I just got back last night from my ED. It was a quick trip - 5 days overall, 2 days and 316 miles with the car, but it was wonderful.

My trip started out with flashing lights! Before I left to the airport, I had to run down to the post office, so I set the house alarm and left, but the door didn't shut properly. When I got back 15 mins later, the alarm was going off and the cops were at my house and my wife was rushing back from her school. After that was settled, my wife decided to give me a ride to the bus stop to the airport - on her way back she got a speeding ticket. When she got back to her school, the alarm was going off there and the fire trucks had arrived and they were evacuating the school because of a gas leak. A weird way to start the week and my trip...

My flight over from SEA to AMS was uneventful. I had 6 hours to kill in AMS, so I took a train ride into Amsterdam's Centraal Station - 6.50 Euro roundtrip and 15 mins each way. It was a nice sunny day, so I walked around the city centre and checked out the sights, flower markets, ate some good food etc. The flight from AMS to MUC was quick, but as we landed I noticed the entire area was snow covered. The S8 was waiting for me, so I hopped on for a ride into town. Getting off at Marienplatz, I checked out the area a bit, but it was snowing, so I headed down to my hotel. I was at the Prinzessin Elisabeth hotel (Priceline $50) - it was top notch, but the only problem was that it was 1/2 mile from the U station. They gave me a 2 floor luxurious suite with a fabulous breakfast for $50!

The next morning I headed off on the U6 to Freimann. The snow had stopped overnight and it was sunny. I got there at 8.30 and waited in the bistro drinking great coffee, till about 10 chatting with the friendly bistro guy. Signed the bimmerfest book, but didn't see any other 'festers there. At 10, Herr Ernst Fortune called me down, signed papers, and gave me wonderful directions. Then finally I got to see my car - it was beautiful! The black with the terra interior is just stunning! So after he gave me the orientation, he pulled out the car for me while I went up to the bistro, packed my lunch and headed out. Thankfully the snow had stopped and the roads were clear. Driving the car out for the first time was exhilarating!

I drove back to my hotel to pick up luggage - Herr Fortune had mapped out a route through Munich - Leopold Strasse and Brienner Strasse, which had a lot of interesting sights, buildings along the way. After picking up my luggage, I headed out on the A8 towards Stuttgart - eventual destination Rothenburg.

Since it was past noon, I took the Autobahns A8 and A7 all the way to Rothenburg and got there in a couple of hours. The car drove really well - you get to a 100 mph so quickly and you dont even feel a thing! Temperatures were consistenly at 32F, but no snow or rain.

Rothenburg (I had heard so much about it from a friend) was a fantastic experience - an old medieval walled town. I hadn't booked a room, but found one without any difficulty. The Gasthof Greifen (recommeded by Rick Steves) was this 600 year old house of the old mayor and right next to the town square. So I walked around and enjoyed the sights of Rothenburg for a while and picked up some Christmas gifts from the Christmas markets that were just opening up. Later that evening I did the Nightwatchman tour which was a fun experience. I highly recommend Rothenburg to anyone - it is one of the most picturesque places I've seen.

The next morning I headed back to Munich on the Romantic Road. There were several beautiful towns along the way and I checked out a few - Dinkelbuhl, Nordlingen, Donauworth etc. Unfortunately my camera batteries died after all the pictures that I couldn't resist taking. Temperatures were around 24F most of the way but again no snow or rain.

Reached Munich around noon and ran into some very heavy traffic. Luckily I managed to get onto the Petuelring, which was much easier and got me to Harms by about 1 pm. After the usual bantering with Herr Behrends, I bid farewell to my car and I was on my way back to Munich. I took the bus and the U-bahn back - I just love public transport in Munich.

I checked into my hotel right next to Viktualienmarkt - Hotel Am Viktualienmarkt - another recommendation from Rick Steves. Extremely tiny rooms, so don't stay there if you want luxury. But for 40 Euro, this is a fanatastic location and a great deal, with very warm and friendly staff.

At the Viktualienmarkt I had some weisswurst and Gluhwein that really warmed me up. Then I did the walk #1 on Bert Lief's map that BMW sent me. It was bitterly cold but the whole area was so crowded and people were just having a good time. I then found my way to the Hofbrauhaus for the obligatory 1 liter beer and Roasted Pork Knuckle - absolutely delicious. I was at a table with some regulars - jolly old guys who I could not converse with because of my poor German, but who included me in all the fun anyway. When the band played their favorite song, they all interlocked their hands and started singing and dancing with me included. A great time - but sadly no camera.

Early next morning I was on the S8 back to the airport. It had snowed all night and for the first time I experienced de-icing of the plane. These huge cranes moved all around the plane washing off the snow (and a lot of dirt!) - it was interesting to watch. The flights back to AMS and SEA were uneventful, and I was picked up by my wife and kids. It was much warmer in Seattle, 45F but raining. Today is bight and sunny in Seattle, but I'm still missing my car!

Now the long wait begins...

Thanks everyone on Bimmerfest for all your advice and tips - it certainly made the trip more fun.

Here are some pictures - more to follow:
1) The delivery!
2) Outside
3) Look - they fixed the clocks!
4) Inside
5) 3 miles!