Hifi Pig have been going to the High-End show in Munich now for six years. The first couple of years we attended was a bit of an adventure as we took the overnight train from Paris – even getting to Gare l’Est Paris from rural Brittany is a bit of a hike and if you don’t have a cabin on the Paris to Munich stretch you end up “sleeping” on hard benches. The first year we did this we arrived at Munich bleary-eyed and having had only fitful sleep, dashed to the hotel we had booked and then straight to the MOC to cover the show, really not relishing the trip back a few days later. However, needs must and we knew that to be seen as a serious player on the International Hifi scene Hifi Pig needed to be represented at the show, though we were surprised that first year at just how many people actually knew us and read the site on a daily basis.

For the last four years, we’ve flown from Brest to Paris and then onto Munich and it has made life so much easier, not to mention faster. An hour or so’s drive to Brest airport (avoiding the big bridge, of course), an hour’s flight to Charles De Gaulle and then on to Munich, a taxi to the hotel for a good night’s sleep and we arrive the next morning at the MOC refreshed and ready to work. The most uncomfortable part of the journey is being herded through CDG and the ridiculous passport control they seem to have implemented in the last few years. Munich airport on the other hand is the epitome of German efficiency.

This year for Munich High-End we decided to do things a little differently and our journey of over 1300 KM to the MOC starts today. The wonders of modern technology allow us to have internet connection via 4G wherever we are in the world (4G connection permitting) and so we have decided to take the journey over the period of over a month, where readers will be able to follow our progress on social media. We have a route planned and our vehicle of choice has been professionally liveried in the famous colours of Hifi Pig – PINK! Every day we will post on social media photographs and comment on our journey – and there are sure to be a few trials and tribulations, not to mention shenanigans, along the way. Our route (you can see it on the maps below) will take us through some of the more famous towns and cities, as well as less known villages and towns, of France and Germany before we finally arrive (all being well) on the 7^th May in Munich for the High-End show where we will give our usual thorough coverage, allowing readers to experience the show from the comfort of their own homes. We plan to take our time on the journey and see this “pilgrimage” as an opportunity to experience some of Europe’s wonderful hospitality, food and drink, though we do plan to fly back immediately after the show. You can follow all our pre-show coverage and aftershow reports from High-End Munich 2019 here.  Here’s our planned route to Munich showing the towns and cities we will be stopping at.

As mentioned, you’ll be able to follow us daily on our social media channels (you can follow us on Facebook here and Twitter here).

The aforementioned vehicle, we’re calling it The Hifi Pig Mobile, is a classic and will be known to many aficionados of classic modes of transport, though of course given the undertaking of this journey we have added a few creature comforts to make our trip a little less jarring on our backs given the very basic suspension on our vehicle.

And so today marks the first day of our journey and we leave Gourin headed for Guemene sur Scorff and then Rohan.

As promised, we’ll be including a little information on each of the towns and cities we visit on our travels and here is what Wiki has to say about the town of Gourin: This small town is well known for the Révolte des Bonnets Rouges against local nobles at the end of the 17th century. The town is also known for being the origin of many immigrants to the United States and Canada during the first part of the 20th century. It has a large copy of the Statue of Liberty standing in the main square opposite the town hall alongside the monument to the fallen soldiers of the 20th century who came from this region.

Gourin still has a large number of native Breton speakers. The people of this region are very proud of their Celtic heritage and have preserved many old customs and traditions.

Keep up to date of our travels by following us on Facebook and Twitter.