On the road to China in a classic car
10/03/2013
Almost endless steppes and vast deserts are interrupted by lonely villages. Camels, horses, cows, sheep and donkeys are looking for food; you don't know who these animals belong to or where their stables are.
In between, another town with magnificent buildings that bear witness to a rich past. We drove from 25 meters below sea level to 3775 meters above sea level. Our old car, a humpback Volvo, bravely keeps up with us on 80-octane petrol and with the ignition turned down. The roads couldn't be worse. Holes and rutted longitudinal grooves make it almost impossible to get through without constantly hitting the underride guard and exhaust.
We even had to present our Volvo to the local "road traffic office" (TÜV) to drive on Chinese roads. This means we now have Chinese license plates and driving licenses.
And the journey continues along the route of the Silkroad Rally, covering a total of 12,000 km from Istanbul to Shanghai in 56 days. Six countries are crossed along the way, an unforgettable experience, but also a great adventure.
