Perth, Australia
we're back next stop the Antarctic or over the hump by motor bike ( for those that don't know that read the Himalayas )
ÅŒsaka City, Japan
More types of Sushi and Sashimi than you could poke a stick at and seriously yummy, But those plates of mutton dumplings in a tiny cafe at a frozen mountain border crossing were just as great.
Beijing, China
Sorry folks there has been a lack of seen
Republic of Altai, Russian Federation
We got to the border nice and early and had a great social day catching up with all the Mongoliers we had met along the way, the line moved slowly but steadily all day and we even got to the head of the line and even had our passports on the desk of the guy with the big hat and then it was 6 o'clock and we were given back our documents and they all went home so guess what we slept in the car again and because this border crossing is one of the highest at over 7500ft we awoke to our vehicles and the surrounding hills covered in snow. Let's see what today brings us. 2nd entry Well after standing for an hour in a freezing wind to make sure I kept my place at the head of the queue we got through the gate and into the Russian Customs compound where we went through the usual rigmarole of finding out who we needed to get the 3 orange stamps from, then for something completely different they made us strip most of our gear out for an inspection, bearing in mind that this was as we were leaving Russia. Probably because a group of us arched up the day before because they were letting Locals and a group of rich Italian arseholes push through, Even Scruffy got in on the act and told one lady to F"@&$?"$&@F. We then drove about 25 km across a beautiful alpine No mans land covered in snow to the Mongolian Checkpoint where we caught up with the others who have been parked up in a compound since yesterday. (Third entry) Well we have now spent a whole day in the compound with our visas and passports stamped but we cannot leave as somewhere down the line somebody hasn't paid the import tax.so guess what we slept in the car again and this time it was so cold t ** some text is missing **
Aktash, Russia
we have about 50 km to go to the border and are spending the night camping with Tom and 2 Spanish bike riders . A nice little spot nestled amongst the trees below an eagles nest on a 4000ft Alpine plain surrounded on all sides by 10 to 14000ft snow capped mountains We lashed out and bought a doona today as last night was a tad on the cold side.will be up early tomorrow for a famous five cooked breakfast and then off to the border. Scruffs has just had the realization that there may not be any more hotels until Ulan Bataar part from the odd Urt
Region of Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation
slept like a log in a Log Cabin Gostinitsa. Last night and now we are making our way up through the foot hills
Biysk, Russian Federation
we are heading south again towards the Altai mountains which will be a welcome change from the last coulee of thousand kms of flat plains. We may find the service drops out a bit when we get into the deeper valleys@
Barnaul, Russian Federation
More to the last report regarding the Police pull overs yesterday after chatting to 2 other guys over a beer last night it seems a bit much of a coincidence that the speed camera had us all pegged at 54 km/h , 3 packets of Marlborough and 1 Camel fixed that
Barnaul, Russian Federation
that should be the last of the 12-14 hour days.Had a good run today with only 2 Police pull overs, both sorted out with a lot of gestures smiles and broken English/ Russian from both parties arrived in Barnaul at 1930 checked into a really nice hotel ( Hotel Barnaul ) $30 for the night. This is
Semey, Kazakhstan
Back in USSR, don't know how lucky you are boy. Back in the US, back in the US, back in the USSRRR! Well Russia anyway ;)..... Crossed the border successfully again. Another bunch of helpful but seriously stern border guards. Five border crossings down, three to go! Onwards to Barnaul, looking forward to the Altai Mts.
Annette Carter
Load Annette
<p>You may ask why Simon and Annette are willing to leave their comfortable middle-aged lives in beautiful, sunny Perth Western Australia, to embark on a risky,looong and crazy road trip across Europe and Eurasia in a small and eminently unsuitable car! </p><p>The answer lies not only in their altruistic desire to do something worthwhile about the plight of children less fortunate than their own, but also in coming to the realisation that it is time to seize that day and set off on one of those adventures that we all, undoubtedly have tucked away in the recesses of our minds....the ones we dreamt about as kids ourselves!</p><p>So come on! Show your support for the kids in Mongolia via our chosen charity, the <a href="http://www.cncf.org/en/home/index.php" target="_blank">Christina Noble Children's Foundation</a> and click on the JustGiving button on our website. Or email us at <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>. Annette & Simon Carter</p><p>Team - Around the Bend</p>