The Vagabond Couple

68,796 km Across 27 Countries: Shehzadi’s Quad-Continental Overland Journey | Vagabond Couple World Tour 2025 Year-End Summary

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Tue, 30 Dec 2025 12:15:00 +0400

Journey Perspective

Shehzadi (the Vagabond Couple's 2024 Toyota Tundra) has now covered enough ground to circle the Earth's equator nearly 1.7 times. This journey utilized approximately $11,500 worth of fuel (estimated at $4.00/gal, additives needed to balance quality of gasoline not included) and required a massive logistical effort to navigate the diverse terrains of the world's most iconic roads. At the current fuel rate, Shehzadi has consumed enough fuel to fill her tank approximately 89 times.

India in Summary: 10,000 kilometers of Chaos & Charm in Shehzadi (Our Toyota Tundra) Where the Cows Have Right of Way

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Mon, 15 Dec 2025 22:11:00 +0400

Road to Heaven (Swarg ka Rasta): National Highway 754K, Rann of Kutch, Gujarat, India

Alright, let's really unpack this smaller Indian epic. Almost 11,000 km by road across 14 Indian state crossings, via India's highways NH-27, NH-19, NE-4, NH-48, NE-1, NH-44, NH-16, NH-316A and countless other local roads. Strap in, because this is the full, meandering, fact-soaked single-post summary of how our Texas-born Toyota Tundra pickup truck named Shehzadi and we - two slightly lost souls - ate up the map of India, one chai stop and mountain pass at a time. We embarked on this pan-India road-trip after our larger epic: a quad-continental North-America - Africa - Europe - Asia Silk Road expedition.

It all began with a negotiation. Not at a border, but with a cow. We had just rolled Shehzadi across the Birgunj-Raxaul bridge (Nepal-India Friendship Bridge, i.e. Maitri Bridge) from Birgunj, Nepal into the beautiful, blistering chaos of Raxaul, Bihar, India. The air changed instantly - thicker, hotter, smelling of diesel, dust, and something frying deliciously nearby. And there she was, a magnificent white bovine, planted squarely in the middle of the chaotic Station Road of Raxaul, as if contemplating the meaning of oncoming traffic. She didn't move. The trucks swerved. The rickshaws parted. We, in our giant American pickup, simply stopped. This was our welcome committee. This was India politely informing us that we were no longer in charge of the schedule. With a final, slow look our way, she ambled off, and we were officially on the Great Indian Overland Road Trip, our only plan to follow the squiggly line on our screen.

Kyrgyzstan Overland on the Silk Road: Osh to Issyk-Kul, Sary-Tash, and Irkeshtam Pass

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Mon, 18 Aug 2025 20:01:00 +0400

First-hand falconry experience with a trained Kyrgyz golden eagle near Issyk-Kul, where the road into Kyrgyzstan quickly reminded us that mountains, horses, and birds of prey still have seniority.

Tajikistan had not ended with one clean line. It ended in stages: the exit gate, one last control point, gravel, a flag, solar panels, antennas, painted curbs, and the old M41 climbing toward Kyzyl-Art through high ground where Tajikistan had not quite disappeared and Kyrgyzstan had not quite begun.

Shehzadi rolled into that no-man's-land with Karakul behind her, Pamir dust still on the windshield, and the Kyzyl-Art crossing ahead. Tajikistan had taken its fee in altitude, water, rock, cold, patience, and mechanical sympathy. Kyrgyzstan did not arrive all at once either. Borders in the Pamirs prefer to spread out, take their time, and make geography do overtime.

Kyrgyzstan Overland Summary

From the Kyzyl-Art border to Osh, across the Alay and on through Toktogul, Bishkek, Burana Tower, Issyk-Kul's south shore, the Birds of Prey Festival, Barskoon Gorge, Sary-Tash, and the Irkeshtam gate into China, Kyrgyzstan turned horses, mountains, felt, epic poetry, drowned cities, and one extremely clever GPS into a full country's worth of road. The Manas cycle ran beside us the whole way. The eagles were not impressed by the truck.

What's Covered in This Post

▸	Kyzyl-Art Border & Bor-Döbö — Tajikistan exit, no-man's-land approach, easiest Central Asian crossing so far, coffee machine diplomacy
▸	Osh — The Hinge City — Osh Nuru hotel, Premier Car Wash, Pekin Shopping Center currency exchange, Beeline SIMs, Osh Bazaar, Sulaiman-Too UNESCO World Heritage site
▸	Manas, Forty Tribes & Chetak's Return — the forty sun rays, the Manas epic cycle, Manaschi tradition, Odyssean Journey reunion in Osh
▸	Osh to Bishkek (M41) — GPS Ambush at Dostuk — accidental Uzbekistan border approach, Jalal-Abad / Manas renaming, Alay Mountains, Naryn River corridor
▸	Topu Shortcut (M-098 Detour) — GPS dirt-road diversion, riders, livestock, village mosques, Kara Darya tributaries, family cafe tea stop
▸	Toktogul Reservoir — Naryn River hydroelectric system completed 1975, turquoise mountain water, sunset at Ketmen-Tobe Cafe, Arbat Toktogul Hotel, drowned Saka burial grounds
▸	Bishkek & Osh Bazaar (Capital) — Kausar Hotel, Barkhat, capital resupply, Bishkek's own Osh Bazaar, Chuy Valley staging for the Issyk-Kul loop
▸	Burana Tower & Balasagun — Karakhanid capital on the Silk Road, 10th–14th century, minaret ~25 m, balbals, Tiwanaku parallel, Khan Monara legend
▸	Issyk-Kul South Shore — Beltam Yurt Camp — 1,607 m altitude, non-freezing saline lake, 178 km long, 668 m deep, Terskey Ala-Too, Kyzyl-Tuu yurt-making village, drowned Silk Road towns
▸	Birds of Prey Festival, Jaichy Yurt Camp (Kek-Say) — eagle masters, mounted eagle hunters, Kyz Kuumai courtship chase, Kok Boru horse game, horseback archery, Kyrgyz dance, komuz music, felt craft stalls
▸	Private Eagle Hunting Demonstration (Kek-Say / Tosor) — archery lesson, golden eagle kill dive, salbuurun culture, taigan sighthound
▸	Barskoon — Ishen's House & Gostevoy Dom Yugra — private musical evening, komuz and kyl kyyak, duck and cow road blockades, kitchen dinner after livestock delay
▸	Barskoon Gorge & Waterfall — Terskey Ala-Too (Shady Mountains), Barskoon River, Kara-Batkak glacier context, Yuri Gagarin Monument (1964 visit), snow leopard lore, Manas Bowl, protected natural monument
▸	Loop Return: Bishkek — Toktogul — Osh — Pereval Kokbel pass, Arbat Toktogul Hotel return, setting up the Sary-Tash climb toward China
▸	Sary-Tash 3,150 m — Yellow Stone — Alay Valley crossroads, four-road hinge (Osh / Tajikistan / Irkeshtam / Sary-Tash west), yak-breeding economy, Trans-Alay / Ibn Sina Peak 7,134 m, Sven Hedin pass-ritual record
▸	Irkeshtam Border — Kyrgyz Exit to China — eastern Alay Valley, sheep and horse traffic on the final road, AH65 / E60 eastern terminus, Osh–Sary-Tash–Kashgar corridor, Ulugqat beyond the gate

Tajikistan Overland: Fann Mountains, Dushanbe, Pamir Highway, Wakhan Corridor, Khargush Pass, Ak-Baital, and Karakul | Silk Road Overland World Tour

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Mon, 4 Aug 2025 23:02:00 +0400

Shehzadi pauses beside the closed Afghanistan bridge near Shohon-i Poin, where the Pamir Highway runs along the Panj River and the border feels close enough to touch, but very much not open for suggestions.

Uzbekistan had ended at Jartepa, after tiled cities, desert fortresses, Khorezm dust, Aydarkul sand, and one last run back toward Samarkand. That leg had carried us to the Tajik border with two trucks and the usual mix of hope, dust, and paperwork.

Tajikistan corrected the theory at once. At Jartepa-Panjakent Border Control, the paperwork got serious, the convoy narrowed, and the next chapter stopped being about caravan cities. It became rivers, cliffs, tunnels, soldiers, shepherds, hot springs, high passes, and the Pamir Highway.

Tajikistan Overland Summary

From the Jartepa-Panjakent border to the Pamir Highway, the Wakhan Corridor, Khargush, Ak-Baital, Karakul, and the Kyrgyz frontier, Tajikistan turned the Silk Road into rock, river, paperwork, altitude, hospitality, and Toyota suspension math. Afghanistan ran beside us across the Panj. The Pamirs waited ahead with poor manners and excellent scenery.

What's Covered in This Post

▸	Jartepa–Panjakent Border — entering Tajikistan with one truck, ancient Sogdian Panjikent, and Sarazm
▸	Fann Mountains & Zarafshon Valley (RB13 / A377) — Chimtarga 5,489 m, spring-cooled roadside stall near Novdunak, apricots
▸	Naqbi Istiqlol / Anzob Tunnel (RB01 / M34) — the Tunnel of Death, Maykhura / Dosti Tunnel, the hat Tajikistan stole
▸	Dushanbe — Grey Hotel, Taj Toyota pre-Pamir service, Rudaki Park, Dousti Square, Ismoil Somoni, OVIR registration, GBAO permit
▸	Iskanderkul Lake (Fann Mountains) — turquoise glacial lake at 2,195 m, rough track, stranded travelers, Iskander Darya outflow
▸	Dushanbe to Qala-i-Khum (RB04 / M41) — Kulob, Panj River border, Afghanistan across the water, Khudkham confluence, Shohon-i Poin closed bridge
▸	Night Drive: Qala-i-Khum to Rushan — pre-dawn departure, Panj gorge cliff edges, oncoming trucks, dawn at Poshkharv, border soldier "spasibo"
▸	Bartang Valley & Bagu Homestay — washed-out road, Lake Sarez geology, Bagu Homestay at 7 Sangov Street, English-professor host, valley breakfast
▸	Khorog (Gorno-Badakhshan capital) — Delhi Darbar Hotel, Khorog Fried Chicken, Pamir Botanical Garden (est. 1940, one of the world's highest)
▸	Wakhan Corridor (RB06 / R45) — Avj hot spring, Ishkashim Afghan market, Silk Road Cafe, Qah-Qaha Fortress, Yamchun, Bibi Fatima Zakhro, Yamg Stone Calendar, Vrang Buddhist stupa, Langar petroglyphs
▸	Khargush Pass 4,344 m — The Crisis Day — broken ledge, tire over a 3,000 ft drop, shepherd rescue, human chain, Musso recovery on Russian pipes, two more broken edges, Khargush Lake
▸	High Pamir Plateau — Lake Sasyk-Kul, salt flats, shepherd family shelter above 12,000 ft between Chatyr-Tash and Karasu
▸	Murghab & the Odyssean Journey Reunion — roadside meet on the plateau, Murghab Adyl Guest House, Swiss fuel swap for chocolate
▸	Ak-Baital Pass 4,655 m — highest point of the M41 Pamir Highway, White-Horse Pass, no white horse confirmed
▸	Karakul Lake 3,900–3,960 m — crater-basin, hypersaline, Trans-Alay skyline, Ibn Sina / Lenin Peak 7,134 m across the water
▸	Tajik Exit: Markansu Valley & Kyzyl-Art — geothermal steam, mineral ground, Kyrgyz frontier

Uzbekistan Overland: Tashkent, Fergana Valley, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva, Aydarkul, and the Jartepa Border

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Wed, 23 Jul 2025 23:01:00 +0400

The Vagabond Couple with Shehzadi at Kyzyl-Kala in Khorezm, Uzbekistan, where the Silk Road route turned from tiled cities to mud-brick fortress country, desert roads, and the old canal world of the lower Amu Darya. The truck had dust. The fortress had history. We had sunscreen and optimism, both under review.

Uzbekistan began where Kazakhstan ran out of booths, and our overland route crossed from steppe dust into border heat.

The previous leg had carried us from Russia across Kazakhstan to the Keles River bridge near the Shymkent side. After the bridge came the no-man's-land, that strange border zone where countries briefly agree that travelers should belong to nobody. Shehzadi and Chetak rolled forward with Kazakh steppe dust still clinging to them, because dust is the one visa-free traveler on any Central Asia overlanding route.

The crossing gave us the usual border kit: passports, vehicle papers, customs forms, officers, windows, barriers, questions, stamped pages, and waiting. There was no clean line where Kazakhstan ended and Uzbekistan began. There was only the slow transfer of authority from one set of uniforms to another.

Then the gate opened.

This Uzbekistan Silk Road route would cross the country the hard way: Kazakhstan border to Tashkent, east over Kamchik Pass into the Fergana Valley, west to Samarkand and Bukhara, out to Khiva and the Khorezm fortress belt, back through the Kyzylkum Desert Road toward Aydarkul, then south-east again to Jartepa Border Control and Panjakent in Tajikistan. It looked tidy in a sentence. It was not tidy on the road.

Map of our Uzbekistan Overlanding Route (full map)

Kazakhstan Overland Road Trip: Border Dust, Aral Sea Ghosts, Baikonur, and the Silk Road South

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Thu, 10 Jul 2025 23:20:00 +0400

The dome of the Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi filled the sky with turquoise ribs, floral tile bands, and carved script across the brick facade below. It is the kind of detail that makes a visitor stop walking, look up, and briefly forgive Timur for being a little extra.

This Kazakhstan episode continues directly from our previous Silk Road overland blog post, Russia Overland: From Georgia to Kazakhstan via Astrakhan and the Volga-Caspian Corridor. That earlier leg brought us through Russia, the lower Volga, Astrakhan, Karauzek, and the Kotyaevka/Kurmangazy border approach before Kazakhstan took over the road, the paperwork, and the livestock department.

Kazakhstan border guards warned us about cattle but undersold the two-humped department currently auditing the A-27 cutting through the Naryn-kum desert near Zaburunye. Living off their fat stores, these Bactrians have humps that aren't quite full and a total lack of concern for our schedule or the concept of right-of-way. We are headed to over 22 meters below sea-level.

This leg follows our Silk Road expedition across western and southern Kazakhstan. A complete map of the Kazakhstan leg of our quad-continental Silk Road expedition is given below for reference.

Russia Overland: A 14-Hour Border, a Dead GPS, and the Long Road to Astrakhan and Kazakhstan

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Thu, 3 Jul 2025 21:53:00 +0400

Shehzadi’s first stop inside Russia, just after Verkhny Lars border control. Russian and American flags in the same frame make for a unique moment in our journey. Behind her, the roadside shops did the essential border-town work: Russian insurance, money exchange, and hot food for travelers whose last meal had become a theory.

This Russia overland leg of our Silk Road route begins where our Turkey road ended: in Batumi, Georgia. The Black Sea run had already carried us from Cappadocia to Tokat and Ordu. From there, we drove through Trabzon and Rize. Hopa and the Sarpi border closed the Turkish side of the road.

Previous leg: Turkey Silk Road overland route to Batumi »

From Batumi, we returned to Tbilisi and took a short break.

A couple of days was enough to reset the bags and check the papers. We breathed like people who had stopped impersonating freight for a moment. Georgia was also home in the practical sense: parking, beds, food, and keys that worked.

Then we turned north.

Georgian Military Road to Verkhny Lars, in Short

From Tbilisi we took the Georgian Military Road toward Stepantsminda, Darial Gorge, and the Verkhny Lars border. We kept this part short because we had already covered the same road in detail on an earlier trip. That drive included Mtskheta, Zhinvali Reservoir, Ananuri Fortress, and Gudauri. It also covered Jvari Pass and Kazbegi. Gergeti Trinity Church and the Russian border came with the package, because the road is efficient that way.

Earlier Georgian Military Road story: Tbilisi to Kazbegi and the Russian border »

For our earlier short Silk Road excursion into Turkmenistan, the Turkmenistan Silk Road series summary is here »

This time the Georgian Military Road was not the destination. It was the approach ramp.

The mountains rose, the trucks climbed, and the Terek took over the gorge. The Darial Gate tightened around the road with cliffs above, river below, and bureaucracy ahead, which is how old mountain gates stay relevant after the invention of gasoline.

The Darial route had been old long before any modern border booth found a power outlet. It was one of the hard north-south valves through the Caucasus, linking Tbilisi and the South Caucasus with the Terek valley, Alania, the North Caucasus, and the plains beyond.

For a Silk Road journey, that mattered.

Our Russia overland route followed this northern Silk Roads fringe through the Darial Gate and the North Caucasus. Farther east, the steppe and the lower Volga-Caspian corridor carried the same logic toward Kazakhstan. This was the old business end of movement. Gates controlled it. Rivers shaped it. Ports fed it, and tolls made money from it.

Different century, same invoice.

Before we crossed, we exchanged enough U.S. dollars for the rubles we expected to need for three days and two nights in Russia. That meant fuel, food, hotels, and the small cash leaks that keep roads moving. We also made sure we carried no extra U.S. cash into Russia.

By then, Russia sat under one of the heaviest sanctions regimes in the world. Visa, Mastercard, and American Express cards issued outside Russia did not work inside the country.

Our rubles were not backup money. They were the money.

That precise little cash envelope would matter more than we knew. The road enjoys foreshadowing. It is annoying like that.

At Verkhny Lars, Russia began.

Turkey Silk Road Overland Part 2: Cappadocia, Sultan Han, Black Sea Coast & Border Crossing Back into Georgia

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Fri, 27 Jun 2025 22:24:00 +0400

Cave Hotel in Nar, Nevşehir Merkez, Nevşehir, Cappadocia, Türkiye – Staying Inside Cappadocia’s Rock-Cut Landscape

Nevşehir Cave Hotel

We woke inside a rock.

After the long run down from Ankara, we had checked into Ennar Cave House in Nevşehir and gone to sleep inside the rock. Morning made the change of landscape impossible to ignore. This chapter continues directly from Turkey Silk Road Overland Part 1, where the road carried us across Thrace, Istanbul, Bursa, the Phrygian Valley, and Ankara before setting us down in Cappadocia for the next phase.

It sounds dramatic, but in Cappadocia, walls are merely suggestions. Western and central Anatolia had been state buildings, bazaars, caravan routes, and broad avenues. This was something else entirely. The valleys looked carved rather than built. Towers of stone stood around like eroded chess pieces. It felt less like reaching another city and more like waking up inside a geology problem that people had solved by turning it into architecture.

Where Continents Shake Hands: Overlanding Turkey on the Silk Road | Part 1 - Thrace → Istanbul → Bosphorus → Gulf of İzmit → Bursa → Phrygian Valley → Ankara

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Tue, 24 Jun 2025 19:17:00 +0400

Standing in timeless silence at Gerdekkaya Anıtı, Çukurca / Seyitgazi, Eskişehir. This remarkable Phrygian rock-cut tomb, carved into the mountain centuries ago, tells a story of ancient civilizations in the heart of Turkey.

This chapter of our Silk Road journey, overlanding Turkey (map), continues directly from Sofia, Bulgaria to Turkey – Silk Road Overland, that subtle continental moment where Europe slowly loosens its grip and Anatolia leans in, folds its arms and says, “Fine. Now let’s talk Istanbul, Bursa, Koza Han and the greater Anatolia properly.”

Türkiye was not new to us. We had visited Istanbul and Pamukkale-Hierapolis by airplane earlier, as well as crossed the Bosporus westwards overland, tracing the Black Sea coast from Georgia and slipping into Greece, a route we documented in Overlanding Asia to Europe – Georgia to Greece. That earlier crossing left us with one of the most durable souvenirs we have ever acquired on the road: a Turkish HGS toll tag, purchased from a PTT (pronounced paa-taa-taa) office in Arhavi, still clinging loyally to Shehzadi’s windscreen like a Ottoman visa that refuses to acknowledge time.

This time, however, the intent was different. We were not passing through Turkey as a logistical necessity. We were returning to it deliberately, retracing routes that humanity itself has rehearsed for thousands of years. Anatolia does not appreciate haste. It has waited out empires far more confident than us. The landscape here feels like it's judging your timeline against its own geological clock, where millennia are measured in volcanic eruptions and civilizations are just temporary tenants.

Türkiye is not a country that exists merely as a destination. It exists as a process. Roads here are not shortcuts; they are habits, worn into the land by repetition so persistent that geography itself gave up resisting. Long before borders, passports and laminated vehicle documents, people crossed Anatolia because there was no other sensible option. If you wanted to move between Europe, the Caucasus, the Middle East and Central Asia, this land quietly stood in your way and said, “Through here.”

This is the first of two long chapters covering our Turkey overland segment of our quad-continental journey. Like the Silk Road, it unfolds slowly, layering meaning rather than racing for conclusions. Think of it as a conversation with the landscape rather than a checklist of sites - a dialogue conducted in kilometers, tea breaks and the occasional wrong turn that reveals something more interesting than the planned route.

Magical Sofia, Bulgaria and the journey on to Türkiye | Medieval Churches and Balkan Crossroads of the Silk Road

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Fri, 20 Jun 2025 20:14:00 +0400

"Drunken People Crossing" warning road sign near the UNESCO Boyana Church in Sofia, Bulgaria. A uniquely Balkan traffic sign that humorously reflects the region's vibrant nightlife and pragmatic approach to road safety near cultural heritage sites. This sign, while modern, stands in stark contrast to the ancient Thracian and Roman roads that once crossed this same land, where travelers might have been warned of mythical creatures like the samodivi (wood nymphs) or the zmey (dragons) of Slavic folklore instead of inebriated pedestrians.

Departing Belgrade on our eastward trajectory, we remain firmly planted on the ancient spine of the Silk Road, tracing the historic Niš–Sofia corridor. This isn't merely a scenic detour through the Balkans; it's one of Europe's great historical funnels, a geostrategic trough that has channeled the movement of civilizations, commerce, and conquering armies for over two millennia. Long before Romans laid their sturdy stones, this route was trodden by Thracian tribes—the fierce Getae and Odrysians—who established the first kingdoms in this region and buried their kings in magnificent tumuli filled with gold treasures now displayed in Sofia's museums. The Romans, with their characteristic efficiency, later christened it the Via Militaris, a military highway connecting Singidunum (Belgrade) with Constantinople (Istanbul). Today, modern engineering has laid asphalt over those old Roman stones, and the route is officially designated the E80, but the fundamental purpose remains unchanged: moving people and goods between Central Europe and Anatolia. The journey from Belgrade to Sofia covers approximately 390 kilometers, a distance that once took Roman legions weeks but now unfolds over a single day of driving, passing through the dramatic landscapes of southeastern Serbia and into the heart of Bulgaria.

Belgrade, Serbia → Niš, Serbia → Sofia, Bulgaria Along the Morava Corridor | Vagabond Couple Silk Road Overland

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Thu, 19 Jun 2025 21:37:00 +0400

Belgrade: Where Rivers Decide History

Church of Saint Sava, Belgrade, Serbia: Ayasofya-inspired Byzantine architecture and stunning soaring dome

Bosnia and Croatia to Serbia, onward to Bulgaria

Having driven Shehzad from Croatia and Bosnia into Serbia yesterday, we slept well in Belgrade at the Hotel Villa Bulevar, not too far from the Embassy of The State of Palestine Serbia.

That mattered more than it sounds.

Breakfast in Croatia, Lunch in Bosnia, Dinner in Serbia: Zagreb → Dubica → Belgrade

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Wed, 18 Jun 2025 21:00:00 +0400

Bridge on Una river between Croatia (right) and Bosnia & Herzegovina at Hrvatska Dubica-Kozarska Dubica Border Crossing

We had a comfortable night's sleep at Zagreb. The morning sun rose, golden light slipping between baroque spires and red-tiled rooftops. It was the kind of morning that practically demands a flaky pastry and strong coffee—which is exactly how we started our day, perched in a café off Tkalčićeva Street. Today was another legend, we overlanded three countries on our beloved Shehzadi (meaning "the Princess") and also paid our respects at profoundly somber memorials at a horrible Yugoslav concentration camp site.

🚐 Breakfast in Italy, Lunch in Slovenia, Dinner in Croatia | Venice → Valico di Sant’Andrea → Lake Bled → Ljubljana → Maribor → Obrežje border → Zagreb

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Wed, 18 Jun 2025 01:50:00 +0400

Bled Castle overlooking Lake Bled, Slovenia

The day started with a cappuccino in Venice, our spirits as high as the tide. Shehzadi, our trusty Toyota Tundra, and Chetak, the Odyssean Journey Toyota Hilux, were humming with anticipation. Today we would not just cross one, but two international borders — three countries, a shimmering lake, a wine-soaked sunset and at least six kinds of road trip snacks.

We were headed for Slovenia, then into Croatia, in one of the most charming cross-border days of our Silk Road expedition so far. The route was postcard-perfect: Venice → Valico di Sant’Andrea → Lake Bled → Ljubljana → Maribor → Obrežje border → Zagreb.

🚙 From Chandolin, Switzerland to Venice, Italy via Lake Como: Silk Road, Simplon Tunnel & Marco Polo’s Legacy (& Shehzadi's first international oil change)

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Tue, 17 Jun 2025 01:03:00 +0400

Luigi Bevilacqua Silk Weaving Mill, Venice, Italy

We woke up in the alpine calm of our campground near Chandolin, the birds chirping, the air so fresh it could probably be bottled and sold to stressed-out city folks. After a hearty breakfast (which may or may not have included a final farewell fondue), we bid adieu to the legacy of Ella Maillart, slung our packs into Shehzadi, our ever-reliable Toyota Tundra and hit the road with our fellow adventurers Odyssean Journey in Chetak, their Toyota Hilux Invincible-X.

Sierre, Switzerland

Our heading? Italy! But not the usual boring border crossing with passport stamps and yawns. Nope. We decided to ride through the belly of the Alps — literally — on the Autoverlad Brig-Iselle car train, rocketing through the legendary Simplon Tunnel like caffeinated hobbits in pickups.

From Lyon to Chandolin: Silk & the Silk Road's Ella Maillart Meet Mountain Mischief | France & Switzerland

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Sun, 15 Jun 2025 23:34:00 +0400

Chandolin, Switzerland

We broke camp at sunrise near Lyon, France, the sky just beginning to blush behind the mountains and the air sharp enough to wake even the sleepiest overlander. Today was the day we (a) visited the famous Silk Museum of Lyon, France and (b) traveled into Switzerland through Charlie Chaplin and Ella Maillart territory. The next chapter of our Silk Road expedition was calling and it came with silk artesans, alpine peaks, endless switchbacks and the promise of standing in the shadow of the Matterhorn and visiting the Chandolin home of legendary Swiss traveler Ella Maillart.

From Pyrenees to the Alps: Vagabond Convoy Rolls from Spain to Andorra & then into France

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Thu, 12 Jun 2025 22:56:00 +0400

Pont Séjourné viaduct, Fontpédrouse, Pyrénées-Orientales, France

We woke up in our pine-nestled campsite next to Spain's border with Andorra in the Pyrenees, to the sound of mountain silence, which is to say: the occasional bird call, a rustle of wind through pine needles, and Chetak squeaking every time Odyssean Journey rolled over in their rooftop tent. The air was crisp, almost alpine-sharp, and it smelled faintly of woodsmoke and damp moss. Shehzadi, our ever-stoic Toyota Tundra, had a light coat of dew. It was the kind of morning that feels borrowed from a postcard.

Coffee was brewed, stretches were stretched, and sleepy grins passed between our two overlanding couples. The Vagabond Couple and the Odyssean Journey were back on the road. Today’s mission: leave Spain behind (temporarily), enter the fairytale micronation of Andorra, fuel up, caffeinate, and then keep pushing toward France. Because that’s what you do on the Silk Road—follow the stories wherever they lead.

Spain to Andorra Silk Road Shenanigans: From Mar de Pulpí to the Pyrenees With Shehzadi, Chetak, and Two Mad Couples

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Wed, 11 Jun 2025 22:10:00 +0400

Pyrenees foothills at La Farga de Moles, Lleida, Spain - Andorra Border

Let’s get one thing straight—this wasn’t just another scenic road trip through Spain. This was a turbo‑charged Silk Road detour with two overlanding couples, two over‑equipped trucks, and about a hundred impulsive detours. Think: ancient Roman ruins, mountain witches, haunted walnut orchards, paella feuds, flat tires, and one suspiciously enthusiastic goat farmer. Buckle up, because this leg of the Vagabond Couple’s Silk Road ride went full Iberian madness.

Watch: The Pyrenees: Spain to Andorra

Tetouan & Ksar es-Seghir: Where the Earth Quakes, History Breathes and Couscous is Sublime (and our Ferry across Strait of Gibraltar back to Spain)

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Thu, 5 Jun 2025 01:18:00 +0400

Ksar es-Seghir

Fresh off the blue-drenched high of Chefchaouen, the Vagabond Couple and Shehzadi found themselves chasing a different rhythm. Gone were the dreamlike alleyways and chilled-out cats of the mountain town. The road (here's a map) pulled them westward, toward the sea, into lands that had seen too much and still stood proud: Tetouan, elegant and stubborn and Ksar es-Seghir, tiny but heavy with centuries.

Chefchaouen - Morocco's Stunning Blue Pearl

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Sun, 1 Jun 2025 21:41:00 +0400

Chefchaouen, Morocco

Somewhere between continents and centuries, history and myth, we rolled Shehzadi off the ferry deck in Tanger, waved at the sprawling skyline and felt it in our bones: this was no ordinary crossing. This was a threshold. A leap. A portal into Africa. And with that, the next chapter of our overland odyssey — one that began in the Caucasus mountains of Georgia, crossed the Bosporus into Europe and zigzagged west — began again (map). The Silk Road, in all its winding, tangled glory, was calling.

Chefchaouen, Morocco

Our return to Morocco (we arrived on a boring airplane the last time) was to be our launch point across the African leg of this ancient artery and no place better to start than Chefchaouen — the blue dream tucked into the mountains of the Rif. But first, we had to get there. And like all things with us Vagabonds, the journey matters just as much as the destination.

Chefchaouen, Morocco

Ibn Battuta’s Backyard: Exploring Tangier’s Living Silk Road History | Tanger, Morocco

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Sat, 31 May 2025 22:29:00 +0400

Natural map of Africa at sea-facing entrance to Hercules Caves in Tangier, Morocco

After days of rolling across continents with Shehzadi, our ever-faithful Toyota Tundra pickup, we finally rumbled into Tangier, Morocco, Africa disembarking a ferry from Algeciras, Spain, Europe under a lavender North African sunset. We'd made it. From Asia to Europe and now to Africa (here's a map). A quick night in a cozy hotel tucked between bustling streets and sea breezes gave us the reset we needed. Morning came with the scent of salt and coffee and we were ready to let Tangier tell its story.

Statue of Ibn Battuta at his Museum in Medina of Tangier, Morocco

From the Andalucian Coast of Spain to Tanger in Morocco across the Strait of Gibraltar — One Tundra, Two Dreamers, and a Whole Lot of “You Drove From Where?!”

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Fri, 30 May 2025 23:01:00 +0400

Rock of Gibraltar

🇬🇪➡️🇲🇦 The Vagabond Couple: From the Black Sea to the Strait of Gibraltar — One Tundra, Two Dreamers, and a Whole Lot of “You Drove From Where?!” 🚗🌍

This leg of our trans-continental Asia-Europe-Africa road trip (MAP) continues from us overlanding to Spain from Georgia (see From Greece to Spain (via Italy): Our Grand European Road & Ferry Journey) and takes us from the Andalusian coast to the gates of Africa — with Shehzadi, our trusty Toyota Tundra with Georgian plates (yes, Georgia the country on the Black Sea), handling every curve, checkpoint, and curious stare like a champ.

From Greece to Spain (via Italy): Our Grand European Road & Ferry Journey

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Sun, 25 May 2025 23:29:00 +0400

Igoumenitsa Ferry Terminal, Greece

Buckle up, fellow vagabonds and armchair adventurers! We recently embarked on a rather ambitious (some might say "bonkers") cross-continental dashcam odyssey (MAP), taking us from the sun-drenched shores of Greece via a detour into North Macedonia & Skopje (see 🚙 From Greece to North Macedonia and Back: Skopje Adventures in Shehzadi! 🇬🇷➡️🇲🇰➡️🇬🇷), all the way to the vibrant landscapes of Spain, with a delightful (and slightly chaotic) pit stop in Italy. This wasn't just a trip; it was a testament to our enduring love for ferries, questionable navigation, and the sheer joy of watching Europe whiz by from the comfort of our… well, dashcam!

From Greece to North Macedonia and Back: Skopje Adventures in Shehzadi

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Thu, 22 May 2025 00:11:00 +0400

Statue of Mother Teresa in front of her Memorial House in Skopje, North Macedonia

🚙 From Greece to North Macedonia and Back: Skopje Adventures in Shehzadi! 🇬🇷➡️🇲🇰➡️🇬🇷

Join us — The Vagabond Couple — as we load up our trusty Toyota Tundra, Shehzadi, and set off on another overland escapade (MAP)! This time, we roll out from sunny Greece (see Georgia, Turkey, Greece into North Macedonia: Black Sea Dreams & Bosporus Crossings - Our Overland Journey from Asia to Europe), glide effortlessly across the Evzoni–Bogorodica border (seriously, it was smoother than Greek olive oil), and cruise into the heart of North Macedonia — the capital city of Skopje!

Georgia, Turkey, Greece into North Macedonia: Black Sea Dreams & Bosporus Crossings - Our Overland Journey from Asia to Europe

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Mon, 19 May 2025 22:59:00 +0400

Niki Greek Border Station, Greece

After months of dreaming, mapping, wrenching, and prepping, the Vagabond Couple finally rolled out of their cozy little home in Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia, with Shehzadi, our trusty Toyota Tundra, growling eagerly under them. The sky was that perfect Georgian blue, the crisp morning air tinged with the scent of pine and the promise of the unknown. We were heading west — toward Europe, toward Africa, toward everything (MAP). This was more than a road trip; this was a transcontinental Silk Road pilgrimage on four wheels, continuing our Silk Road expedition into Turkmenistan.

Watch: Route map - Georgia > Turkey > Greece > North-Macedonia > Italy > Spain > Morocco > Back to Spain

Turkmenistan Summarized: Jähennem Derwezesi (Derweze / Darvaza - Door to Hell), Marble Dreams, Iconic Silk Road Caravanserais & Ancient Canyons

noreply@blogger.com (The Vagabond Couple) — Thu, 24 Apr 2025 12:57:00 +0400

A summary of the five-episode blog series marking the beginning of The Vagabond Couple's Silk Road Overland Odyssey

Askhab Mausoleum, Merv, Turkmenistan

Hello, fellow explorers! We’re the Vagabond Couple, and this is the story of our journey across one of the world’s most mysterious and magnificent countries—Turkmenistan. This adventure, fully documented in the 5-part blog series linked below, is just the first chapter in our worldwide mission: to retrace the ancient Silk Road by land, from the shores of Africa all the way to the heart of Asia. We follow the old camel and horse trade routes, seeking the living cultures, epic histories, and breathtaking geography that continues to shape our world.

Turkmenistan was our starting block, a place where the Silk Road’s legacy is written in desert stone and eternal fire. We drove every mile of it, and you can see our entire overlanding route right here: Vagabond Couple Turkmenistan Overland Road Trip. Now, let us tell you about the highlights.