by car through asia

hi,

Me and my mate want to drive from europe to oz next year. we'll plan
the exact route in 9 months orso. Roughly the route as now is
somethinglike turkey, iran, iraq(hopefully,)afganistan(hopefully), and
then far east to indonesia.

my question is can anyone tell me in what condition the roads are
(assuming we take more or less the bigger roads) the petrol supplies
and maybe suggestions for a route, sights tips etc.

thanx

the roads will be the least of your problems going through some of those
countries. get info from your foreign affairs bureau before you go - could
be more of an exciting trip than you planned for!

"ikkuh" wrote in message
om...
hi,

Me and my mate want to drive from europe to oz next year. we'll plan
the exact route in 9 months orso. Roughly the route as now is
somethinglike turkey, iran, iraq(hopefully,)afganistan(hopefully), and
then far east to indonesia.

my question is can anyone tell me in what condition the roads are
(assuming we take more or less the bigger roads) the petrol supplies
and maybe suggestions for a route, sights tips etc.

thanx

ikkuh wrote:
Me and my mate want to drive from europe to oz next year. we'll plan
the exact route in 9 months orso. Roughly the route as now is
somethinglike turkey, iran, iraq(hopefully,)afganistan(hopefully), and
then far east to indonesia.

my question is can anyone tell me in what condition the roads are
(assuming we take more or less the bigger roads) the petrol supplies
and maybe suggestions for a route, sights tips etc.

The roads get pretty rough in eastern Turkey - either you go slow, you know
them really well, or you kill your suspension. I can only imagine Iran and
especially Afghanistan are no better.

Also, I didn't think it was possible to get by car from India to Thailand,
due to the absolute impassability of Burma and relative intransigence of
China.

miguel
--
Hit The Road! Photos and tales from around the world: http://travel.u.nu

(ikkuh) wrote in message . com...
hi,

Me and my mate want to drive from europe to oz next year. we'll plan
the exact route in 9 months orso. Roughly the route as now is
somethinglike turkey, iran, iraq(hopefully,)afganistan(hopefully), and
then far east to indonesia.

my question is can anyone tell me in what condition the roads are
(assuming we take more or less the bigger roads) the petrol supplies
and maybe suggestions for a route, sights tips etc.

thanx

here's a link which will be of help, its motorcycle centric but covers
what you want to know
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/
Cheers from west oz

Miguel Cruz wrote in message ...
ikkuh wrote:
Me and my mate want to drive from europe to oz next year. we'll plan
the exact route in 9 months orso. Roughly the route as now is
somethinglike turkey, iran, iraq(hopefully,)afganistan(hopefully), and
then far east to indonesia.

my question is can anyone tell me in what condition the roads are
(assuming we take more or less the bigger roads) the petrol supplies
and maybe suggestions for a route, sights tips etc.

The roads get pretty rough in eastern Turkey - either you go slow, you know
them really well, or you kill your suspension. I can only imagine Iran and
especially Afghanistan are no better.

Also, I didn't think it was possible to get by car from India to Thailand,
due to the absolute impassability of Burma and relative intransigence of
China.

Why not go from Turkey to Iran to Pakistan to India, so you don't have
to enter Afghanistan or Iraq at all?

There are buses from Varanasi (India) to Kathmandu (Nepal), so you can
get at least that far by road. From Kathmandu, you might be able to
drive into Tibet. Then go from China to Laos to Thailand to Malaysia.
Then you'll have to figure out some way to get the car to Indonesia
(car ferry?), and then how to get it to Australia.

There are several problems with driving this route:

-The Himalayas and much of Southeast Asia have some of the worst roads
in the world, and they're very unsafe even for locals who know the
route.

-Would you be able to repair the vehicle yourself if you broke down
somewhere in the mountains far from any city? How would you get help
if that happened?

-Many nations are very strict on the rules for bringing cars in and
out, and you could easily find yourself in a bureaucratic nightmare.
How would you respond if an Iranian or Laotian border official refused
to let you take the car out of the country because he claimed you lack
the proper permit?

-Some of the countries you'd need to pass through are somewhat
unstable. You might be able to get yourself out quickly if the
situation deteriorated, but how would you get the car out?

-Even in most European or East Asian cities cars are a major
liability. In most Third World cities, they're worse than useless.
How would you deal with traffic that takes hours to go anywhere, and
having to find a safe place for the car every night or any time you
wanted to leave it?

My advice: sell or ship the car, and make the trip without it.

get at least that far by road. From Kathmandu, you might be able to
drive into Tibet. Then go from China to Laos to Thailand to Malaysia.

AFAIK, it is forbidden for non-Chinese to drive a car in China. It is
authorized only in several cities.

Pawel

On Mon, 19 Apr 2004 18:24:15 +0200, the renowned Pawel Hadam
wrote:

get at least that far by road. From Kathmandu, you might be able to
drive into Tibet. Then go from China to Laos to Thailand to Malaysia.

AFAIK, it is forbidden for non-Chinese to drive a car in China. It is
authorized only in several cities.

Pawel

I think you have to be a Chinese resident, with the appropriate
papers.

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany
--
"it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward"
Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com

"ikkuh" wrote in message
om...
hi,

Me and my mate want to drive from europe to oz next year. we'll plan
the exact route in 9 months orso. Roughly the route as now is
somethinglike turkey, iran, iraq(hopefully,)afganistan(hopefully), and
then far east to indonesia.


Don't they have any news sources where you live? Maybe you can put a sign
on your car as you drive thru Iraq ("I am on my way to Oz, don't shoot") Or
maybe a map of the world?

my question is can anyone tell me in what condition the roads are
(assuming we take more or less the bigger roads) the petrol supplies
and maybe suggestions for a route, sights tips etc.

thanx

Nice dream - impossible task!



"ikkuh" wrote in message
om...
hi,

Me and my mate want to drive from europe to oz next year. we'll plan
the exact route in 9 months orso. Roughly the route as now is
somethinglike turkey, iran, iraq(hopefully,)afganistan(hopefully), and
then far east to indonesia.

my question is can anyone tell me in what condition the roads are
(assuming we take more or less the bigger roads) the petrol supplies
and maybe suggestions for a route, sights tips etc.

thanx