We knew this day would come, and we dreaded from the moment we picked up our little blue Panda in Grays. We had to hand the Panda over to the Adventurists to be auctioned for charity. We had grown attached to the car while it was ours since it was not only our means of transportation but also our home, our sofa, our trusty vessel, our storage facility, and our friend. The Panda dealt with a lot on the drive from England to Mongolia—half a dozen flat tires, a ripped-off exhaust, blinky lights on the dash that shouldn’t have been blinky, and parts flying off—but she handled it with finesse. So, for this day, we think photos say more than our words can. We’ll miss Panda, but even more, we’ll miss the friends we made with her and the adventures that we all shared. And, don't forget, we're still fundraising for our charities Cool Earth and the Lotus Children's Centre. To get involved with Cool Earth, click here: http://www.justgiving.com/TeamTurnagain !
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Panda found herself a good spot.
We crossed the finish line the evening before one day earlier than our original target (well, more like a few hours before our target), so we had a day to relax, catch up with our friends there especially our many convoy-mates, and eat a lot. The feasting started with a big breakfast at the Flower Hotel, which was hosting lots of Ralliers and had some wonderful Korean baths that we enjoyed the night before. From the Flower, we moved to the Chinggis Khan Hotel and started the slow unpacking and sorting of the Panda, including moving all of our wet and smelly camping gear past a couple nice wedding parties (apparently the Chinggis is the place to get married in U.B.). It was our day to celebrate, so we didn’t spend very long working on Panda matters but instead went out with our friends to Joe’s Burger. Chase had been talking about having a burger since some time in Russia after his cheeseburger in Volgograd. The picture of his first bite pretty much says it all. After burgers and walking around town, we spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out of the entryway of the hotel, welcoming Ralliers to the finish line and swapping stories from the road. We also finally found an occasion to get out the two bottles of Jacob’s Creek from the Calais Wine Superstore that had been rolling around in the back of the Panda for six weeks. So much celebrating put us in the mood for dinner, and we went to the nearby Hazara’s Restaurant for a northern Indian feast. Several other Ralliers had the same idea, so we went together from Hazara’s to Hennessy X.O. for the official finish line party. Fittingly, we were dressed as pirates. Viva Mongol Rally!
After three and a half hours of sleeping soundly in the Panda on the roadside, we woke up to Faye tapping on the window about an hour before sunrise. Good morning! As the sun was rising, we found our way back to the main road and turned east to Odessa. As we passed through Tatarbunary, Pandaland dropped back down to one as the girls stopped at a garage to try and get their car fixed up. As we continued on, we wanted to avoid entering Moldova (and thus re-entering Ukraine) at all costs. Oddly enough, every main road connecting Odessa to southwest Ukraine was through Moldova; luckily for us there was one minor coastal road that would stay in the country. Let’s do it! Even by Eastern European standards, this road ranked poorly. On the side of the road there was a wide off-road path that had been created by people who chose to drive off the road rather than face the potholes; on the side of that was a second off-road path that had been carved by people who didn’t want to face the potholes or the mudpuddles of the first path. Factor in all the heavy truck traffic (because truckers love avoiding border crossings), and it was an adventure of a road. The nice thing about the road is that it did allow us to cruise through a few beautiful beach towns along the Black Sea. By the time we got to Odessa we weren’t really interested in exploring the city anymore, and decided to get out in the country. We headed north out of Odessa and just kept on driving. By four in the afternoon we realized we had been on the road for over 25 of the last 29 hours, and it was time for a well-earned break. By exploring the town of Bila Tserkva, and with some excited hand gestures from a Ukrainian woman at a Lukoil gas station, we found ourselves the City Park Hotel; luckily for us, City Park was so interested in the Mongol Rally they offered us a cheap rate for the night, including a light breakfast. (Two ragged Americans with a good story must be a lot more interesting than their usual clientele of Ukrainian businessmen visiting their satellite offices.) Across the street was a delicious restaurant, and after a bit of dinner (well, maybe a feast) we chose an early bedtime and called it a night. Today's lesson: Food and sleep are very important. Also, things often look better in daylight. Starting Point: N45°35 E28°35
Ending Point: N49°47 E30°06 Distance Traveled: 453.3 miles We woke up with a plan to head a little further south to Vama Veche, a hippie beach town we had heard good things about from Rally Veterans (the beach party used to be there) and from current Ralliers who had somehow already stopped there. With itchy feet to be on the road again, we talked to the Long Time No Sea girls and decided to go north for what we thought would be an easy day trip to Odessa. We couldn’t have been more wrong, but we’ll get to that later… The day started out wonderfully. Charla made her scrambled eggs, and we packed up camp. We left Oha Beach and drove through scenic coastal Romania. Reaching the town with thought would lead into a National Park and a border crossing into the Ukraine, we realized the crossing was impassable by car with the help of a kind couple in a Lidl parking lot. So, we headed to Galati for the nearest border crossing, after discovering the boat at Isaccea was just for commercial purposes and then taking a different boat across the Danube and into Galati—this just after the “highway” dead-ended into a ferry terminal. Getting on the ferry was an orderly, timely affair. You could tell the ferrymen had arranged cars on a boat a time or two. Getting off the ferry was every-man-for-himself with every car driving quickly to get through the small space and onto the dock. We’re surprised we didn’t get separated from the girls then. There had been no street signs to indicate major highways in Bucharest, so why did we hope to see them here? We passed Around the World by Trike as we entered downtown Galati, and seeing both team members throw up their arms in a “Where the hell are we?” gesture was not inspiring, neither was the fact that we couldn’t physically get across enough lanes of traffic to talk to them about the journey. We made two stops in town—one at a nice hotel and one at a duty free shop on the Danube—and received contradicting directions. Somehow, we made sense of them and got onto the road out of the city, which soon led us out of the country. Getting out of Romania was a breeze for our EU pals, but we had to wait about an hour. The funny thing about waiting an hour at the Romanian border was that we had no idea whether we were going into Moldova or the Ukraine based on the maps we had, in which the three countries converge at one point. Then we had to wait another half an hour to get into Moldova. The two miles we drove in Moldova were quite nice. Then, the real adventure began. We’re not sure we even have words to describe the Moldovan-Ukrainian border. Our first indications were talking to Ralliers already at the border that had been there for between two to thirty hours. We certainly did not want to fall into the latter group’s case. In the three hours we were at the border, we managed to have the car fully searched, sign legal documents under duress without knowing what they said, nearly go to prison, and run out of cash. We finally crossed much too late in the night and found the girls anxiously awaiting us a few miles away. They had talked to another Rally team for part of the time we were stuck at the border and were hoping to meet up with them. In the dark, a wrong turn led us off into the middle of nowhere, so Pandaland stopped and cooled it for a couple hours. Today’s lesson: If you hear it’s an “easy day trip”—whether from fellow Ralliers or Google Maps—it’s not. Prepare for hell. Starting Point: N44°16 E28°37
Ending Point: N45°35 E28°35 Distance Traveled: 453.3 miles After a late night on the beach with our friends from Pandaland and the other Rally teams that we had met on the Transfagarasan and those we has not seen since the Czech Out and Euro Launches, we decided we needed to take a day off and enjoy the beach (and to plan for the next phase of the Rally ahead). We started with a morning swim, where we found the Phileasfog Reformers still on the beach and not en route to Turkey. Joining up with Iona and Faye, we went to a local café for breakfast in Mamaia, the bigger town next to Oha Beach (somewhat reminiscent of Miami and Las Vegas). The usual hilarity of Pandaland ensued as we laughed about the night before, including noticing how many of us had been stamped (and still had stamps on our arms, legs, and even faces in some cases) by the Phileasfog teammates. Following breakfast, we said goodbye to Justin, Andrew, Simone, and Miriam as they set out for Bulgaria then Istanbul. We were sad to see Pandaland’s borders shrink, but we knew it would happen and enjoyed the rest of the day with Long Time No Sea and other Ralliers who lingered behind for another beach day. Starting Point: N44°16 E28°37
Ending Point: N44°16 E28°37 Distance Traveled: 17.2 miles We started our day with a strangely simple but elaborate breakfast at the Pensiunea Minerva in Halmagel, Romania. We knew we had a lot of miles to cover to reach the beach party, and after missing the Pit Stop Party in Sibiu, there was no way we would miss the beach party! We hit the road after breakfast, and with the road conditions in that part of Romania, pieces of the Pandas were hitting the road as well. Thankfully, the road conditions improved as we approached Deva and stayed fairly nice all the way through Sibiu, including a section of brand-new highway that did not last too long because the road itself was under construction. From Sibiu, we found our way to the start of the legendary Transfagarasan, picking up a couple other Rally cars before stopping at the end of the straight stretch of road leading to the mountains (where a kind old lady came out to greet us with apples and her tiny fluffly dog). Now, as we head into the mountains, we should clarify: the Transfagarasan is no ordinary highway. The Transfagarasan is a strip of windy asphalt directly up and over the Fagarasan mountains, and it attracts drivers from all over the world; Jeremy Clarksson, the world-famous driver from Top Gear called the Transfagarasan “the most beautiful road in the world” after his team conquered it in Ferraris and Aston Martins. If it was good enough for Jeremy Clarksson, the road was definitely good enough for us, even though we were driving a different Italian car that starts with an F. By the time we started gaining elevation, our convoy had grown to five small cars struggling with the slope. We slowly creeped uphill, continuously switchbacking and crawling up, and occasionally stopped for photos as the Romanian farmland shrank from sight and opened up magnificent views. Towards the top of the Transfagarasan, the switchbacks practically double-back on themselves, searching for any route that can continue up, and creating a route so insane that our road map actually gave up trying to trace its course. After kilometers and kilometers of steep grades and blind corners we finally made it to the peak, and we could look down at the road we had just climbed. It was a glorious sight: in the foreground, a ribbon of asphalt that so tangled that it could tie itself in a knot, and in the background farmland stretching to the horizon. By now our convoy had grown to eight teams, and there were many hugs and high fives with photos being taken of various countries’ flags being held proudly in the wind. Not to be outdone, the trip down was spectacular as well. Shortly after the surprise herd of wild horses on a blind downhill corner, our brakes began overheating. Before a crisis could actually strike, we found a pull-off to cool off our brakes and allow the entire convoy time for sandwiches and snacks. After a while of enjoying the sunshine on the mountainside, it was time to head off. Not surprisingly, the trip down the mountain was much faster than the trip up, and before long we were back on the highway driving towards Bucharest. Driving through Bucharest was quite the adventure, though of a completely different sort than the Transfagarasan. Charla nearly had a heart attack navigating, as there were no road signs to be found. She remembered talking to a Romanian guy in Halmagel, and we made a right turn after the President’s House in the center of the city that led us along the canal to exit the city on the correct road. Spotting a couple other Mongol Rally cars out in the distance was fairly helpful too! Once we made it on to the highway, the frequency of Rally car-spotting increased. We were indeed headed the right way! Once in Mamaia, our convoy was cut off by a Rally car using us for directions; we had made it over a thousand miles together and got separated five miles from the party. We went straight to the beach and awaited the others. We celebrated our success with a beach party with the other Ralliers! Starting Point: N46°16 E22°36
Ending Point: N44°16 E 28°37 Distance Traveled: 474.9 miles After a good night’s sleep at the campground, we woke up ready for a full day thanks to the tolling of the town’s bells right at 6:00 AM. While Chase packed up the tent and arranged the car, Charla made her now world-famous scrambled eggs on the camp stove. Pandaland approved! (Yes, now they are even more famous! Or was it the Nutella bread on the side?) We crossed the border into Slovakia with ease, leaving us time for a photo shoot with the country’s welcome sign and to purchase the necessary vignette for our vehicles; the former was much more exciting than the latter. Despite a couple of stops in search of postcards, we came up empty-handed and pushed on to the Hungarian border. Not too far from the border, we had a Panda convoy mishap and watched as the yellow Panda headed down the wrong highway. We pulled over with the leading team to search for them—more or less staying still until they could circle around to find us. We made signs for passersby on the road and even tried hitchhiking to Mongolia. We couldn’t find anyone to pick the six of us up, however, and so we were thrilled to see the yellow Panda come around. From there, we headed into Hungary, where the border crossing followed a similar pattern of photos and vignettes. Just inside the border, we found ourselves driving alongside row after row of sunflowers. Who knew Hungary was famous for its sunflowers? As appropriate for the name, a few of our teammates were hungry, and we found a local café for lunch. While it was nice to take a rest from time in the car, the long lunch unfortunately put us much behind our schedule. We pushed on, though, as we took the lead and finally made the Romanian border. We’ve been talking for a while about when we will feel a change—about when we will start to feel like we are at the end of Europe. It happened today. The Romanian border was easy for the EU Ralliers, but we were held up for a while as they checked our documents and stamped appropriately. As the border foreshadowed, entering Romania was pretty hectic. We first went through the city of Oradea, where we’re really surprised we didn’t lose the other two cars in traffic. Then, we set off on by far the worst road we’ve been on yet. There were sheep that came out of nowhere. At one point, the road functioned as a cow path. Then, we got into the mountains. The scenery was breathtaking, as were the sizes of the potholes in which we nearly lost a couple of Fiats. The crazy road made for slow traveling time. We had hoped to make it to a Pit Stop party in Sibiu, but we settled in Halmagel after finding a Pensiunea Minerva that was coincidentally hosting the R.A.T. (the Romanian Adventure Trophy, an off-road navigation rally) We got a good deal as a different kind of Rally group and settled in for the night with a local dinner of meats, cheese, tomatoes, potatoes, and bread. Today’s lesson: Minimize stopping time or you miss the party. Starting Point: N49°37 E20°42
Ending Point: N46°16 E22°36 Distance Traveled: 341.9 miles There are late starts, and then there are late starts in Poland. We woke up in the hostel in Krakow, had a bit of the continental breakfast left out for our group, and recounted the events of the night before (some of which you can find on the previous post here, some of which are Pandaland jokes that don’t belong on here). Then, we went out to see some of the sights of the city that we had only glimpsed the night before, including walking around the main square and market. After a brief daylight tour of the city, we headed south to the Wieliczka Salt Mine, one of the twelve original UNESCO World Heritage sites. Before and after lunch in the café there, Andrew finangled us press entry with a private tour guide. The tour took us through three levels and down to 150 meters below the surface. Our favorite rooms were St. Kinga’s Chapel and the underground pool where we tossed in a coin with a prayer to get us to Mongolia. We also licked salt straight off the walls! Our tour guide even gave us lumps of rock salt to take on our travels; we won’t run out of salt for a long time now. We left Wieliczka but didn’t make it too far that night, choosing to camp in Nowy Sacz (a small town near the Slovak border) after a few shopping stops. We were the lead car, using paper maps to navigate after some mix-ups with the SatNav (GPS), and so we were happy to find a great spot for us all to stop for the night and make a big dinner. Starting Point: N50°06 E19°93
Ending Point: N49°37 E20°42 Distance Traveled: 70.4 miles For some reason late nights seem to be followed by early mornings, and we got up in time to see the massive Klenová Castle campground strewn with tents, sleeping bodies, and Rally cars everywhere. Breakfast was lacking, the toilets were in poor shape, and the drinking water tanks had run dry; but that’s what happens when the Adventurists invade the ruins of a castle that was built in 1291. While walking around Chase wandered into the camp of the PhilieasFog Reformers, and was quickly reminded that Charla had committed us to going to Poland today. Poland? Well, OK then, Poland it is. About five minutes before departure, the Long Time No Sea girls decided that Poland sounded fun too, and they jumped in their car to convoy. After a day of driving, and a day of GPS giving faulty directions to the lead car, we finally all rolled into Krakow hungry and cranky. After checking into Hostel Barok, it was time to tackle the city. Andrew, one of PhileasFog’s team members was Polish, and he was a great tour guide and translator for the entire group. We went straight to Krakow’s Main Square, the largest medieval town square in Europe, for a delicious dinner. The night started out very relaxed, but Andrew decided that since we were in Poland we needed a traditional Polish evening, so we headed to Do Zjedzenia. Do Zjedzenia is a bar that calls out to Krakow’s past; it’s more commonly just called The Communist Bar. The walls are covered in old newspapers, they have more vodkas than one can imagine, the bartenders are stern and slow-moving old women, and everything costs €1. We were having too much fun at the Communist bar, and we were shushed numerous times, but it was still a great night. Starting Point: N49°19 E13°13
Ending Point: N50°06 E19°93 Distance Traveled: 449.5 miles |
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