hp euro student guide 1992

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Introduction

This guide was written by the Eurostudents 1992, not to replace the two year oldHitchhikers Guide to the Bay Area, but to continue the idea and add some moredetailed information. ( Although the answer will always be "42")First idea is to help you as the new Eurostudent to get started as fast as possibleby making available the information we collected. However, everything mightchange and of course will change. Therefore, parts of this guide might be notvalid.On the other hand, this Guide might be the start collection of ideas and storiesinteresting to every student who comes over for an internship to the USA.Therefore, feel free to copy this guide and forward it to whom you want.

Hew!ett Packard Eurostudents 1992


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Buy a used car and get the trouble for free? social security(by Peter Weichsel)Don't Panic IIJust remember this old rule, when you are trying to get a AAAcar in Calitomia. Because I am sure, something will gowrong. I put together the most important intormation how toget a car. Looking back, it was not as bad as it looks like. IIAs an introduction I will mention some good advise whichwas very helptul to me. Tell everybody that you just have DMV written testarrived a tew days ago. Then they will try to help you. Tellno insurance company or similar that you are leaving after II3 month, they don't like this. find a carAnd now to start, look at the tlowchart.Social Security Number. IIThere is a social security number required in the USA to register the carapply tor a driving license. It is no problem to get one. Justgo to the social security departmen1. You will need your IIpassport and your pink visa paper. It will take you about1/2 hour and will eost nothing. Ask them to give you a rnsurancereceipt ot your application. You don't need the number butyou need this receipt Tor the DMV to process yourtemporary license. The social security openings are 8:00 to II17:00 and it is located at 438 S. Murphy Ave, Sunnyvale.For other cities, look in the white pages phone book. driving testAmerican Automobile AssociationRead the DMV book to get to know the rules and laws toryour written tes1. You can get a sample test at the AAA oryou may ask your personnel supervisor tor the DMVMotorbook and a sample test.We had a good connection to the AAA in 1992 and they are interested to getnew members. If you are a rnember ot a European Automobile Club, you will gethelp at the AAA anyway. Otherwise, I think it is a good idea to join the AAA atthis moment, because they can supply you with aiot ot intormation and you canget there every USA map you need. I am sure you will need aiot ot maps.Furthermore they will help you in case your car has gotten a damage. This mighthappen driving a car worth less than $1000.Written TestAfter improving your knowledge ot Calitornia driving rules (some are reallystrange) you can do the written test now. To apply tor this test you need yourEuropean driving license and the receipt trom the social security. Without a


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European or international driving license, you will only get a Iicense to practiceand the insurance company don't accepts this practice license for the insurance.After you have successfully passed the written test, you will get a temporarylicense for 60 days. You are now allowed to drive a HP company car, which ishelpful doing the next steps.

When it was brand new it cost $750.Thars exactly what I'm selling it for

Find a carlBut don't worry. Have a look atthe HP-Trader or everynewspaper. There are aiot ofcars available between $500and $2500. Try to buy from aprivate person because theUS car dealer are said to bethe worst of the world. Andremember that you will have topay 8.5% tax on the cars pricewhen you register it even ifyou buy the car from a privateparty. Writing a lowerpurchase price into thecontract is illegal.

Buy the carIf you want to buy a certain car, the owner has to give you the car, the "pink slip"(this is a certifieate of ownership) and a new smog certificate. And he will askyou to sign him a form that proves he has sold the car. This document willprevent him against getting your fines.Register the carNow you will have to register the car within 10 days. To register the car you willneed the pink slip and the smog certificate. You can register a car at the DMV orif you want to save time and if you are a member, you can register your car atthe AAA.Insurance for your carAfter all you need an insurance. This is not as easy as it looks Iike, because theywill ask you for a 18 month driving experience in the USA. But there are someinsurance brokers who can offer you a 6 month basic insurance. You can cancelthis contract at any tirne, getting part of your money back.But don't tell hirn that you are going to cancel the insurance after half the time,they don't like this. Another possibility is to buy a monthly insurance. But this canbe more expensive. It eost about $150 the first month and $80 every followingmonth if signed up for one year Nobody seems to care if you just stop payingafter 2 month.

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If you are younger than 25, insurance will be more expensive tor you anyway,but if you are female, you might get a female discount.It is a typical consultant's answer: It depends.To get your insurance, you need your driving license, the car registration andyour passport. This guy from the insurance company usually wants to see yourcar to check if it is in a good condition but they did never insist on this point.Now, you are allowed to drive the car !!!Driving TestAfter all you will have to perform a driving test. You can do this test either withyour own car or with an HP company car or with any other car, which is properlyinsured for you, Iike another Eurostudents rental car. It depends how your carlooks like.You have to phone the DMV to get an appointment.A last good adviceAnd if you ever be stopped by the police, show them your EUROPEAN licenseand talk to thern in your home language be confused an tell them, that in Europeeverything is different.And then, go ...At last, a short summary of the cost caused by my car

social security $0.00 AAAAAA 55.00 to join $17.00DMV wrinen test 12.00 Year tee 38.00car 770.00registration 73.00 regisuationinsurance 410.00 tee 8driving test tax 65total eost (6 month) $1,320.0 insurance0=total eost month/y $220.00 price tor 6 month 395duration(month) $4.00 monthly 65

tee & tax 15

total $1,170.0oSounds good? Today I sold the car for $950, after buying 4 new tires for $240,and no serious troubles at alI.

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Here comes the other point ot view:Hitchhiker's Guide to the Rent-A-CarThat's Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Rentinga Car in the Bay Area (and USA)(by Antti Hannula)The Pros and Cons ot Car RentalRenting a car gives you an easy access to a new, nice car but is more expensivethan buying a used car. You don't have to worry about having enough capital,getting a CA driver license or ali the complexities ot getting an insurance tor thecar. You do end up, however, paying tor your luxury, but some experiences showthat it might worth i1.Important: As an HP employee, you are eligible to rent a car tor HP rates, that isabout 20% - 30% le55 than normal, and you will get a preterred insurance withhigher coverage tor tree.Companies and LocationsThere are many rent-a-car companies in the bay area. You can get a car, e.g. atSan Francisco Airport, San Jose Airport, Palo Aito or Sunnyvale. Normally youhave to return the car in the same place where you got it, 50 be sure it's not tootar away. Companies are Iisted here, but please note that two ot these havespecial Hewlett-Packard corporate rate which gives you certain pr05.Prices do not include California State Tax, currently 8.25%and check al50 the "Rental Insurance". Yellow Pages is a good informationsource tor seeing what companies there are and where they're located.NationalTel. 1-800-227 7368Has convenient locations in Palo Aito and San Jose Airport.Example prices with HP Special Rate:ECONOMY SIZE CAR:$22.75/day, car like Geo Metro, uniimited mileage$150lweek, uniimited mileage$510/month (=30 days), includes 3000 miles, extra miles $0.20Includes Collision Damage Waiver (see "Rental Insurance")MEDIUM SIZE CAR:$23.75/day, a car like Chevrolet Cavalier

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$160/week, unlimited mileage$520/month, includes 3000 miles, extra miles $0.20Includes Collision Damage WaiverFULL-SIZE CAR:$27.75/day, a car Iike Ford TaurusIncludes Collision Damage Waiver and uniimited mileage

DollarTel. 1-800-800-4000Example prices:$459/month tor a car like Toyota Corolla$21 O/month tor insurance Collision Damage WaiverTogether $669/month, including 2500 milesConvertible, like Chrysler Le Mans $69.99/dayUnljmited mileage.

BudgetTel. 415-4936000$29.99 Ford Escort$139.99 a week$569 a monthinsurance: add $9/day

A-CAR RENT-A-CARTel. (408) 744-0123 and (415) 494 8383$139/week tor Geo Metro$424/month$240 insurance$664

HertzTel. 1-800-654-3131Economy size car $687/month with uniimited mileage.Economy $29/day.Have special HP rate, good cars but is expensive.

Enterprise Rent-A-CarTel. (408) 730 0900

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Lutz Ford (Palo Aito)4180 EI Camino RealTel. (415) 493-6900Ford Escort$475/month$1 OO/month for insuranceTogether $575/month.

Rental InsuranceIt is illegal to drive a car in California without an insurance. Rental cars havebasic coverage, but in general the insurance thing is a gamble. Please note thatmost money rental companies earn comes from different insurance.What you do want to have, however, is Collision Damage Waiver. And whenrenting from National or Hertz with HP corporate rate, you get it free. This is forHP employees only and it doesn't matter even jf you are temporary, likeEurostudents are. The waiver is valid as long as the driver is an HP employee.Normally when renting a car, ali the drivers have to sign the agreement andsome companies take even more money for that.Normally, without any insurance, you are responsible for the car in case of anaccident, no matter who's fault it iso So if a driver without an insurance (and Ihear there are surprisingly many of those.) hits your car, you end up paying forthe rented car. Same thing happens if there is an accident and it is your fault.Collision Damage Waiver 'waives' the responsibility away from you. In somecases your own car insurance in your home country may also cover theinsurance, so it might be possible to use the lower rates from Lutz or Dollar.Additionally, there are more options which you normally really don't need.Basically, these are only money makers and you are covered by your ownpersonai insurance as well as HP Eurostudent insurance anyway.

HP Corporate RateHewlett-Packard has agreements with two of the rent-a-car companies, that'sHertz and National. That rate gives you lower rate than normally, you get theCollision Damage Waiver free and are able to rent a even if you are under 25.Normally you have to be at least 25 to be able to rent a car, with HP rate youmust be only over 21 years old.Nice to know: You need a major credit card Iike American Express, Master Cardor Visa in order to be able to rent a car. When returning the car, you can still paycash if you wish. An international driver license is recommended, althougl1 it'snot always required.

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A $55-lnvestment or why join AAA*(by Leon Schumacher)I was one of those, who thought that buying a car might be cheaper than rentingone. So I bought one. Even though it was not the cheapest car available Ithought it may be a good idea to join AAA They immediately provide you with ahuge stock of maps and a plastic car key. You can return (every day) to getmaps as otten as you like or need.So I had my nice car, with lots of little lights inside and we went on trips. On oneof these trips one of these lights decided to go on. A nice Iittle red light marked'engine'. When you are about 250 miles from home and you cannot find thesmallest hint and the car shows no signs of illness, what do you do ? I decidedthat one red light more or less would not keep me from driving. After 170 milesand 20 kilos more because of an extensive dinner (4 persons), strange noisescame out of my engine.As the noise disturbed my listening to the radio, I decided to stop. The little redlight still worked fine, and as it was dark meanwhile we were glad to have atleast this little red light. 1realized that the noises were caused by a loose fanbelt, because the transmission belt straightener had lost some screws. We hadsome of these burning sticks in the trunk, but do not ask us how to get themburning.Atter ten minutes of reading in the instruction manual, I found the emergencylight (red) switch under the steering wheel. Now we were standing in the darkwith all our different red lights on expecting someone to stop. It took us abouthalf an hour to realize that waiting for help was an illusion, and so we continuedslowly on the emergency lane until the Highway Patrol was behind us. (Redlights on)Those guys from the Highway Patrol normally don't like cars standing around onthere highway but just call a tow-away service. I asked the officer to call theAAA, he gave me plenty of advises but was pleased, and twenty minutes laterthe AAA-truck stopped in front of my car and the problem could be fixedtemporarily .This whole operation and a possible towing away may cost a couple of hundreddollars; you can save all this (1 did) by an $55 investment in AAA. You may haveto buy another car, but that is a different story AAA Arnerican Automobile AssociationRemark: Leon gets $10 for any new AAA member?

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The International Joke(by Sherry Gillmore, 10 Years Eurostudent Host)In heaven and in heliIn heavenali the policeman are Americanall the bankers are Swissall the cooks are Frenchall the lovers are Italianall politicians are Englishali drivers are Germanin heli all drivers are Americanall the lover are Swissall politicians are Frenchall bankers are Italianall the cooks are Englishali the policeman are German

Learning EnglishThis is a country, where even the little children are speaking English fluently.Therefore, we strictly recommend, that you practice your English alittie bit.Lets start right now.If a woodchuck could chuck wood, how much wood could a woodchuck chuck?No, I don't have to know the answer, but the pronunciation.Lets try this one.Sally sells seashells by the seashoreYou see, you learned already some important things. Especially, we found noAmerican who speaks English. Don't be afraid to speak English, some Californiacitizens, Iiving here since years, probably speak less English than you.

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A Guide to the Bay Areas Night life (Nightmare?)(by Peter Weichsel)SummaryIf you want to go out at night, and don't know where to go:First, they role up the sidewalks at 10 p.m. during the week, never expect to findsomething during the week. Exceptions are possible.If you want to go somewhere, try:Downtown Los Gatos, Santa Cruz Ave. between Main St. and Saratoga Ave.Downtown San Jose, around St James StreetPalo Aito, University St, and the parallel streets. (important, look in thebackyards, the University Street itself is not the best place, but there are aiot ofgood places in the side streets)What about all the other miles of streets? Well, there are aiot of interestingplaces, but the Silicon Valley is too big if you want find anything special. If youare looking for special things like bowling, you can find hints in the Vellow PagesPhone book. However, those nice lilt bars, where you can find real natives areonly known to insider.Therefore, some proposals to get started. Some of these places have no exactaddress because of two reasons. First, a number is otten not very helpful.Second, I simply can't remember the address and I am to lazy to look it upoOf course, you can drive to San Francisco, but this is about 1.5 hours. Vou haveto find a parking place near China Town Saturday Night and get a damaged carback. I guess you beUer take a rented car to San Francisco.Boswells CafeThe Pruneyard, Cambell xing Winchester, Cambellhere you can drink about 40 sorts of cafe and you will find aiot of people evenduring the week, The bordering bar is good for very loud live music. EveryTuesday you may meet there a group of nice Au-pair girls. In Summer 92, thiswas an international cafe.KarthoumEastbound Cambell Avenue, Cambell ( In the oneway part of the street)A bar were you can meet and start an evening or finish it with some good beerson tap or a margarita. Nice atmosphere, strange waitress.Saint James InfirmaryNorthbound Castro street, lett side, about 1 mile north of the railroad.Absolutely unique place, must have seen it. Prices are normal to low. I wouldsay it is a pub, others think it is just strange.42nd Street, Palo AitoThe name of the restaurant is 42nd Street, not the addressbackyard between RamonalEmerson, Palo Aito, hard to findvery good atmosphere and nice people. You can sit there almost all the evening.Especially in front of the fireplace.

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Gombei Japanese RestaurantPalo AIto1438 Stevens Creekvery good Japanese kitchen, low price, must go there. no reservation for nonJapanese. If you know somebody who speaks fluently Japanese, let him call forreservation.Mandarin Gourmet Restaurant420 Ramona street, Palo Aitoexcellent Chinese restaurant, don't be afraid of the expensive looking outside,the prices are O.K. (Iess than $20 for a menu, $10 for a dinner)The Black WatchLos GatosAlways overcrowd scene bar. But not to bad to go there during the week.Weekend, no chance t0get in. But maybe things will change until next year.Carries NationsLos GatosNice place to drink a beer and start the evening. Take the entrance from theback. you can reach it from a parking lot behind. This parking lot is always,signed as closed. Don't mind. We parked there several times.Fresh ChoicePalo Aito, University shopping MaliValco Shopping Center, Stevens Creek Bvd xing Wolfe RdThis is a restaurant focused on salad and other green stuff. You can eat there asmuch as you can for less than $7 which includes a really big salad bar and pastaand bread. Beverages not included. I think this restaurant usually lost moneywhen the Eurostudents went there. The salads are very good, and so is thebread.Old Spaghetti FactorySan JoseGo there, the pasta is not to expensive, but the interior is unique. Aiot of youngpeople eating there and having aiot of fun.The Tide HouseCupertino, San JoseYou can find this Bar/Restaurant chain on different places. It is a brewery too.Tlley offer about 9-12 sorts of beer, and some sorts are not to bad (for Germans)Especially the double wheat (Doppelweizen) is quite good.San Jose LiveThis is the biggest dance place in San Jose. different sorts of music from countryto Pop. Billiard, Sport, Restaurant, Cafe, Bar. Entrance fee about $7, IDrequired. Definitely the best guarded place in San Jose. Big parking lot in front.

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Sports in the Bay Area(By Chris Leuenberger)Here is a small guide about sports in the Bay Area. First of all, don't ask for it,find it. The Bay Area provides you with almost everything you can think of, fromthe big professional sports events like Baseball or Footbali to all the variousoccasions you have to keep yourself in shape ... (The "California equation" says:1 Hamburger = 1/2 hour sports).Let's start out with the sports to watch. The Bay Area has professional teams forevery major US. sports. Here's a list:Team Home SportsSan Francisco 4gers Candlestick Park FootbalISan Francisco Giants Candlestick Park BaseballOakland Athletics Oakland Coliseum BaseballGolden State Warriors Oakland Coliseum BasketballSan Jose Sharks Cow Palace Ice HockeySan Francisco Bay Spartan Stadium, S.J. Soccer(at the time of the editing of this sports guide it was not sure if the Giants will besold to St. Petersburg, FLA. So it is eventually possible that there is no S.F.Baseball team anymore)(the Sharks played at least their 1992-93 season at the Cow Palace in SanFrancisco. A new downtown San Jose stadium is going to be completed by1993)

There are also several college footbalI teams:Stanford Cardinal Stanford StadiumUCB Golden Bears California Memorial Stadium(the Golden Bears are also called California or Cal; they are the team of theUniversity of California Berkeley)San Jose State Spartans Spartan Stadium

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Seasons:Footbali season (NFL and college) is from September to December. Tickets areusually available without problems for college games, but not for the 4gers.FootbalI tickets are moderate for college and expensive for NFL games.Baseball season is from April to October. Watch out, they play every day! Theusual schedule will be like this: 4-7 home games, one day rest, 4-7 road games,one day rest. Baseball tickets are usually plenty available and very cheap (from$5 to $15). Watch out for games in the Candlestick Park ... Dress as you would inEuropean winter days, it's frrrrrreeezing!Basketball season is from October to June. For information about tickets call theWarriors (although the Eurostudent program is normally in Basketball's offseason). Ice Hockey season is from October to May. Sharks game are sold out,so be lucky. Tickets are expensive, especially when bought on the black market.Buy sports tickets at Bass Ticket locations, which you will either find in theyellow pages or in Wherehouse shops (CO shops).

Now, let's talk about REAL sport ... this will be very incomplete, because thereare thousands of things to do, and it's impossible to cover everything. Look atthis paper as a startup, something that helps you find something quickly in thefirst days. Whatever you want to do (Mountain Biking, Swimming, Climbing,Fishing, Golf, etc.) you will find it in the yellow pages.Here's just a short selection of places that used to be our favorites this summer(1992):

RacquetballCupertino Sports Center21111 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino, CA 95014Tel: (408) 257-9037TennisLook for publie places, they are all over the Bay Area. They may not provide youwith lights, but if you play during the day, it's fun & free!

Jogging (Sailing; Surfing)

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You'll find sports places everywhere, but especially nice is the Shoreline Park inMountain View (next to the Shoreline Amphitheater, THE place tor big concerts).You also find there a small lake tor sailing and surfing (beginner level; call them,they might have courses).

AerobicsAsk at HP's Recreation Center (Sunnyvale site), they have daily classes torcheap rates.

Volleyball, Basketball, Ultimate FrisbeeHP employees play aiot ot sports during lunch time. Just go to the RecreationCenter and ask tor it. As a special tip, if you like action and a hard work out, tryUltimate Frisbee, it's very nice!

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The next chapter of this guide is about other places than the southern Bay Area.Even though most of the Eurostudents have been in this area, there are alwaysa couple of students far away from HP Corporate Headquarters. I tried to getsome information about these other places, but received only one article yet.

Introduction for the Eurostudent-Prograrn for students, whowork at HP in Ft. Collins, Colorado(by Juergen Imt'lOff)Ft. Collins is about 5900ft. high (more than 1.6km), so if you do or pian anysporting-activities, keep in mind, you have to be trained.Ft. Collins is a perfect place for any outdoor-activities, such as skiing, c1imbing,hiking, caving, flying, biking.There are all sports activities you can imagine. To get around, I would assume,to buy yourself a car. When I stayed in Ft. Collins (summer '92) a reasonableprice for a ten year old car, was around 1000-1500$. You can resell it easily,especially, when your host-parents help you. Best newspaper is the DenverPost, they have a large amount of used cars in their ad's, but Ft. Collins paper(the coloradoan) has a good overview too.Don't expect any news about Europe, there are N 0 N E. Try to get in contactwith all other SEED/Eurostudents; that is quite important, because Ft. Collinshas not very much evening-events.We went to Denver (50 Miles) on the weekend and t"lad much fun. HP Ft. Collins,HP Greeley and HP Loveland are really close together, so if you want to takesome really good HP-impressions back home: get to know people. They offeryou the best chances here, and you are very well supported by personnel.HP has an own Picnic-Area in Estes-Park (25 Miles) it is a very big place- youcan rent little cabins to stay over the weekend, do hiking it is right in RockyMountain National Park.Old Town is a nice place for meeting students and other folks, they have anopen-air concert there every Thursday evening at 7 p.m.

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Te be Centinued?!We had aiot ot tun writing this guide, and as some ot the articles have beenready after the second week, it, was even helptul to other 1992 Eurostudents.We want to ask tollowing generations ot Eurostudents to continue this guide bycollecting intormation and stories about their great summer at HP.As the idea ot a Eurostudent Guide started two years ago with a first list ot tipsand tricks called Hitchhikers Guide to the Bay Area, we think that every year otEurostudents will have their own special stories and events, and their own wayto write this down.We will try to leave the sources ot this text at HP, to be continued.

Eurostudents 1992

hp euro student guide 1992

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