To ‘Do Europe’ on the cheap, in those days, meant frugally moving about relying on Frommer’s “Europe on $5 a Day” as a guide to moving and learning about the local cultures, food, history, art and societies. Staying in “Youth Hostels” for a few cents a night, eating often great food in small establishments and kiosks was a good way to expand one’s palate and make new friends. The big hotels and expensive places were best left to those who could afford such, but they usually made an imprint on the local gentry for their demands and manners. The ‘Ugly American’ was not a myth.

But, even then, you could drive on a continuous path that would take you from anywhere in Europe, through the heart of the continent, on thru the Balkans and into the long road that led you to Istanbul and beyond to Anatolia (Turkey), Asia Minor, and all the way to India through Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In 1974 we were able to take such a road. It gave us an adventure that is almost impossible to do today. By the end of the Overland to India journey and back to Europe, a total of over 22 thousand miles were driven. Think of this, the earth’s circumference is a little over 24 thousand miles! This does not include the distance covered in the trek around India itself. Over a year in time was spent on the road.

We Started in London, where we bought a used Volkswagen minivan in the Earl’s Court area from a hustling, cranky young Brit that could give Roy (from Ted Lasso) lessons in the use of the ‘F‘ word. He refurbished and converted used VW minivans that he bought from the Dutch Post Office into small campers. For $1500.00 we got a reliable vehicle that survived the trek from England to India and back.

We, (myself, my wife Cheryl and her sister Jane), crossed the English Channel via hydrofoil, then drove slightly South along the northern coast of France and the Iberian Peninsula toward San Sebastian and Pamplona for the Fiesta de San Fermín and the Running of the Bulls, then due south through Spain, reaching the Mediterranean and then driving north and east along the Costa Del Sol, north-east across Italy by way of Venice and continuing eastward along the Adriatic coast, into the Balkan region crossing Macedonia and eventually Turkey, ending in Istanbul.

Bridge connecting European Continent with Asia Minor

Traffic jams even then

View of Mount Ararat from the Turkey-Iran border

Crossing the, then new, bridge that connects the European side of the city over the Bosphorus to the Asia Minor side put us in an entirely new environment. The fauna and flora started to look slightly different than what we were used to in our European travels, water buffalo became more prevalent. The long drive across Turkey’s Anatolian region into Asia Minor and Iran, skirting Afghanistan and along the valleys that make up the Khyber Pass into Pakistan, puts you at the beginning of the “Grand Trunk Road” which connects all of Northern India.

By this point we had picked up some traveling companions. Six German trippers like ourselves blended with us in Kabul, over one of our Pudding Shop meals on Chicken Street. A caravan of three minibuses gave us more security, it also provided a camaraderie that would resurface again during the 2010’s.

A small detour into the Punjab, with a stop at Srinagar’s Lake Dal, where our group took residency for a week in one of the houseboats for rent. The “New Golden Hind” was a welcome relief from being constantly on the road to travelers like us.

Restarting our journey east, including a riotous invasion of the Agarwal family in Kanpur at 11 pm on a Friday evening, unannounced! Imagine a knock on your door at that late in the night from someone whom one of your brothers may or may not have mentioned in a letter, accompanied by eight other characters. This served a delightful introduction to the Indian hospitality that became a familiar theme during the 11-month stay I would experience.

I had briefly met Vasant Agarwal in LA through one of my closest friends who thought Vasant and I would enjoy playing tennis together. We did and we did. At that time Vasant was getting his Masters in Audio Engineering from UCLA. He would later work on the acoustics and sound reinforcement during the renovation of Royce Hall in the 1970s and also would provide the audio mixing for Roger Altman’s “Nashville” film. His two brothers and their family welcomed us, all nine, with open arms and proceeded to make a party of the affair which lasted well into the morning. A brief stay with the Agarwals and our caravan headed east, on to our ultimate destination Varanasi.

Along the way we made short visits in old and New Delhi and Agra. Arriving late in the evening at Agra gave us the opportunity to ‘camp’ our vans at the entrance to the grounds of the Taj Mahal. The following morning, early, before the Taj grounds opened to the public, I had an experience not to be forgotten. Still in my head is a comic memory of taking a ‘shower’ in the entrance gate, using the faucets provided to guests for symbolic cleansing before entering the grounds.

Seeing this magnificent building and grounds as morning breaks and the sun rises is worth the time and expense, even now.

A short stay in Varanasi, culminated by a grand banquet at Varanasi University for over 200 guests all seated lotus style on the ground (one of our German friends had been invited by one of the University professors during a teaching post in Germany).

The caravan split up after that. Cheryl and I made our way back to Delhi as she had to get back to LA as soon as possible. She had been hired by the LA school district as an incoming teacher prior to our leaving. She would embark in a remarkable career of 35 years for the district, all in special education. She would be officially recognized as Teacher Of The Year by the city of Los Angeles in the 1983-84 academic year for her efforts.

Jane went with our German pals toward Nepal, but had to turn back due to road closures. She stayed in Delhi for a few days before departing to London, where she would begin a successful career in Public Relations and Marketing, mostly with the music industry here in Los Angeles.

I stayed in Delhi to work on my project. The plan was to stay a couple of months then make my way back to Europe, sell the van and come home…. Things didn’t quite work out that way. And that’s a story for another day.

Almost 8 months later after arriving in India, I would begin the long drive back alone. I would eventually make my way back to Paris where I stayed for 4 months. The tale of these travels, and travails, will be forthcoming in future postings.

The road...

A Photo Reminiscence