Part 2
Reventon
Estoque
Milan was next, and unfortunately the heat continued to follow us. It hit 100o while we were there. Now there are a lot of threads about how horrible it is to drive in Italy, esp big cities like Milan. My experience is that Italy’s autostrada and signage are very good. Milan itself was not difficult if you are used to driving in major cities. The differences are the streets aren’t as wide and the closer you get to the older center, the worse it gets. There are many one way streets and the occasional dead end. The nav system was excellent and if you follow it and just park the car, you’ll be fine. I would not drive around as it’s difficult to find parking and too congested to really enjoy any sights. Just grab a cab. We stayed at the Camperio House Suites and Apartments. Again we were well pleased with the location and accommodations. The stay included a free breakfast and had the largest rooms of our entire stay.
Posrche 918 Spyder
Fashion district (even has red carpet sidewalks) Also notice only one US team made the cut there
Duomo
Sforza Castle and Arco della Pace
La Scala Opera house
Milan stock exchange
It is the most honest stock exchange in the world. This sculpture sits right in front of it.
Lake Como is a lake resort for those in and around Milan and our next destination.
Our hotel (Villa Flori) has already seen a few forum members. It was excellent, had great views, and its own parking garage (not free). They had the most American breakfast buffet with scrambled eggs, bacon, and sausage. This is also where I took a solo driving trip through the Swiss Alps. The plan was to drive through Lugano to the Furka pass then the Susten pass before coming back to Lake Como. It was supposed to take 4 hours, but that didn’t happen. I wasted some time trying to get a phone recharge card and gas. What I should have planned into the time was all the scenery I wanted to look at and photograph. So I wound up getting some great shots and made it ¾’s through the Furka pass, but it was still worth it. I was in snow on a 94o summer day! Also the bicyclists are truly hardcore. The amount of work to pedal up that pass and back down is insane. Even more insane are the horse drawn carriages they use on the road.
Lake Como
Bellagio
Furka Pass
The drive through Switzerland was slow and boring, but we did stop in Lugano. There was a chocolate shop run by Läderach. The chocolate was delicious, especially the fresh chocolate (less than 30 days old). I would drive back there just for that. Our next trip needs to include Belgium; as many say their chocolate is even better.
Finally we ended our trip back in Munich. One little note about the last hotel on our trip. It’s called the Victory Hotel and it’s about 10-15 minutes from the airport. It’s in an area called Erding. The hotel is new and you can still see they are building on the property, so it has an unfinished look to it. The reason I mention it is that it’s also a water park and if you stay at the hotel you have access to half the park and a wave pool. My son loved it and it was a very relaxing end to the trip. Now the food isn’t great, but the rooms very nice. I would recommend it for those with families, especially families that may not care about cars as much as we do. You could easily stay there a few days, let the family have fun, while you run around and do car stuff. It’s just a thought.
Victory Hotel
I made one last trip to the Welt to pick up a few souvenirs and shortly parked in the restricted area out front. I went in to ask where the garage was and by the time I came out there was a crowd around my car taking pictures. I don’t even think it was the color. They just love BMW’s and especially M’s.
The loginandout location is directly across from the Munich Hilton entrance. It’s easy to miss at first, so just look for the Hilton. As you turn in you’ll see the drop off spot on the right. The process was quick, and funny enough there was a young guy/kid taking photos of the car by the time I got out. My guess is he hangs out there from time to time to shoot photos of the cars. There was a yellow AMG GTS waiting to be shipped out as well. That car looks stunning.
Loginandout
Plane home
This last note is about Europeans and what they wear. They dress in a more upscale manner most times compared to Americans. Nothing over the top, but you can tell they aren’t just throwing on some mesh shorts, flip flops, and a t-shirt. Here are two examples of something you would be hard pressed to see in the states
Now I wait for the car to join me stateside. So this
turns to this
.