12th-13th Jan - Tour Day 16-17: Final Roadtrip Home

After leaving Samoëns on Saturday, 12th Jan, we took the route through France, Switzerland, and Germany with an overnight stop at Karlsruhe, roughly halfway to home. The next day we saw a Concord followed by a Tupolev on display, which rapidly caught Pierre's attention, followed even more closely by the "Auto & Technik Museum" sign. We were doomed. There was no way we were going to just drive-by this one.
It was an excellent unscheduled stop: "Situated on an area of over 30.000m² indoors, and in open-air grounds comprising in excess of 50.000m², the Auto & Technik MUSEUM SINSHEIM offers you more than 3.000 exhibits. Among them the original Concorde of the AirFrance plus a russian supersonic-jet Tupolev TU-144 and 300 vintage cars, 200 motorbikes, 40 race- and sports cars, 27 locomotives, 50 airplanes, 150 tractors, steam engines and trucks."

Mishi's favourite was the sea-blue Amphicar: After looking at all the exhibits, we loudly declared that it was lunchtime, followed closely by treats.
(Mandy got Michael's ice cream in her hair)
(which was of course, very funny)
(deserving of the incredulous "look-what-you-did" look)
On arriving in Plzeň, we stopped off at the local uMansfelda Restaurace on the square for din-dins.

Monday, Michelle and Pierre were planning to do Prague and Michael and Mandy joined our girls at school. Michael came home reporting that it was "the best school ever" and when Mandy suggested it took a long time (a full day at school compared to their customary half day back home), Michael explained that they were very lucky because they were given extra time to play.
On Tuesday to Thursday, Michelle, Pierre and Mandy took a train trip to Vienna, giving us an extended family for those 3 days with Michael taking up residence with us, much to the delight of Ams & Saz.
Unfortunately, Friday was pack-up day as the Marais Clan boarded flights back to SA at the crack of dawn.

WE MISS YOU GUYS!!!!! Here's to the next vacation!