Have you ever imaged yourself driving all the way through European towns, Russian border and Mongolian grassland just like being on a romantic trip in the movie? Last year, Frogfree (Ming-Huang Yang), Max (You-Zhi Luo) and Jia-Ying Wu were coincidentally attracted by videos on the Internet. However, instead of just imagining, they did sign up for the Mongol Rally without hesitation! Three middle-aged men teamed up “TaiwanWay” and drove a ten-yeared vintage car across 16000km of Eurasia. At last, they successfully crossed the finish line! We invited them to the first Gamania Conference to share with Gamanians their experiences during the adventure.
Clips of amazing video records and humorous talks get everyone’s travel bug itching, eager for one’s own adventure! Mongol Rally has been hold for ten years to date. Originally, two British men in Prague suddenly had an idea and agreed on driving as far as possible. And today, this become an annual event in which participants travel 16000km from England to Mongol. Meanwhile, teams on the Rally are asked to raise a minimum of £1000 for charity which will be donated along with their rally vehicles to local charitable organizations in Mongol. The Rally rules are quite simple: Participants shall drive a car used over ten years with an engine of 1200c.c. or less and travel from London, England to Ulaanbaatar, Mongol within the required period. Route and schedule are completely up to Rally teams. The priority is to have fun and enjoy the adventure!
Artistically and culturally prosperous Europe is TaiwanWay’s first station. To them, it is also the most impressive one. Frogfree said, “Europe is a great place, incredibly beautiful. Every corner is just like what we see on a postcard, ” In addition to breathtaking wonders like Cologne Cathedral, Berlin Wall and Giethoorn, Netherlands, human-interest stories all along the way are also invaluable. For example, one day they woke up in their accommodation and found a cheering note left by a Taiwanese; they met a middle-aged Taiwanese who has no deposit but lives freely and happily in Denmark; they visited Christchurch, England and learned about its utopian autonomy system. Every experience is special, encouraging them to think from various perspectives.
When they arrived in Russia and Mongol, due to the language barrier and poor condition of the car, every minor problem became major challenge! For example, they failed to exchange the money when they entered border towns because the locals were unwilling to trust them; they had to use body languages to communicate when the car broke down as the result of having no common language. Though the trip became more and more tough, the three still enjoyed the process by asking beautiful girls for directions or creating new methods of taking selfies. At the end of the journey, seeing other teams with their tires missing, hoods missing or exhaust pipe broken still proud of themselves, they fully understood the differences in attitudes towards life between ethnics. ” Max said.