Travel info

For you non travellers lurking in an office not exploring the world and haven’t yet had the opportunity to travel the world, there are a few questions that may have arisen about undertaking such an epic journey.  These questions may involve things like toilet stops, malaria, water, food and hotels. 

Toilet stops are an essential part of human functions but toilets are not always an essential part of human construction.  Weeing at the side of the road becomes a second nature as you may have to wait for a further few hours to enjoy the luxury of a hole in the floor or a toilet with a seat.  For you ladies, exposing your bum to passing traffic becomes easier as you get used to it!  If you are lucky enough to locate a hole in the floor toilet the chances are that there is no toilet roll and you will have to stand in something that someone else has done before you!

Since we reached the warmer parts of South East Asia we have been taking Doxycycline tablets (the only malaria tablets that presently work in this area).  Lathering up in DEET based insect repellent has also been the only way to stop being eaten alive by the little monsters.

We brought two large water carriers with us which still have English water in them waiting our enjoyment.  We have boiled and drunk bottled water since St Petersburg as the delicacy of your stomach becomes an issue when you can’t find a toilet to glue yourself to for several hours.  Alexis brought an excellent water filter and water purifier that allows you to drink any fresh water but as yet we have had no call to use it.

We have tried every kind of local food along our journey as well as beers.  We have enjoyed chicken, beef, lamb, horse (by accident!) as well as a wide range of strange and exotic fruits and vegetables including dragon fruit, figs, raisins, sabota, rambutans, bitter melon and others that we only know the names of in chinese, laotian and kazak.  Street food is the best way to eat and experience the local delicacies.  A prior knowledge of the types of food that you are eating can be beneficial (especially if you are vegetarian).  In China it is known that they occasionally will change beef for dog and in Kazakhstan they use a lot of horse and camel in their food.  From China down through Laos, Thailand and Malaysia there are night markets.   Each stall has an array of food available for you to choose from usually on sticks to be cooked over an open grill, but there are also noodles and soups for your delectability. 

We were very lucky with hotels in China as Jimmy organised all of the hotels for us at an excellent rate but in all the other countries we have had a broad spectrum of fantastic to the most unbelievable cockroach infected hovels.  Many of the problems of driving is that you arrive in a town that you don’t know in the dark trying to locate a hotel in what could potentially be a very dodgy area.  The first priority of self drive expeditions is your car as it will get you to the end and to drive a Beast means that you need to find somewhere fairly inconspicuous to hide it whilst you sleep – by no means an easy feat!  Hotels with car parks or secure parking are what you look for.  In Russia and Kazakstan you always had to pay an extortionate amount to park your vehicle in the hotel car park… sometimes as much as your night’s accommodation!  Accommodation in South East Asia has been basic but also clean and cheap.