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Day
7 (BMW World & BMW Museum in Munich)
As
a dedicated BMW motorcycle lover, this day was
reserved to visit the home of BMW in Munich which
consists of the BMW factory, BMW Welt (World)
and BMW Museum all within arms length from the
iconic Four-cylinder BMW headoffice tower in Munich,
which I have seen umpteen number of times on TV
which they show with rise & fall of BMW shares
or BMW take-overs or BMW sales etc. Ofcourse,
the factory visit needs to be scheduled many months
in advance, which I couldn’t so I settled
for the latter two.
After
many days of cloud & rains, it was a very
sunny day in Bavaria. We left in the morning from
our B&B in Pliening, outside Munich to the
BMW HQ which is about 24kms. And what better way
than to arrive at this BMW landmark aboard a beautiful
2010 model steel blue BMW R1200RT motorcycle.
Watch
the BMW S1000RR atop that building
At
a distance the iconic four-cylinder BMW HQ coming
into view
At
the parking lot- Arriving in grand style on our
trusty BMW
This
C1 was parked next near to our bike
Pictures
for the album- Been there, done it stuff…
Ofcourse,
there is more to see & shop for the 4-wheeled
BMWs, but the bike collection is also nice starting
from the earliest motorcycle models made by BMW.
Their technology pavilion with hands-on &
static displays showcases some really high-tech
stuff unrivalled in the motoring world. Also at
the BMW welt you can watch people take delivery
of their new custom ordered BMW cars, which are
presented to them on their own individual turn
tables. For BMW bike lovers there is also a free-for-all
section where all the new models are displayed
in the open and everybody is free to sit on the
bikes of their choice and get a feel of the bikes
and take pics. In this section there are no annoying
stewards or boards saying ‘do not touch’.
For scale model collectors, there is a whole range
of new, classic & vintage models with super
fine detailing to select from, but pricey and
most of them run in 3-digit Euro figures! T-Shirts
start at about Euro 14 and BMW bicycles start
around Euro 800. So here let the pictures do the
talking.
The
show begins here
The
Police version of our R1200RT
BMW
bicycles. They retail for about Euros 800
The
finely detailed BMW scale models at premium prices
Some
vintage beauties of BMW
Vintage,
Classic & new generation BMW sports cars
The
earliest Classic Luxury sedan
The
Clay model used in the design stage
Some
of the other exhibits
That’s
a cool dude…..
THE
MOTORCYCLE DISPLAYS
Just
to give you an indication how they are all arranged
BMW
bikes in Motorsports
Its
here that you are free to sit on any bike of your
choice
I settled for the S1000RR and the R1200GS Adventure
The
farewell shot saying goodbye to the BMW HQ
Depending
on your level of interest, you could spend anything
from 2-5 hours here. Entry to the BMW Welt is
free, but the Museum charges Euro 8 per person
and is open from Tuesday to Saturday from 10am
to 6pm.
Total kms traveled for the day 90kms.
Returned
from there back to our B&B and then it was
time to sadly bid goodbye to one of the most wonderful
& trusted companion of the trip. Yes, its
time to part with our sweet bike that almost became
a third family member for the past 7 days &
7 nights.
I
head to Karl Maier BMW and meet Karl & his
wife Magdalena. They are happy to see me &
bike in one piece and after the customary inspection
of the bike for any damage etc, they give me the
green signal. Well, I must admit that I looked
after the bike as my very own and it did not have
any scratches or marks, a point which I constantly
reminded my wife of while climbing & alighting
the bike (I think at times it would have really
got onto her nerves). Karl & Magdalena see
me off with the greeting “we hope to see
you back on another trip” and believe me
it was with a shiver in my throat and maybe a
tear in my eye I said I am madly in love with
Europe & hope I can come many more times to
enjoy one of gods wonderful creations on this
planet.
The
following days were spent traveling on the super-fast
ICE train visiting relatives with great hospitality
& food at Kassel & then in Frankfurt before
flying back home to Bangalore.
Our
sweet kidos were super excited to greet us back
at home.
So
now its time to bring down the curtain on 7 days
of undiluted fun aboard a beautiful bike, riding
amidst absolutely gorgeous scenery, meeting wonderful
people and an experience to relish for me &
my wife for a long while to come. I thank you
for your time and I hope you enjoyed this ride
report as much as I enjoyed bringing it to you.
I am also hoping that if any of you are inspired
to do such a trip please go ahead, coz if myself
as a sober rider & my wife as a first time
rider could do this comfortably, then anybody
can do it. All it needs is some planning and determination.
Yes, it will cost you some money, but I guarantee
its worth every penny you spend and will cherish
it for life. But don’t forget to share it
with us….
Please
keep the comments coming.
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