Day 14 or like always the conclusion at home….

Anyone who “reads along” here from time to time knows that my conclusion always comes at the end.
But first I had to get from Niederkassel to Oer-Erkenschwick this morning.
This time, however, not via “beautiful” but directly via the Autobahn.

Yesterday evening Uli started the away kitchen in his favorite pub again, or had it started and we mentally completed the tour again with a couple of Kölsch (yes, you have to have done it once, but that’s enough…).
And before Uli falls back into the pensioner’s coma, I asked him to write a guest article at the end. Yesterday evening, of course, that was no longer possible, because football was playing in Germany and, as is well known, nothing else works for the fans…..
But, this afternoon I had Uli’s lines in my digital mailbox and of course I don’t want to withhold them from the readership.

About my trip this morning, after an uplifting breakfast (also out of town, if there is no woman in the house, the man seems to be in a fix when it comes to food) I say goodbye to my cousin, by the way the only one I have in the whole family, both maternal and paternal. That welds together……

I quickly find my way onto the autobahn and after almost 2 hours and a few kilometers in traffic jams I am back home.
Well, the rest is clear and now, writing these lines, everything is unpacked, the laundry done and the first session in the studio after the holiday has been “sat”.

And now, my conclusion.
Despite the changed routes, it has become 3330 kilometers, plus 240 kilometers to and from Oer-Erkenschwick – Niederkassel – Oer-Erkenschwick. So the trophy for the longest distance clearly belongs to me. “Thank you to the academy, my parents and the jury……”

Everything went smoothly, neither man nor machine was harmed.
Unfortunately I can’t pin the sentence no one was left behind this time. Three of us started and two came back. It’s a shame, it’s going to be different next time, Kurt.

So, and now enough about me, now Uli has his say…….

Dear fellow readers or those who are curious about the “Boss”.

I (referred to as “Boss” by Michael) first introduce myself.
My name is Ulrich Walter Otto Paul Hüllenhagen, hereinafter referred to as Uli.
I’m 74 years old, I weighed 95 kg before I started the journey, and at the end it was 92.5 kg.
I’m a real Hull Hagen (a little crazy but easy to care for) and therefore Michael’s cousin. I’m sure you think this can happen to anyone, yes, but I was chosen to fill this position. Since he is younger than me, I often had to turn a blind eye, not everyone has the experience of a 9-year pensioner.
So, now to our journey.

Before starting the journey, I dreamed of a leisurely ride in three-four time, mastering the curves while singing, having a coffee in various places under trees on the market square and getting a slight sunburn while driving. No no no! I would probably have been there with my pensioners’ gang. Michael led the route in front of me from day 2 to day 12 (his name was ‘navigator’) and what I didn’t understand was his satnav always wanted to the right and mine almost always to the left. Although we had the same Dutchman (TomTom) in it, the paths were different. Everything wouldn’t be so bad if his navigation system hadn’t always preferred a maximum road width of a car and the passes had been something for ibexes.
But Michael, who is an excellent driver with his Goldwing, regularly drove away from me. I got slightly depressed. But it also had about 140 hp and I was inferior with a value of 64 hp. I had sore muscles in my thighs from shifting gears, but everything passed me by without a trace. All passes and dirt roads (some also led through farmsteads) were also mastered by me, but I thought his navigation system didn’t like me. I finally lost faith in a nice route when the grass grew in sufficient quantity in the middle of the road. It was then clear to me that his navigation system wanted to put me down.
But we also had, unbelievably, great experiences and impressions. Examples are the view of Aix les Bains and the lake, the Millau bridge (a wonder of the world for me), the “Pont du Gard” in Remoulin, the “Palais du Papes” in Avignon, the view of Mont Blanc from Chamonix, the unfortunately very rainy view of the “Vierwaldstätter See” and of course fantastic views of the landscapes on all days.
So, now to Michael. I would set off again with him in a heartbeat (of course somewhere else), but there are family traits among us in Hüllenhagen that need to be mentioned. Michael can do one of them perfectly. He has an afterthought to all my sentences and suggestions or even just remarks. It’s frustrating! Dear Michael, we have to work on that, because as the saying goes, “talking is silver, ……..”. Otherwise, he only had the language defect that was firmly established in the German population, that of correctly articulating “as” and “how”. If that’s all, let’s talk about harmony.
Of course I had my quirks, but I can’t remember any. But I had great difficulties driving the Furka Pass. The Furka is a category 3 pass and may only be used by experienced bikers. I don’t have a head for heights, so I wasn’t allowed to look down over the side of the road. The switchbacks and switchbacks were an extreme challenge. It was very exciting, but I made it and I’m proud of it. Another pass in St. Malene (just before Millau), which was simply nailed to the rock face and consisted only of extreme switchbacks, I left to the suicidal.
Each day ended in a pub, restaurant or “pub”. It was eaten and drunk well. Beer (I) and pastis were our staple drinks and the occasional schnapps. However, we disagreed on the salad. Michael devoured it immediately, but I put it through the pig again and then ate it. The taste of the schnitzel was then surrounded by a hint of vegetables.
So that in a nutshell.
It was just great and the tour is highly recommended. Unfortunately, our third man left us on the first day because of disharmony with his bike (drove home). It would have been nice if he had enriched our round with his funny humor. Then next time.
Think positive and stay healthy, your Uli (simply the boss)

Ulrich Walter Otto Paul Hüllenhagen (Niederkassel-Rheidt, den 08.06.22)

Me again……
Dear Uli,
Basically, you see, I didn’t heed any of your suggestions (change, shorten, throw away) and took over your lines 1 to 1.
Well, my horsepower isn’t right, but everything else is jutti.
And for you, and of course for other interested parties, I have included a print function in the reports.

In this sense, bess dehmnäx ……. and stay tuned.