268 CultureShock! Austria
Phone the neighbour you believe made the complaint, call
her an ‘old cow’ and tell her to get a life.
Offer the police a bribe so that you can continue partying.
Make sure to invite all of your neighbours to your next
party so that they’ll be at your place having fun instead
of at home suffering.
Apologise to the police, turn off the music and try to talk
softly, or else end the party prematurely.Comments
This is what many foreigners might choose to do, but
it’s really not a solution. The neighbours will continue to
complain, the police will return, and the party might end
on a sour note.
This childish response certainly won’t help smooth
relations with your neighbours.
Bribing the police could land you in big trouble.
Inviting your neighbours might work the next time, but
then again it might not. Your neighbours may leave earlier
than your other guests, and once home could turn around
and call the police because they are now ready to sleep.
Unfortunately, this is the only option. You are living
in a country where not only is loud noise late at night
prohibited, but even reasonable noise levels (for a large
group) can elicit calls to the police. Hopefully, you can
still have fun with the noise level down. However, if a
conversation between six people has brought the police,
you might have to call it a night. Another option might be to
have an afternoon barbeque that starts and ends earlier.SITUATION 6
You haven’t yet registered with the police and you desperately
need your Meldezettel to get your driver’s licence. It’s 9:00 am
and by the time you get to the proper room, there are already
50 people waiting in line. You sit, waiting your turn. After
30 minutes, you realise that only people with numbers are
being called in. You finally see the number machine and,
feeling stupid, take your number after many other people
have strolled in behind you. You try and tell the people behind