Prelude
Mapping the itinerary was fun in itself. It became evident that we can physically touch and go but this was not meant to be a car rally. We planned to immerse a bit in each of the land connected South East Asian countries – a reasonable balance between travel and non-travel days. This limited us to start from North East India (Imphal, Manipur) so as to cap off the travel to 30 days.
The reality of government requirements and vehicle logistical challenges laid bare. SE Asian countries have strict restrictions in place for overlanders, apparently triggered by the influx of vehicles from China. That set us on locating the local country specialists to steer us through the local regulations. On top of it, the vehicle challenges were abundant and came about in varied flavors – choosing the right vehicle, used vs. new, procuring one without having the luxury of time to be in person in India, registering a vehicle under your name in absentia, procuring Carnet (vehicle passport), getting the car from South India to North East India, etc.
Courtesy of friends and family that we could afford to count on in need of despair, we managed to remotely coordinate. I wish the next generation could connect with childhood friends at such a deeper level. Without flinching, I resorted to their help. Not only did we purchase a vehicle (Toyota Fortuner) once but twice! We learned a lot of do’s and don’t from the first purchase of the used vehicle. The odometer was fiddled and we discovered the day after the purchase. We returned the vehicle and managed to recoup every penny which is not a small feat in India and might be a stroke of luck. The second and final purchase was made at the nick of the moment to have just enough time to complete the rest of the formalities. The next challenge of transporting the vehicle to North East India was simplified when the kith and kin decided to make a driving expedition within India.
