Due to overwhelming interest in the Tell us about your Barchetta thread ,it was time to have my own thread on the 13 ,so far ,trips I've been on to European
events and shows n stuff.

Quick introduction ,bought this car on 1st December 2012 and having never owned a convertible ,an Italian or a LHD car it was going to be interesting whether I bonded with it or hated it.

It didn't take long to bond.

My first trip of 3 in 2013 was to Techno Classica ,Essen ,Germany.

I had already been to this huge show in 2012 in my Cosworth so I knew it was well worth going back to and I recommend this show to anyone interested in classic cars.
Some people say you need 2 days to see it all but I have managed to cover it in 1 but with very tired legs n feet at the end of the day.


Parked outside some important building in the city.

Some of the cars in the show.


Some of the cars for sale need a little attention.










I took many more pics but will post mainly the best Italian cars I saw.

After going to Auto Italia for the first time with a relevant car and Soft top Sunday I then embarked on my first big trip with the Fiat ,to Italy in May for
the following........

When travelling south through France it is the LAW to stop at the old Reims circuit to take these pics ,it must be done.





Next was a car museum near Lyon.



This is a Marsonetto ,made by a French/Italian



Apparently Adolf Hitler used this Mercedes.


and a pope mobile.

Next into Italy via tunnel de Frejus and to Turin for the national motor museum of Italy.


A 500 covered in models of 500s











a selection of cars made especially for Gianni Agnelli.



Museum is just round the corner from Lingotto building.

2013 was the 50th anniversary for Lamborghini, so it was nice of them to organise a tour for about 100 cars that visited a coastal town fairly near where I was staying.
Forte de Marmi.

The Ferrari Galleria is a must see ,I've been there 4 times ,in 4 different cars.

This will have been my last visit there.


I don't seem to have pics from inside....

But this a view of Fiorano ,the test track ,which isn't hidden away and all secret as there is a block of flats overlooking it.



took that 458 pic through the gate.

outside HQ


On to Imola


The Ayrton Senna memorial tribute.







and Mugello



where there's a Ferrari shell on a roundabout ,obviously.

Here's some from Ferrari, might be a different year.....







Found the 2013 pics,they're dated wrongly so photo bucket has them in the wrong order.




the "Breadvan"











this 348 "mule" has a V12 engine as a test car for it.

The other Ferrari museum ,in Modena ,on Enzo's original site.







the Ferrari body makers Scaglietti


The Stanguellini collection.









I don't know if that collection is open to the public ,I turned up there.in the
Maranello suburbs and found a bloke in charge and managed to get in after
a conversation between us consisting of no common language....

To Brescia for the main reason of this road trip ,the Mille Miglia .

first the museum, which is on the route the MM takes out of town.



A Moretti 750.



The main event



locals have good taste in cars


some of the cars just following the event aren't too shabby either












I think it was this Jaguar that was being driven by Chris Harris,almost unknown then but now presenting some BBC motoring show.

After getting hopelessly lost in Verona and Ferrara at stupid o clock,I finally
found a spot next morning where the cars are passing,in Vogheira.
















David Coulthard "enjoying" the ride ,in an open car in rain......

This is the very first pic I took of my car ,possibly on the day I got it.



On the way back through France I went to the Peugeot museum in Sochaux.



This mini Bugatti was presented to a member of Peugeot's family by Ettore himself.

Back to Reims for the car museum I couldn't find the first time there.

Spot the odd 2CV

Back to Reims for the car museum I couldn't find the first time there.

Spot the odd 2CV

The final trip of 2013 was back to Germany ,to the Audi museum in Ingolstadt





Those are the only 2 pics from there ,all the rest have been lost on an old laptop.

Next stop ,Stuttgart for Porsche ,where in 2013 was a special 50 years of 911 display.




same again,only 2 pics.

then to the main destination of the trip ,the Eifel historic rallye.






And then just down the road for some Nurburgring tourist driving to watch.




just after stopping for this pic a local in a Barchetta exchanged waves with me
:wave:

That's about it for 2013,much more to come yet.

Well done for the wonderful photos! You and your B are certainly well travelled!

AWESOME new thread! There's so much here to feast on!

Thank you so much for taking the time and trouble to put all this together!

I'm also struck by how 'at home' the B looks, among that exotic machinery (in silver, at least ). Or is that just me looking through B-tinted spectacles?

Thanks for the kind remarks peeps....

2014 is here ,better late than never.

First euro trip was once again Techno Classica ,Essen.
I can't recommend this show enough, it really is an excellent event and I could go every year if it was possible.
















that weird Barchetta thing.

3 weeks later I went to Surrey Wheelsday at Dunsfold, a long established show at a new venue ,that proved unpopular due to the traffic jams to get in ,worse than the ones at the old Aldershot venue that it returned to in 2015.













This C cab was built in the 70s ,I'm old enough to remember it from bitd and it turned out that the original builder ,Nick Butler was standing right next to me.so got to chat with the great man.

Next to Auto Italia again ,where the Bs were lined up on the banking.

May and it's Mille Miglia time again ,weather this year way better than 2013.

On the way down.






A group of Ferraris from Denmark ,this being a Koenig tuned car.





my first ever spot of a LaFerrari


and a Koenigsegg


and a Weissman
















One thing I hadn't done the previous year was to walk into the city centre where I found all the cars entered parked up before the start later that day.

I have no idea what that weird Mercedes was.

Standing at almost the same place, at the roundabout where the museum is, to see the cars leaving Brescia.



























not all the above are MM cars btw.

A rest day for the Fiat ,seen here parked in the village car park where I always stay ,near Lucca.



just down the road from the Ponte de la Madalena ,an ancient old foot bridge.



The MM route varies slightly in different years and in 2014 it passed through
Lucca on its way back to Brescia, which was handy for me.



It's not every day a Bugatti takes a pit stop where I'm standing.