one side by a Citroen 2 CV (a "deux-chevaux") and by a big Mercedes Benz from the other side. The small 2 CV quickly turned into the parking space. The driver got out of the car and said, "This is the advantage of having a small car." The furious Merc driver pushed the 2 CV into the canal just like that and called out, "This is the advantage of having a big car!"

This urban legend is a version of BRUN 01215, Old vs. Young. The story was sent to the Meertens Institute on October 13,1998, by E. Brandenburg from Grootebroek (North Holland). The translation is based on T. Meder, De magische vlucht (Amsterdam, 2000), p. 167.