Konstantinos Mitsakis | Moto Explorer | Journalist | Photographer | Researcher

Konstantinos Mitsakis | Moto Explorer | Journalist | Photographer | Researcher

Konstantinos Mitsakis, well-known and accomplished travel columnist-photographer, has been a journalist in the Daily and Special Press for the last 26 years. Traveling in the saddle of a motorcycle, in the last 35 years he has visited 110 countries, covering 1,300,000 km on all five continents of the planet.

100 km before Hiroshima in Japan, as part of the Peace Road 2018 trip – Ancient Olympia – Hiroshima

The long-term travel experiences experienced by Kon/nos Mitsakis on the roads of the world (but also in Greece), he has captured in 12 elegant books, which represent the most complete travel “library” in Greece. For many Greek travelers, the writing work of Kon/nos Mitsakis was – and is – a source of inspiration and was the springboard for their travels.

In addition to his participation in various television and radio shows, Kon/nos Mitsakis also holds photo exhibitions and informative lectures – with travel content – ​​at educational institutions, cultural institutions, embassies of foreign countries and educational associations.

Books by the author Konstantinos Mitsakis

Konstantinos Mitsakis together with Olga Papadogianni are a couple of teachers who, traveling to places that mostly guarantee challenges, adversities, unprecedented emotions and contacts with the unknown, seek to realize the romantic dreams of adolescence.

Over time they morphed into an imperative of their mature life: to savor the flavor of life by traveling around the world on a motorcycle.

Have you ever felt any danger in your travels?

Iran

It is the extreme climatic conditions that usually make traveling by motorcycle an arduous and dangerous undertaking. Several times I found myself crossing deserts with temperatures reaching 55C and all that entails. However, there were events and situations that endangered my very life.

Afghanistan

Driving with my wife through war-torn Afghanistan in 2005, a sniper on the outskirts of the capital Kabul shot at us and the bullet – fortunately – ricocheted off Olga’s helmet.

In 1998 I crossed the war-torn Sudan-Ethiopia border zone, loaded with my motorcycle on top of a military truck full of ammunition.

In 2000 in Lima, Peru I was attacked in the middle of the road to be robbed – luckily, I escaped it, while a similar incident of robbery happened in Tanzania in 2012. Then they tried to steal a luggage from my motorcycle while I was stuck in traffic in the middle of it Arusha city.

In 2009, 2014 and 2017, I crossed southwest Pakistan with an escort of armored soldiers, for reasons of protection from Taliban attacks…

STORIES OF TRAVEL MADNESS

(from Konstantinos Mitsakis’ Facebook page: Konstantinos Mitsakis)

THE FRENCH HOMER (PAKISTAN 2009)

Soldiers ready for the operation to free the French hostage

In May 2009, two French travelers crossing the Baluchistan desert (southwest Pakistan) were kidnapped by the Taliban. Ten days after the kidnapping, the head of a Frenchman arrived in a box at the French embassy in Islamabad, together with a letter for the payment of a ransom in order to free the other…

Soldiers guard my motorcycle in the city of Dalbadin, Pakistan

A month later, as I was crossing Baluchistan, a military operation to locate and free the French hostage was underway. In the premises of the military authorities in the town of Dalbadin where I was forced to spend the night (for security reasons), I happened to meet Jeanette, the wife of the kidnapped Frenchman. She had come from France and participated in the search for her husband, without unfortunately any results…

Guardian angel of the orange motorcycle. The best… alert!!

The next day, a small phalanx of cars with heavily armed Pakistani army men, would operate in a difficult mountainous area (about 50 km north of Dalbadin). The information spoke of a Taliban hideout, where the French hostage was likely to be…

Early in the morning, the vehicles were warming up, the soldiers were running for the final preparations and I was loading the motorcycle to continue my journey to the city of Quetta. At one point I saw Janet getting into one of the military vehicles. I ran up to her, shook her hand and wished her luck. Then I left, we broke up…

For days I was tormented by her agony, her form constantly swirling in my mind. Two months later I contacted the French embassy in Islamabad. The vehicle Janet was riding in had been ambushed. All of them had been killed…

Pakistan: March in the Baluchistan desert accompanied by an armed soldier for reasons of protection from Taliban attacks.

From Dalbadin town (where the event took place) to Quetta city, the route.

Any trip you would like to repeat and why?

Egypt

Riding on my iron Bucephala, I revived in 2001 the historical march of Alexander the Great, crossing the national territory of 14 countries (Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India).

Pakistan

Starting from the glorified Macedonian land, home of gods and heroes, I experienced for 4 months a journey of 28,500 km on glorious tracks, which, sometimes intense and sometimes half-extinguished, led me to distant and mythical places. There, I was surprised to find the unexpectedly great influences and references that, historical monuments, local traditions and human memories, still present centuries after the world-historical campaign of Alexander the Great…

I have been on the battlefields of Issus and Gaugamela, I have approached the ancient Persepolis of the Achaemenid kings, I have rested in the oasis of Shiva in the Libyan desert, I have felt the hot breath of the Gedrosia desert, I have driven on the steep slopes of the Indian Caucasus, I have met the descendants of the soldiers of the Great Alexander in Afghanistan and Northern Pakistan…

The revival of the Alexandrian route is the journey I ardently desire to repeat. It was a different, real journey, which was “imposed” on me by the respect towards our historical reality and heritage… Because it is truly shocking to walk in the footsteps of Alexander the Great, in the footsteps of History…

You have done the Tour of Asia on a motorcycle.
A few words about this experience. Some country and place that he particularly liked.

Crypton Hits India! Konstantinos Mitsakis in the border town of Amritsar, India and sets sail for Delhi! India – Pakistan borde

With the dream of travel and adventure as a trigger and driving force, I walked, as a daredevil and a risk-taker, on the paths of the Asian continent. The prospect of a long road trip in Asia never scared me, despite the fact that I would need to cross areas with a high degree of danger due to war situations (Afghanistan, Iraq). Because I longed to travel ancient trade routes (“Silk Road”), to get to know the complex ethnological and cultural mosaic of the Asian continent, to delve into the eternal everyday life of its hospitable inhabitants, to “feel” its ancient historical relics and to know the its amazing ecosystem.

And finally I started! It’s true that as I set out to explore and discover Asia on my motorcycle, I was undeniably fascinated by the idea of ​​all that I would encounter. And indeed, two-wheeled travel on the roads of Asia quickly turned into an exciting experience of a lifetime.

In Seoul, South Korea

I visited places “marked” by millennia of history. I got to know the hospitality, the cordiality, but also the hard everyday life of ordinary people with a big heart and a wealth of emotions. I adopted the tragic living conditions of the inhabitants of many third world countries and shared their anguish for survival. I moved on primitive routes that had not been recorded on maps, to get lost, together with my motorcycle, in sand dunes and mud roads, seeking adventure in the vastness of the hospitable Asian land.

Where have I left my heart? Difficult to answer, because this whole continent, the most extensive in the world, represents a unique kaleidoscope of cultural, historical and religious elements. But if you insist: India, Iran, Syria, China, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, Nepal, Pakistan…

Books by the author Konstantinos Mitsakis

Konstantinos Mitsakis together with Olga Papadogianni have published articles for a number of years in the daily press, mainly of travel content, while their authorship also includes a series of books specifically about Africa, Europe, a tour in the footsteps of Alexander the Great and a very beautiful album with unique photos from all over the world.

Also, apart from participating in various television and radio broadcasts, from time to time they carry out informative screenings in various educational institutions, embassies of foreign countries and elsewhere, which are related to their long-term two-wheeled wandering in ninety-two countries of this planet.

Writing activity and article writing

Since 2001, Kon/nos Mitsakis has published twelve (12) travel books:

1) On the Roads of the World
2) In the footsteps of Alexander the Great
3) On the Roads of Asia
4) On the Roads of Africa
5) On the Roads of Europe
6) On the Roads of America
7) On the Roads of Australia
8) 25 selected routes in Greece
9) 25 trips to Greece
10) 25 getaways in Greece
11) Travel to the Balkans
12) 25 routes in Greece

Since 1993, Kon/nos Mitsakis has been writing articles in the Special and Daily Press and has written about 520 travel texts-articles.

1) Motorcycle magazine “2Wheels” (1993 – 1999)
2) Motorcycle magazine “0-300” (1999 – 2010)
3) Motorcycle magazine “MOTO” (2010 – …)
4) “IMERISIA” newspaper (“Tours” insert) (2005 – 2006)
5) Sunday’s “DAILY” newspaper (“Travels” insert)
(2007-2008)
6) “ETHNOS TIS KIRIAKIS” newspaper (inset “Travels”)
(2008 – 2018)
7) Travel magazine “TRAVEL BOOK” (2015 – 2018)

Photographs

1. In the pyramids of Egypt (Pyramids of Giza)
2. Near the city of Khabarovsk, Russia
3. Kabul, Afghanistan, TRAVELING IN THE WAR ZONE WITH MOTORCYCLE!

Travel Dates

Iraq

1984 – 1990: Various destinations in Europe.

1991: North Cape – Norway.
1992: Italy, France, Spain, Morocco, Mauritania.
1993: Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Egypt.
1994: Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Kashmir (Himalaya).
1995: Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia.
1996: Russia, Siberia, Alaska, Canada, USA and Europe (Around the World in 80 Days – North)
1997: China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Turkey (Silk Road).
1998: Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa (Africa Round I).
1999: Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa (Africa Round II).
2000: Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Mexico, USA, Canada, Alaska.
2001: Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India (On the Footsteps of Alexander the Great).
2002: Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Senegal.
2003: Italy, Austria, Germany, Albania, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan.
2004: Turkey, Iran, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Australia.
2005: Albania, Macedonia, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Himalayas.
2006: Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia, Slovenia, Italy.

2007: Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Russia, Siberia, Mongolia, Japan (Trans – Siberian).
2008: Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China (Olympic Silk Road). Azerbaijan, Georgia, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania.
2009: Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore (Trans – Asian I). Italy, Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, San Marino.
2010: Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Spain, France, Italy (Around the Mediterranean Sea). Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Russia (around the Black Sea).
2011: Turkey, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal.
2012: (Around the World in 80 Days – South): Turkey, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay.
2013: USA (Coast to Coast), Canada.
2014: Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India (Journey with Yamaha Crypton 135 cc). Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Mexico, USA, Canada, Alaska (Trans-American Crossing II).
2015: Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Tajikistan.
2016: Turkey, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria.
2017: Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia (Trans – Asian II). Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan (Pamir Road). Turkey, Iraq.
2018: Italy, San Marino, Austria, Germany, Tunis (2 Generations’ Ride). Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Russia, Siberia, Mongolia, South Korea, Japan (Peace Road 2018 / Ancient Olympia – Hiroshima).
Java, Bali, Lumbok, Sabawa (Indonesia Tour 2018).

Here are some videos at the bottom of the page from Constantinos Mitsakis’ YouTube channel