Amman: The Award Ceremony

After driving about 6.000 km from Germany to Jordan, we knew what to do: thoroughly explore the country! We saw Wadi Rum and thought of Laurence of Arabia, we bathed in the Red Sea in Aqaba, and, the absolute highlight, visited the antique town of Petra (another UNESCO world heritage site, of course).

After our tour of Jordan we met our friends and sponsors of QuestNet in Amman. They presented us with an unforgettable welcome.

The long-awaited award ceremony:

In the presence of Her Royal Highness, Princess Basma bint Talal, all participants of the Allgäu-Orient Rallye gathered in the Hotel Le Royal Amman. Our sponsor QuestNet had had the great idea to make an extra donation: For every kilometer driven by us, they gave 1 US$ for the good cause. So the Princess gladly received a cheque with the nice sum of 6.485 US$!

We are proud to have finished fourth. Unfortunately, we did not win the first prize, a camel. (But what would we have done with a living camel, anyway.) It is a little like the Olympic Creed: "The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well." We did fight well, it was a great adventure, we got to know different countries and their people, and we all grew a little stronger by having made a crazy dream come true, and by experiencing true team spirit. Many thanks to our sponsor QuestNet. Without your effort, we would not have been able to make it.

Day 11: From Damascus to Jordan

The last day of the rallye! We took an early start and plunged into Damascus' busy traffic. Today we were allowed to use the motorway (after back roads for the last 10 days…) to drive to the border. Leaving Syria was much easier than entering the country. It took us only 1.5 hours and six stops for formalities and fees. Enterning Jordan was really easy: The rallye's organisation committe had sent helping hands to deal with customs. A nice "present" awaited us, too: Franziska, Friedrich's wife, joins us for the remaining days in Jordan.

The assignment of the day was the "desert test": Driving 2 km on dry clay, turning around a parked BMW, and then driving the figure of an "8" on the way back – all as fast as possible. This was quite a challenge, and rather risky, with three cars in a row and lots of dust limiting our sight. Consequently, some of the other teams' cars suffered considerably. Saab and Ford survived, but the Mercedes' accelerator cable broken - - thanks to Till's "do-it-yourself-mechanics" book, we managed to identify the damage and successfully fix it.

After the "desert test", we handed over to the rallye's organisation committee our log book and the things we had to bring along from Germany: A big box of children's clothes for an orphanage, a hearing aid, and the lilttle potted tree that will be planted on the grounds of the cheese dairy. Now we had to drive another 60km on rocky ground to reach the camp in Al Azraq where we spend the night. Luckily, we arrived without "injuring" any of the cars. Not all teams had been that lucky, having severly collided with big boulders or suffering broken windows from the stones local children threw at the cars. Now that the rallye is over, we can't wait to learn the final results – but we have to be patient until Sunday night when the winner of the rallye will be officially announced. Until then, we are going to explore the beauty of Jordan: Wadi Rum, Aqaba, Petra, Shona, Amman…

Day 10: From Palmyra to Damascus

We spent a very relaxing morning in Palmyra, visiting the antique ruins and the beautiful gardens. The Mercedes had an empty battery, but this was only a minor issue, compared to yesterday's Ford adventure.

Today's route was a rather short distance with only 250 km to drive to Damascus. In the Old Town of Damascus, we experienced a great welcome: About 60 QuestNet Independent Representatives had gathered there and greeted us enthusiastically. It felt great to meet so many friends! The afternoon and evening was dedicated to explore the fascinating city. (Again, a UNESCO World Heritage site!)

Day 9: From Krak des Chevaliers to Palmyra

In the morning we explored the most fascinating Crusader fortress of Krak des Chevaliers. Another item on our tour's list of Unesco World Heritage sites, and so well worth the visit. On our way to Palmyra we watched the landscape change significantly: First cornfields, then olive groves, and eventually rocky desert.

In Palmyra, while looking for Kathan Garden where the next special assignment awaited us, the unthinkable happend: There was a small cracking sound, and the Ford didn't move any more. The clutch has broken. Marcus and Bernhard had barely had time to think what to do when a very helpful passer-by approached them. He called a mechanic who arrived very soon on the spot and towed the Ford to his workshop. The rest of our team followed. After a thorough search it turned out the broken part was a deflexion roller made of plastic. Another mechanic took the piece and went away with it. We didn't quite know what was going on but we happily waited in front of the garage, drinking tea and enjoying ourselves. After four hours the miracle was completed: The mechanics had milled an identical piece out of aluminium! The Ford now runs even smoother than before.






The exitement of the day was topped by the arrival of about 20 QuestNet Representatives who had come over from Damascus. We drove to the antique ruins of Palmyra for a beautiful foto shooting session which was great fun. Many thanks for the visit to our friends - we really appreciate it!!

Day 8: From Aleppo to Krak des Chevaliers

In the morning we visited Aleppo's fortress and bazaar before heading off to Krak des Chevaliers. After 4 hours of driving on narrow windig roads, along the last heaps of this winter's snow, we reached the medieval military castle of Krak des Chevaliers. The view from the castle hill is magnificent. Right next to the fortress we found a little hotel, managed by a very friendly landlord, who offered us accomodation within our budget (10 EUR per night). That evening, after a nice dinner, we went to bed early.

Day 7: From Göreme to Aleppo

Today we drove from Cappadocia towards Syria. The landscape is just beautiful, with snow-covered mountain tops everywhere. Around 17:30 we arrived at the border between Turky and Syria in Bab al Hava. Customs formalities took us about 3.5 hours - rather tiresome, but shorter than expected, actually. We learned that we are the 2nd of all teams to enter Syria! Quite proud of ourselves we are for this achievement.

In Aleppo, about 60 km into the country, we stopped for the night. The bustling oriental city has about 1.7 mio. inhabitants and is thus even bigger than Damaskus. Aleppo is considered one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world, and the old city of Aleppo is listed as World Heritage site according to the UN standards - after Göreme National Park already the second World Heritage site we visited on our tour.

Day 6: From Istanbul to Göreme

After the relaxing day in Istanbul we drove to Ankara. Traffic was a real challenge for us, requiring manoeuvres we are not used to from driving in "orderly" Germany. In Ankara, the special assignment for all the teams was a challenge, too: To have a picture taken of the whole team on step 17 of Anitkabir (Atatürk's mausoleum) is not as easy as it sounds.....

On we went to Cappadocia. In the evening, after 12 hours of driving, we reached the camping site in Göreme. What a beautiful sight! The stunning landscape with its bizarre "fairy chimney" rock formations was dipped in the golden light of the sunset. Göreme National Park (Göreme Milli Parklar in Turkish) is rightly on the Unesco World Heritage List! After errecting our tents, we enjoyed a delicious dinner of local specialities, prepared by the team's gifted cooks.