Day 7, seeing the sights of Kiev
After finally getting to our apartment after 1am and having to abandon Matilda in an alleyway, we're checking out Kiev today. Sardi is having a grand old time with the video camera so get ready for a popcorn and projector night when she returns. Karen has been struck down with a bad head cold for the first time in two years (...bad timing!!!) so has snaked off to try and collapse with some dignity in the air conditioned comfort of the internet cafe.
Annoyance of the day: Karen's, upon seeing photos from the start - that the posh London hairdresser really did cut her hair sooooo much shorter than the negotiated length!! And no amount of tugging on it is making it grow faster! Some days it's the trivial things that matter the most...
Day 6, L'viv, Ukraine - Kiev, Ukraine
Simply put - if today had been an episode from Channel 7's 'The Amazing Race', we would have been well and truly eliminated. We had a shocker.
We successfully drove from L'viv to Kiev and were extremely chuffed with ourselves that while The Desert Kings team, who we'd been tag-teaming with, had been pulled over and forced to pay bribes to the Police three times, we'd coasted past each time without being stopped (and had a lovely local truck driver by us a coffee along the way...)
Our luck ran out when we arrived in Kiev and had to meet a 'local friend of a friend', Vasily, at the train station - a simple instruction but not so much when your maps are in english and the signs are all in cyrillic. Two hours passed of racking up the 'asking people for directions' tally in the car and we eventually paid a taxi driver to let us follow him.
After finally reaching the train station and still being unable to find him, we resorted to using one of our emergency glow sticks which, it would be fair to say, made us look like we should be at an Australian Idol grand final rather than at a train station in the Ukraine. Oh well... onward and upward!
Vasily then took us to some random suburb where we were advised that as the office was closed, we needed to stand in the garden and pass our passports and a wad of local currency through an iron bar window in order to secure our accommodation for 2 nights. And so we did.
Will try and post more photos on the website soon...
K & S xx
Day 5, Krakow, Poland - L'viv, Ukraine
Aqua-planed in Matilda to the border today in some truly torrential rain.
Nearly caused an international incident at the border crossing as some Ukrainians refused to accept that Australia is not part of the EU!
Had to do one U-turn lap of honour between Immigration and Customs for failing to get the correct stamp, but we're sure that it was more for their amusement than official reasons.
Roads seriously deteriorated as soon as we crossed the border and still driving in heavy rain. Matilda almost got eaten by one pot-hole but she's still going strong. We also tested her out driving along tram tracks (...ok...so we were lost at the time.....) but she is still going strong.
Observation of the day: from Sardi, who reflected 'You know you really do feel like a bit of a celebrity driving around in this car - except when you're asleep in the passenger seat with your mouth open...'
Unresolved conversation topic for the day: Which Spice Girl was the first to go solo after they split up - Sporty Spice or Ginger Spice? NB: if you know the answer, please feel free to email us at teamemudraft@gmail.com - thanks!
Day 4, Krakow - Team Emu Draft rest day! Hurrah!
After a thoroughly whirl-wind start to the rally, the emus took a day off from driving to check out the gorgeous town of Krakow. The castle is stunning and even the public toilets were so attractive that Karen was madly photographing the flower beds and wall facades before she noticed the sign.
Met up with one of the spanish teams who started from Madrid and had to drive to Poland to collect their passports and some visas, so celebratory bevvies were in order.
Day 3, Klenova castle to Krakow Poland
Another long day of driving to reach Poland, our seventh country for the rally on just the third day - we really need to stop drinking so much red bull! Stuning driving through the south of Poland though.
The tally that we're keeping for asking people for directions is coming along strong, so too are our car karaoke singing voice.
Day 2, somewhere in France to Klenova castle, Czech Republic
A lesson in how not to start day 2 of the Mongol Rally - from France!
A day of driving through 5 countries in 15 hours of driving to get to the rally party at a castle in the Czech Republic, but we made it!
France - Belgium - Luxemborg - Germany - Czech Republic!
Driving on the motorways in a car with a gutless engine is not for the faint hearted but Matilda wasn't intimidated, and the reactions from those speeding past us in Sunday afternoon traffic kept our spirits up - and the Europeans entertained...
Heart-stopping moment of the day: when the Les Miserables tape (purchased for 50p from a London charity shop) got stuck in the cassette player and we thought we were going to be stuck listening to it all the way to Mongolia! No!!!!
Favourite observation of the day: from another rallier who pointed out, 'You know you're lost when you're asking for directions to a whole country, rather than a city or town...'
Day 1, London:
The start of the rally is finally here!!! Matilda looked resplendid in Hyde Park lined up next to over 200 other vehicles and decked out with emu paraphinalia, complete with a floral ironing board cable tied to the roof racks.
Plenty of last minute preparations including ironing other teams shirts in return for some assistance but it all came together.
Fantastic to see friends and past ralliers there wishing us well on our way - thanks again guys!
Got lost getting out of London - turns out the South Africans that we followed didn't know the way either! Our car tally for the no. of people we ask for directions along the way has officially kicked off! The first texta stroke is on the roof!
Quote of the day: from some randon person in the crowd who yelled out "Look, two girls doing the rally! I'll bet they get lost!" to which Karen yelled back "Of course we'll get lost! We're driving to Mongolia!!"