Akis Temperidis | Vula Netou | The World Offroad

Akis Temperidis | Vula Netou | The World Offroad

For many people, going around the world seems unreal and impossible. For Akis Temperidis and Voula Netou it was a lifelong dream and of course they made it happen!

They are the travelers of our planet, they are the Greeks who went around the world in 1,234 days and passing through 67 countries on five continents, starting from Europe around Africa and from Greece again to Asia: in the Middle East, the South and Southeast Asia, from there to Australia, North America, South America and then back to Europe in a Land Rover Discovery. We caught up with Akis and asked him a few things about his venture.

Europe route (in approx.)

Greece, Italy, France, Spain (all of Europe 6,898 km, 92 days from Greece to Spain)

Why should you take a trip around the world? | Akis Temperidis | TEDxAlexandroupolis

He was born in Thessaloniki although he calls himself a citizen of the world. He travelled a lot since I was young. He always loved cars, motorcycles, adventure sports, writing and photography. He has driven and raced the best cars and bikes as well as he has flown on helicopters for radio reports.

He is lucky to have met and interviewed inspiring people – astronauts, F1 drivers, car designers and olympic medalists. He fulfilled his ultimate dream, to travel around the world with his wife in a Land Rover.

Now he is back in Europe with his wife Vula and their daughter Anastasia having all settled in Emilia Romagna, Italy, the Mecca of super cars, Lambrusco wine and parmesan cheese. Currently he works on a new book, writes articles for several media around the world, works as a photographer in car racing and is a consultant of Maserati press office.

You’ve gone around the world in a car. Could you tell us your most beautiful experiences from this route?

The most interesting thing is that even our worst moments have remained as beautiful – rather as powerful – in the subconscious.

I would have to write a book to capture the most beautiful moments of 1234 days of travel – something I am not qualified to do.

The images, the landscapes, the people, the routes are a blur in my mind, but the same moments always come to me: the first crossing of the Sahara, the arrival in Tierra del Fuego in winter or in Cape Town, our days with tribes like the Hajabe in Tanzania or the Kalasha in the depths of Pakistan, the lonely kilometers in the outback of Australia but also in the Atacama desert or our failed ascent to 6,100 meters in the Andes.

The most interesting thing is that even our worst moments have remained as beautiful – rather as powerful – in the subconscious.

4 WHEELS magazine

The most influential and best selling car magazine in Greece has been the first and major sponsor of our expedition around the world … Publications in the magazine 4TROCHOI by Akis Temperidis which covered most of the expenses of the route

The Middle East Route (in approx.)

Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan (all of Asia 40,367 km, 338 days from Jordan to Vietnam)

Photo of Akis Temperidis and Voula Netou from Isfahan, Iran

And as Akis Temperidis himself writes about this particular image

Easter 2008 in Isfahan, Iran. We were in the company of two families from Sweden and on Sunday we had a picnic in the city’s central park while the boys played ball and the girls sang their stromatsada on the grass.

India and Nepal route (approx.)

India, Nepal (all of Asia 40,367 km, 338 days from Jordan to Vietnam)

Which country was the most welcoming and which country left you with the worst impression?

The World Off Road, Mauritania

The most hospitable country – and I say this with absolute confidence – was for us Iran, and then Turkey, Syria (and yet!), Pakistan and then Southeast Asia, that is, Thailand or Indonesia.

The strange thing is that the most explosive geopolitical region of the planet, namely the Middle East, has given us the most beautiful people and the most hospitable.

On the other hand, the country that left us with the worst impressions? I can’t remember any. But in order not to avoid the question to say that India is the land of extremes, it can offer you the worst as well as the best memories.

Overlander 4WD Magazine

Our expedition was front page story at the top 4×4 magazine of Australia in December 2009 …

We had a fantastic partnership with Overlander 4WD magazine in 2009 – 2010 after our track was introduced to the magazine’s director Trent Nikolic by Land Rover Australia PR. Trent Nikolic amazed with our photography material talked us into creating 6 articles in the magazine. We ended up writing 12 articles and covering 110 pages in the magazine

The Southeast Asia Route (in approx.)

Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos (All Asia 40,367 km, 338 days from Jordan to Vietnam)

Some beaches that left you speechless, and some landscapes that you particularly liked?

Although it is difficult as a Greek to get excited about beaches in general, I would say those of Zanzibar and then those of Belize in the Caribbean. And Pulau Perhentian in Malaysia.

Oh, and to the remote Togian Islands of Sulawesi in Indonesia, where I did one of the first and certainly best dives of my life. As for the landscapes, it’s too hard to single out any, so I’m throwing the most dramatic ones into a randomly ranked top 10:

Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia (Salar de Uyuni)
Torres del Paine, Patagonia (Chile) (Torres del Paine National Park)
Wadi Rum, Jordan
Chinguetti, Mauritania
Sossusvlei, Namibia (Sossusvlei)
Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania (Ngorongoro Crater)
Okavango Delta, Botswana

As the worst moment of their trip, they have recorded a traffic accident they had on a highway in the United States of America, when a driver crashed into them with his own vehicle, as a result of which Akis and Voula’s Land Rover Discovery was useless for about three months. Soon, however, their insurance company covered the damage to their vehicle as well as the costs of their stay in Houston, USA for as long as it took.

The East African route to Mozambique (in approx.)

Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique (all of Africa 54,549 km, 286 days from Egypt to Morocco)

Photo by Akis Temperidis from Lalibela, Ethiopia

And as Akis Temperidis himself writes about this particular image:
Of all the parts of the world here you may experience the most mystical, resurrection ceremony. An unbelieving, cynical man is telling you. That night I thought and felt a lot anyway!

The West African route to Morocco (approx.)

South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Congo, Congo D.R., Gabon, Cameron, Nigeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Senegal, Mauritania, Morocco (all of Africa 54,549 km, 286 days from Egypt to Morocco)

What are you doing now and what are your future plans?

At this time we are experiencing a cataclysmic change, as a family now with our 6-year-old daughter. 11 years after the start of the first trip, 8 after our return and 6 since we came to Italy (from Tanzania), we leave our home again and start living and traveling in an Iveco 4×4 camper.

From 90 sq. meters at 7.2.

While I continue to work as a freelance journalist and photographer – mainly as a media consultant at Maserati – we will travel first to Italy and Greece, for about six months, then all over Europe and North Africa, and from mid-2019 we aim for the Central Asia.

We’re off for a second round of the world but longer, slower, with no return date and with a child who will be going to school while we travel – I mean school the trip itself. That is a deep breath…

Wintertime Crete

The road to famous Samaria Gorge wintertime – La stradina verso il canyon di Samaria durante l’inverno

The route of North and Central America to Panama (approx.)

USA, Canada, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama (All America 49,278 km, 428 days from USA to Chile)

The World Off Road

You will find the page of Akis Temperidis and Voula Netou on the internet at the following address:

www.theworldoffroad.com
as well as on Facebook at: facebook.com/theworldoffroad/,
also on the YouTube channel: youtube.com/user/temperidis/

Akis Temberidis

Born in Thessaloniki, he has been a columnist and journalist for many years in the automotive field and in the magazines Auto Moto, 4Trohous, 2Trohoi, editor-in-chief of the 24-page insert “Epi Trocho”, Thessaloniki correspondent of the car insert of the newspaper “Ethnos”, radio-journalism on several radio stations such as Radio Observer, Antenna Thessaloniki 97.5, on Sky Thessaloniki (Radio Z, 89.4) on Radio Thessaloniki 94.5 and En Lefko 87.7 and partner of the Mega Wheels & Roads show …

Voula Netou

A graduate of the Higher School of Dance of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, she has worked as a dance teacher in many training schools and dance schools…

The South American route (in approx.)

Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil (All America 49,278 km, 428 days from USA to Chile)

The Oceania route (in approx.)

Australia, Fiji (all of Oceania 16,412 km, 90 days)

The countries visited in 1,234 days by Akis Temperidis & Voula Netou, 167,504 kilometers

Akis Temperidis and Voula Netou traveled in total to 67 countries around the world, covering 167,504 thousand kilometers in 1,234 days, of which 54,549 kilometers in the African continent, 40,367 thousand kilometers in the Asian continent (Middle East, South and Southeast Asia), 49,278 thousand kilometers in the Americas, 16,412 thousand kilometers in Oceania, 6,898 thousand kilometers in the European continent, burned 19,000 liters of gasoline, stopped 12 times for car service and changed tires 4 times.

Europe: Italy, France, Spain
Africa: Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya , Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt
Middle East and South Asia: Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Nepal, India
Southeast Asia: Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam
Oceania: Australia, Fiji
North and Central America: USA, Canada, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama
South America: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil

“We rarely sleep in a hotel or even in the houses of Greeks we met. We have slept several times in the desert in a tent, while for food, when we are not cooking in our jeep, it was hard to resist some delicacies, especially from Ethiopia”.

The world offroad Akis Temperidis- Vula Netou

Here are some videos at the bottom of the page from moments of Akis Temperidis and Voula Netou’s trip to Pakistan etc.