£2,000

At the Lotus Children’s Center

As mentioned before, The Mongol Rally rules stipulate that every participating team must convince their fans, friends and family to donate at least £1,000 to an officially sanctioned charity. As of a few minutes ago, we’ve now collected £2,153.25 in name of Ambulance To Mongolia for the Lotus Children’s Centre in Mongolia, which helps orphaned, abused, and abandoned children in Mongolia.

We are very grateful to all of you who have donated money to this cause.

Now having reached our own ambition of raising double the required amount for the children of Mongolia, we would like to direct your attention to the children of Tajikistan:

http://mongolia.to/tajikistan

This is Thomas’ pet project. The prospect of driving through Tajikistan in August has opened his eyes for the plight of a country forgotten by the world, and we in Ambulance To Mongolia have therefore made the Norwegian People’s Aid and their Mine clearing in Tajikistan project our own official charity. For those of you who haven’t already exhausted your resources by giving money to the children of Mongolia, here’s your chance to really make a difference the people of Tajikistan:

http://mongolia.to/donate

Who is Thomas?

What is your full name?
Thomas Svendsen Silseth


Where were you born?
Kristiansand (a medium-sized town in the south of Norway). Moved to Stavanger when I was around 11 years old.


When were you born?
1985 — Thus making me by far the youngest on this little field trip.


What did you study and where?
Political Science and History at NTNU Trondheim.


Whats you favorite spare time activities?
Playing computer games, arguing about politics and drinking, often in combination.


How do you know the other team members?
Well, I met Fredrik at a café in Trondheim when he worked here for Google, and Rico I met at our first planning session in Serbia.


What do you think of the other team members?
Fredrik is one of 3 people in the known universe who has the ability to make me appear shy and introvert. Rico is a man of dubious pastimes, involving bicycles and hills. This makes me deeply suspicious.


What do you bring to the team?
General knowledge about navigation (ie. getting lost), a rudimentary knowledge of the history and political scene of Central Asia and a huge Pith Helmet, as mentioned in a previous blog post.


What are your main strengths and weaknesses?
I am the guy with the stupid ideas, Rico and Fredrik are people who get things done. My main weakness is my general lack of gentlemanly behavior.


What kind of travels have you done before?
Mostly backpacking and traveling through Europe, nothing really spectacular, though I did on one occasion manage to get my self locked in the only castle on the Shetland Isles that still has a lockable gate. I have a plan about visiting every single European country before I turn 30, but this trip is my very first outside Europe.


How would you describe your driving skills?
My driving instructor claimed that she was never frighted when we drove together, horrified, but not frightened.


How would you describe your mechanical skills?
I have the enthusiasm of every boy everywhere, with tinkering. Lots of enthusiasm for puzzles, but lacking in any actual skill.


What would you most like to do on the adventure?
I really want to go to Tajikistan and see how NPA is making the world a better place. Except for that, I am just improvising.


What places are you looking most forward to?
Pretty much all of them. Some of the places we are going to have been populated for thousands of years, some of the greatest civilizations throughout history made their cities here, I can’t wait to have a peak at it all.


What is your biggest fear on this adventure?
Visa trouble, customs guards, secret police, rabies, malaria, corrupt civil service, dysentery, armed guards, minefields, shitty roads, poor plumbing, flat tires, snakes, scorpions, plane crash, Central Asian pop music and a heart gripping fear that there might not be bacon in all the countries we are going through!

Car Keys

This is how configuring a Volvo ignition key looks like.

When we bought the ambulance, it came with exactly one (1!) set of keys. We might be looking for adventure, but embarking on a journey around ⅓ of the world without a single spare key would be more like looking for disaster from my point-of-view.


Just because the laws of the universe stipulate that absolutely nothing is allowed to be really easy when one has far too many things that need to be done, it turns out that also getting more keys for a Volvo 965 ambulance really isn’t that simple. Remember that we chose this particular model to as much as possible avoid unnecessarily complicated electronics, and relish the fact that it nevertheless is modern and complicated enough to have an ignition key in which there is a microchip, that authenticates with the on-board electronics. If the chip isn’t authorized by the car, then the engine can’t be started.


Time to get professional help. One of the larger Volvo dealerships in town is the Häusermann Automobile AG, and they were ready to help out:


– Do you have the Vehicle Identification Number?
– Sure, it’s YV1…
– Hm, that’s a strange one. It’s not in our system. I’ll have to call Sweden.


A great start! But eventually the vehicle was properly identified and keys appeared, so today I drove the ambulance to them to get keys and car configured to learn to know and like each other. I’m getting increasingly fond of driving the ambulance around town, it never fails to attract attention, and even today at a larger Volvo dealership some guys felt compelled to walk out to take a closer look.


– I hope it is a normal Volvo under the hood!


Yes, it is, the data port was right where it was supposed to be, and the keys were properly configured in a few minutes.


That was the ignition keys, that. Now, this being an ambulance, it also has a full-length sliding ambulance cabin door for which there (of course!) is an entirely different key, and such keys turned out to be something with which the larger Volvo dealership had no possibility to help out at all:


– Full-length sliding ambulance cabin doors are not a standard Volvo accessory!
– Really?
– Really.
(… dramatic pause …)
– But it says Volvo on the key. Where else can I get spare keys?
(… requesting assistance from colleagues …)
– This is actually an absolutely normal key. Mister Minit can make a copy of it!


Wonderful! There even is a Mister Minit just next to the garage where we keep the ambulance parked. He does, however, turn out to be quite puzzled when I show him the key:


– This is a special Volvo key. You must talk with Volvo about it. I can’t help you.
– The guys at Volvo sent me here. They said it was a normal key. They said you could copy it.
(… dramatic pause …)

– Hm, let me have a closer look.

(… rummages around an immense collection of key blanks …)

– No, that’s a special key. I don’t have a blank for such a key. Talk to Volvo.

(… desperate pause …)

– I talked to Volvo. They can’t help me. They were certain that you’d be able to help me.

(… desperate pause …)

– Hm, let me have a closer look.

(… rummages around the immense collection of key blanks …)

– Aha! Look here! It’ll take 20 minutes and cost 98 CHF.

Today’s adventures took a little more than 3½ hours in total and cost 383 CHF, but for that we now have a total of three (ie. one each) full sets of keys to the ambulance. Hopefully the magic rule (that stipulates that if you’ve prepared for something, then it won’t happen) works also this time, for then all three sets of keys will arrive with us in Mongolia for the benefit of the recipient of the ambulance.

Now there only are 999 problems left to solve before we leave. Good Night!

T-Shirt

The t-shirt shop has opened:

http://mongolia.to/t-shirt

Show your support of Ambulance To Mongolia by buying a t-shirt (or hoodie, or rain jacket, or reflective vest) in our t-shirt shop! Many different models, colours and sizes for both men and women available. (The t-shirt in the photo above is the regular men’s classic white size L t-shirt test print.) All products are of high quality, with durable flex print that will have vibrant colours still after being machine washed many times. All t-shirts (and hoodies) are also available in more expensive Official Sponsor versions, that directly donate some 80 € to be used for financing the ambulance and the costs associated with it. Payment through all major credit and debit cards, PayPal or direct bank transfer. Shipping to all of Europe and North America.

Who is Fredrik?

Seeing as Fredrik is a busy man, I have taken it upon me to write both the questions and the answers, in the cases where I failed to find a good answer, I employed large quantities of artistic freedom. Enjoy! :)

What is your full name?

Carl Fredrik Roubert

Where were you born?

Fredrik was born in a suburb of Stockholm, the capital of Sweden.

When were you born?

1977

What did you study and where?

CS at LTH Lund, and 2 semesters at ETH Zürich, (something he will never fail to mention).

What are your favorite spare time activities?

As I know him, it’s been wine, women, song and a bit of computer programming, and he seems to enjoy travelling as well.

How do you know the other team members?

Fredrik met Thomas at a café in Trondheim when he just sat down at his table and introduced himself, thus starting one of the more entertaining nights out in Trondheim. And Fredrik and Rico work together for Google Zürich on computer thingies. Despite their best efforts, my knowledge of their work is only PowerPoint deep.

What do you think of the other team members?

He knows we are both insane, but in different ways.

What do you bring to the team?

Fredrik brings his charm, the by far best looks and diplomatic skills that can get us out of any trouble the two other’s skills might get us into.

What are your main strengths and weaknesses?

Fredrik is a social creature and can get things done. This skill set is essential to the team and far outweigh any other weaknesses he might posses.

What kind of travels have you done before?

Fredrik has been everywhere in the world and still has a fan club in Norway, that pine for his return, as well as drinking buddies spread throughout the world, from Colombia to Japan. He now intends to expand this group into Central Asia.

How would you describe your driving skills?

Fredrik is a highly skilled driver and I have cruised around with him around Zürich, as a consequence, he is also the Captain of our vessel.

How would you describe your mechanical skills?

Let’s just say that he is a quick learner, and that should suffice.

What would you most like to do on the adventure?

Fredrik mentioned some rather ambitious plans for extracurricular activities on our little road trip, one of the things is seeing the Neutrality Arch in Ashgabat.

What places are you looking most forward to?

All of them basically.

What is your biggest fear on this adventure?

Fredrik is impervious to fear and is a firm believer in his ability to fix any possible situation that might arise.

The Adventurists Department of Passing on Unusual Government Complications

About a week ago me and the chaps received a telegram from The Adventurists Department of Passing on Unusual Government Complications.

They had the pleasure of informing us of a small bureaucratic mishap. You see, originally we had decided to go from Azerbaijan, across the Caspian sea and then through Turkmenistan. Despite knowing that Turkmenistan is one of least friendly destinations in all of central Asia, a region noted in many a travelogue as an ideal holiday destination.

We were aware of this, but after procuring our trusted HMS Dreadnought and stacking up on pith helmets, it was decided that no obstacle was too large. That was of course before we were introduced to Azerbaijani–Turkmenistan border relations. To diagnose them as chilly is about the same as referring to the cold war as a bit of ruckus. To put it in other terms, they don’t appear to be on speaking terms. This it seems, also extends to their rules and regulations for crossing their respective borders.

Originally, we were told that the best we could get was a welcome, now please get the f!%#-out visa, otherwise known as a 5-day transit pass to lay people. This was to be given at the border, when we entered Turkmenbashi (yes, the previous president named one of the largest towns in Turkmenistan after himself — it’s that kind of country). Now, however, we have been informed by our good chums over at the Department of Passing on Unusual Government Complications, that Azerbaijan have changed their immigration laws. You now need a valid visa before you are allowed to get on the ferry to Turkmenbashi. Well, thank you very much. But as Churchill was so fond of saying, KBO. Unfazed by this minor setback, we have been informed of a number of possible solutions, one of them involves driving through Iran. (So for the first time in a few decades Iran might be part of a solution, who would have thought …) Another possible solution is the Turkmenistan embassy in Baku, noted for their service mindedness and for being open on Mondays and Fridays only. This is going to be great!

This sort of problem is exactly the reason why we decided on the Mongol Rally and if you are too worried about getting stuck for days on end in no-mans land or some random prison in Central Asia, don’t come, this is not the race for you, maybe you should consider a beach holiday in Spain?

Ahh, the joys of Central Asia. :)

Who is Rico?

To unveil the Mystery that is the Ambulance To Mongolia Team, or to answer the much asked question Who are these lunatics?, here follows the first of three blog posts about each team member. First out is Rico:

What is your full name?

Rico Pajarola

Where were you born?

Chur (small town in the south-east of Switzerland). Moved to Zürich at age 6 (or so, but that’s a complicated story).

When were you born?

1977

What did you study and where?

CS at ETH Zürich

What are you favorite spare time activities?

Going on trips like the Mongol Rally. ;)

How do you know the other team members?

Not really?

What do you think of the other team members?

Ask me again once I know you. ;)

What do you bring to the team?

Experience in getting lost in weird places.

What are your main strengths and weaknesses?

Patience (I think it's both a strength and a weakness).

What kind of travels have you done before?

Only counting “big” trips. InterRail in Europe. 2 months around (as in: along the coast of) Europe on a 125 cc motorcycle (and lots of other motoring trips, mostly in Italy, France, Spain and Portugal). A road trip through Spain. Hiking in Italy, Scotland, Bhutan. 3x Camino de Santiago: 2x walking the last ~600 km, 1x the whole way (2,500 km) from home on a bike. Biking in Tibet, Nepal, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, USA. And I just returned from a bike trip to Morocco.

How would you describe your driving skills?

<refuse to comment>

How would you describe your mechanical skills?

Can fix anything given enough duct tape.

What would you most like to do on the adventure?

If I knew that so precisely, I wouldn't have to go …

What places are you looking most forward to?

All of them! ;) I expect some of the highlights to be: Turkmenbashi, Samarkand, Pamir mountains, Taklamakan desert, Kashgar, Altai mountains, Gobi desert.

What is your biggest fear on this adventure?

Fear?