British couple buys used car online for £500 and drives across 16 countries in 127 days.
According to a report by the UK's Daily Mail on December 15, a British couple—Clive, 54, and Gillian Raven, 53, from Sheffield—drove a Triumph 1300 car they bought online for £500 (about RMB 4,900), spending 127 days covering 17,342 miles (approximately 28,000 kilometers) across 16 countries, completing an amazing road trip.
The couple set off from their hometown of Sheffield, passing through France, Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Russia, Mongolia, China, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Singapore, before returning home via India in November. During their journey, the pair followed a map, took turns driving, and worked in perfect harmony, camping overnight or staying at motels.
The couple gained a lot from the trip—they admired the majestic Kremlin in Moscow, experienced the grandeur of the Terracotta Army in Xi'an, China, and enjoyed a delicious whole roasted lamb at a local Mongolian family’s home. However, their journey wasn’t without challenges. Clive said that many unfamiliar terrains left them in quite difficult situations. While crossing the Gobi Desert, the high temperatures caused fuel to continuously evaporate, forcing Clive to get out several times to repair the car’s fuel tank.
Reflecting on the trip, Clive said, “We’ve been on holiday to Australia and Thailand before, but never really had the freedom we wanted. This road trip has been incredibly exciting for both my wife and me because we could drive anywhere, without any restrictions. Many people doubted that we could complete such a long journey in an old car, but we proved them wrong!” The couple plans to embark on a similar adventure in 2014, hoping to raise funds for charity through their travels.