The dream trip of our life =) Starting in the February of 2008 we shall drive from Sweden to Australia. The trip will take a year, during which we will drive through 23 countries and three continents. you can see our blogg here
This web site will be a window where friends and family can follow us virtually and see up to date photos and texts that we have written on the way.
Since we will have very small children with us the planning and preparation is very important. We want to be flexible at the same time as we have to see that things does not get too complicated. If a country or place is considered unsafe we will have to change the route, no matter how difficult.
Although we are sure it is easier to go without kids, we are absolutely certain having them with us will be so much more fun.
Since this is an ongoing project this side will be updated as much as we can on the road.
The route
The countries we will drive through, all toghether 23, are as follows; Sweden, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Greece, Turkey, Iran, Dubai, India, Nepal, China (Tibet), Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, and finally Australia. This route might change when we are on the trip depending on local situations.
The preparation for the trip has so far been mostly vehicle related. See our Land Rovers. Appart from learning as much about the countries we will be in there is a lot we need to prepare before going. In an attempt to be a bit more structured we have decided to devide the research and work to be done in four areas;
-Health
In many of the countries we are entering there are diseases present that can be deadly, so we therefore need to have vaccines against them. A lot of it! Your local hospital or vaccination clinic has the latest information about the situation on deceases in each country since this does change. Our links page contains some sites with information that is updated frequently on all aspects of travel health. Vaccinations can be costly and should not be left out of the budgeting. For this expedition the price will be around 10000 kr (~ 1000 Euro) for two adults and two kids. A further important thing to remember about vaccinations is that some cannot be combined with others so they need to be taken separately and over some time. Taking children on this sort of trip requires a little more thought when it come to health. Washing hands before meals and keeping as clean as possible will help in preventing illness. Wild animals, such as scorpions and snakes, that we may encounter around the places we stay may also pose a threat to our health so it is vitally important to know what to look out for and have some sort of knowledge of what to do when put in a situation.
-Maintanance
Planning what parts to bring, when to change oils, breaks and so on.
-Comunication
To start with, when planning this trip we need to find out what is needed for entering and leaving a country, such as specific documentation. Being prepared for as much as possible will aid us in the event of something happening.
Insurance: Very important as well as costly! So far we have estimated that it will probably be around 20 000 kr. (~2000 Euro) for each family. When we have more information we will write it here, but for now check out our links page on the various insurance companies we are in contact with.
Local internet cafes and more and more places offer free access to WiFi so getting on line is less of a problem. Sometimes we have even been out and with the mobile we have we have connected on line to check our mail.
Banking is not useually a problem, many countires have ATMs and as long as youstick to the real main used cards such as Visa and mastercard you wil be fine. Make sure you have a back up or another card as we had a number of card demagnatise themselves and it can cause a headache when paying for things.
-Navigation
Paper maps really do rule outside of Europe. The GPS we use has all the maps for Europe but as soon as you leave this real time direcions it is only useable for recording trip details and checking the coordiantes of useful places. We will update our trip computer details some time soon.
The lonly planet guides have proven to be great when entering towns and cities looking for a ostel or place to see. Further more the good old sign language and communication with locals with a street address in your hand will always get you to your destination finally.