We rode in style with the wind of speed flowing through our hair! Poor Marv had to tie down my wheelchair on the rails on top of the trunk every day... And to make things worse, he had to endure my music: I had the 12disc CD changer loaded with music for me. As soon as we got off the ferry in Germany I played legendary German group Kraftwerk, song Autobahn. They sing "gefarhen auf der Autobahn" over and over. Strangely, Marv didn't like it more despite my explaining that Kraftwerk invented the sythesizer and that they are a cult-band...

My 'second cousin once removed' Marv (from now I'll call him uncle) had done a wonderful job planning each day: how to drive, what to see, where to stay and reservations too. Guide Michelin (Rouge?) not only rates restaurants but even sightseeing! And we saw all the top-rated stuff :-)

For each and every day uncle Marv had colormaps of where to drive. I did all the driving since he had done all the planning and preparation (+ my car was sto small for him to drive especially with the special handcontrol so I could drive safely....)

BURGHOTEL in Dinklage

A really nice place w a wonderful restaurant!

SPA & GYM at the hotel

I of course pumped the iron

We didn't follow the schedully slavishly, since it turned out I had to do all the driving.

Finally we found the nice hotel - Castel Albertine

Castel Albertine in Honfleur

Going - according to Marv - way too fast on the pristine highway, suddenly there was a really loud BANG, and I nearly lost control over the car. Luckily I was able so safely manouvre the car to the side and stop on a wide shoulder. Turned out the rear left wheel had big pieces of metal thrash enter and cause it to blow. The fancy car's fancy wheels/spokes or whatever it's called, where locked. Poor Marv tried to change to the spare tire by opening the lock with the special key, but it broke...

... so we had to call for help. Which eventually came...

.... this incident in the middle of nowhere well north of Bordeaux screwed up our plans big time. We ended up spending almost a day cuuked up in a small godforsaken town waiting for the tiny garage to get delivery of proper tires and drilling up the fancy tire lock...

spending hours waiting at a local cafe with a view of the dirty railroad, this girl came up and comforted Marv from being upset about the cafe refused to serve food due to it being off-hours. My assurances that this (only serving food certain times) is commonplace in France didn't help. Eventually we bough some food in the local supermarket Good to experience a small local town and the inside of a grocery store there. A bonus was that I bough a best of Glenn Miller CD which be both enjoyed listening to the rest of the trip!

I would later at night annoy Marv (after enjoying a taster menu accompanied by great wines) by insisting on slowly finishing up a wonderful cigar. Every other guest having left.

By now the schedule and hotel reservations was completely abandoned. When Marv suggested we check out Lourdes I drove by. But when he explained what it is (a mekka for Catholics complete with holy springs of miracles etc) I turned back. We ended up spending a day there. At the end I also bought a golden cross I have worn every day and night since.

Every day a procession of Catholic priests wearing white and gold march over this bridge in Lourdes together.

We drank the water and even filled bottles and brought home. I also was carried by monks and bathed in the holy water under a picture of Ave Maria. Nope, I wasn't cured, at least not physically.

I, despite being protestant, convinced a high Catholic priest to let me confess my sins ("everthing that most people have sinned") and be forgiven!

Driving along beautiful south France and arriving at my parents place east of Nice in Ville franche sûr mèr. Here we stayed for 6 days or so, and were accompanied by my sister, Kristoffer, my parents and Marv's Mildred from Chicago.

Marv and I had planned a 007 moment: getting dressed up in tuxedos, gambling at the Casino, then racing the MG to Club Le Sporting attending a glitzy upscale Monte Carlo show take on Blues Brothers. Whilst smoking a cuban cigar. WOW! Then come 1 am stopping by the Bentleys outside the Casino for some Kodak-moment photos, then driving home to Ville franche under a big moon along the small curvy road by Meditarranean sea. Live with PASSION!

This vision was one pre-planned main magic moment goal with the trip: to be wearing a tuxedo whilst driving my MG outside the Monte Carlo Casino. Living out my 007 fantasy :-)

Having heard horror stories about driving in Milano, Marv tried to bribe me to skip it. He said "how many dollars do you want for skipping Milano?". But I had never been there and wasn't gonna miss it for anything! Not knowing any Italian, I asked "Domo?". People shouted back "Avanti! Avanti!". We ended up parking and taking a taxi. We saw the Domo cathedral and the nearby super luxurious shopping temple. Then we took a taxi back to my car (I had a biz card of a nearby store...). Then the taxi drove in front and guided us to the highway. And yes, the traffic WAS terrible and direction signs nonexistant!

After breathtaking driving through northern Italy, we spend a night in Lugano Switzerland. Enjoyed a fantastic peaceful boatride on Lac Lugano. Then a drive through the Swiss Alps involving unlimited numbers of tunnels. Then on to Freiburg and Germany.

One day ahead of schedule we crossed the awesome bridge between Copenhagen and Malmö, and drove home to Falsterbo. Home sweet home! Then some sightseeing with relatives in Skåne, including the famous Viking memorial Ale's Stones.