BH, Author at Double Decker Adventures

One Foot in Front of the Other – Full Stride

by Neil Rawlins

By the late 1970’s & early 1980s the classic Overland tours between London and Kathmandu, which had had their beginnings in the mid-1960s, were drawing to a close. The Soviets had occupied Afghanistan, the Shah of Iran had been deposed and an Islamic State established. In Iraq Saddam Hussain was about to embark on a devastating war with Iran and the seeds of unrest were lying latent in Syria. This was the scenario when the author embarked upon his career as a tour guide on the Overland routes across Asia to Kathmandu. This book is a continuation of the author’s previous Kindle book – One Foot in Front of the Other – First Steps, which recounts his experiences travelling the Overland routes in Asia, Europe and in Africa in the halcyon days of the early ’70s.

After 3 years back in New Zealand & a year working on a uranium exploratory drilling-rig in Wyoming, the author completed a training trip with Sundowners in Europe then, as a rooky tour leader headed to Istanbul with coach & driver to collect clients flying in from Kabul before setting off for the Middle East. It was a memorable trip and a precursor for further tours and the Overland routes to and from Kathmandu.For the next 3 years there were the ups and downs of political vagaries to content with, the frustration of border crossing and the sudden introduction of visa requirements. There were happy times and sad times although the happy times always outweighed the sad.
Moving on to Explore Worldwide, the author became involved in operating Camel safaris across the Thar Desert in Rajasthan, leading tours to Kashmir and Ladakh, to Darjeeling and Sikkim as well as Turkey, Jordan and Tunisia.
This book documents the highs & lows of tour leading: the funny incidents and the, not-so-frequent sad episodes. The frustrations dealing some passengers and with bureaucracy on borders, at embassies and elsewhere. But also an insight into the information a tour leader/guide was expected to impart on the places visited.

Faraway Places Strange Sounding Names

by Gerald Davis

In the late 1970s, adventure bus journeys were the most exciting form of international travel. Buses crossed continents to the fabled cities of Asia, Europe, Africa and South America, carrying adventurous travellers across scenic lands and harsh deserts. Many of the passengers were Australians and New Zealanders, going to and from Britain and Europe.

Tours lasted weeks and months and crossed borders freely – until they were blocked by unrest and warfare in the late 1970s, and the golden age of overland travel came to an abrupt end.

Faraway Places with Strange Sounding Names brings this magical era back to life, thanks to Gerald Davis’s determined efforts to gather people’s stories, photos, maps and mementos.

His book tells the story of the leading operator at the time, the Penn Overland Company, which pioneered the Asian and African overland travel routes in the 1950s, and spread to five continents and 50 countries, taking people on the journey of a lifetime.

This book is a window into that time, and for the thousands who travelled, a chance to relive their journeys. Drawing on memories and mementos of former Penn staff and passengers the world over, Gerald Davis has saved the story from disappearance, and told it in this evocative book.

Family Village Tribe

by Mandy Johnson

Flight Centre Limited is an anomaly in the business world – a modern-day organisation that uses Stone Age strategies to achieve phenomenal success. This updated edition of Family Village Tribe describes the company’s ongoing evolution and is essential reading for anyone interested in the machinations of starting a successful business from the ground up, and staying there.

‘I didn’t realise my life had been hijacked until a year after it happened.’

That’s Mandy Johnson’s take on her introduction into the world of Flight Centre Limited – the travel company that divides its workforce into prehistoric ‘families’, ‘villages’ and ‘tribes’, and rewards them with autonomy and incentives.

From its origins in 1973 as a UK tour company with a single bus called ‘Bollocks’, FCL revolutionised the travel industry and morphed into a global giant. It faced challenges including the War on Terror and SARS that wreaked havoc on business. It battled the encroachment of the internet; a disastrous internal restructure; and a US acquisition that delivered a profit wipe-out, just months before the global financial crisis. And yet each time FCL has come back stronger than before, almost doubling in size every five years, relying on its Stone Age tribal structure as its platform for success.

Its founders were two 23-year-old veterinarians from Queensland, Australia. Neither had any business experience and the idea for the company was hatched while celebrating in a Munich beer hall . . . So how did they make it work? Mandy Johnson and Katrina Beikoff have enjoyed full access to all the major players in FCL to bring us the full story in this updated edition.

Top Deck Daze (Updated)

By Bill James

In Top Deck Daze, Bill James tells the hilarious, true story of how Graham ‘Screw’ Turner establishes a bus touring company using old converted double-decker buses. From humble beginnings in 1973 London, Screw, together with a gang of colonial larrikins, builds up a 100-strong fleet of ‘deckers’. Follow the antics of Screw, Spy, Bill Speaking, Wombat, Filthy, Grilly, Budgie, the mysterious Graham James Lloyd and other incorrigible crew members as they lead their unsuspecting punters on riotous escapades to far flung, exotic corners of the world. The chaos that was Top Deck Travel lays the foundation for Flight Centre. Screw, through his dogged determination builds the company into a hugely successful, multi-million dollar travel empire.

Only Two Seats Left: The Incredible Contiki Story

By John Anderson

This is one of Australasia’s great untold business success stories. It is the incredible story of how a simple idea with a starting capital of just 25 pounds became a worldwide travel company with an iconic brand name. Over two million young people have now travelled Contiki! For the vast majority, the experience changed their lives for ever.

Author and Contiki founder John Anderson blends an autobiography, epic travel tale and business success story which reads like a novel. Discover the raw truths behind John’s exhilarating 28 year journey of dizzying successes and disappointing failures, coupled with his most valuable secrets of successful entrepreneurship.
Feel your sense of adventure surface and immerse yourself in the same spirit of fun and passion that fuelled John’s action packed life.
A book for anyone who’s ever dreamt of taking a risk with that first bold step to venture into the unknown …

Magic Bus

Magic Bus

by Rory Mclean

In the 1960s, hundreds of thousands of young Westerners, inspired by Kerouac and the Beatles, blazed the ‘hippie trail’ overland from Istanbul to Kathmandu in search of enlightenment and a bit of cheap dope. Since the Summer of Love, the countries that offered so much to these dreamers have confronted the full force of modernity and transformed from worlds of Western fantasy to political minefields. Through a landscape of breathtaking beauty Rory MacLean retraces the path of the once well-worn ‘hippie trail’ from Turkey to Iran, Afghanistan to Pakistan, India to Nepal, meeting trail veterans and locals on his way, and relives wide-eyed adventures as he witnesses a world of extraordinary and terrifying transformation.

Top Deck Daze

By Bill James

In Top Deck Daze, Bill James tells the hilarious, true story of how Graham ‘Screw’ Turner establishes a bus touring company using old converted double-decker buses. From humble beginnings in 1973 London, Screw, together with a gang of colonial larrikins, builds up a 100-strong fleet of ‘deckers’. Follow the antics of Screw, Spy, Bill Speaking, Wombat, Filthy, Grilly, Budgie, the mysterious Graham James Lloyd and other incorrigible crew members as they lead their unsuspecting punters on riotous escapades to far flung, exotic corners of the world. The chaos that was Top Deck Travel lays the foundation for Flight Centre. Screw, through his dogged determination builds the company into a hugely successful, multi-million dollar travel empire.

Meski Oasis – Morocco

Meski Oasis – Morocco

Meski Oasis was a small campsite in Morocco surrounded by date palm trees and a small river down below at the back we used to use. The camp itself was very basic with no power but it’s redeeming feature was a huge swimming pool which was fed by a natural spring. In the pool there was a lot of fish swimming about that used to have no fear and nibble at your feet or what ever they could nothing to harmful.

There used to be a small stream running along side the pool which was handy for doing some laundry. The showers were just a row out in the open no privacy at all and the toilets were another story all together, normally overflowing and water running everywhere.

Over the back of the camp was an old medina that you could walk over to or go by donkey ride to explore.

The camp itself was quite a relaxing place to be for a couple of days especially if you had just been to Fez or Marrakesh and the full on vibe going on there.

Meski Oasis camp is no longer open to the public.

Elephant Camp – Chitwan, Nepal

Elephant Camp – Chitwan National Park, Nepal

Elephant Camp in the Chitwan National Park of Nepal was a favourite place to go.

A drive into the camp consisted of crossing a river then driving up a long narrow road into the camp which was shared with elephants, bikes, people and on the drive in we used to pass a couple of very small villages and a small school.

At the camp, which was run by an American guy he organised Rhino walking tours into the bush around the camp and also Elephant rides which were somewhat safer to go see the Rhinos.

Also at the camp was very basic toilets, cold showers and the best bit was a bar. A generator was there providing power around the bar area only

A group of locals were normally organised to go a dance for us and would walk to the camp from miles away with their music and sticks just to perform for us.

The Overland

The Overland

On the 19th September 1982 I was given an Overland trip. This consisted of a trip out to Kathmandu via Syria, Jordan. At the time Iraq and Afganastan were close to tourists and we were also having issues getting Iran visas.

En-route we began at the 1982 Oktoberfest in Munich, then a quick trip down through Yugoslavia, Bulgeria, Turkey with a few sights to see there including Gallipoli then down via Troy, Cappadocia, along the southern coast, then into Syria, Jordan.

At this stage after a tour around Jordan and still issues with Iran visas, my bunch if passengers and the courier overflew Iran out of Amman to Karachi where another buc picked then up for the remainder of their trip.

I waited around Amman for another 4 weeks or so along with a couple of other of our drivers and finally myself and another driver and bus got visas and did an almost non stop drive through to Quetta, Pakistan.

We picked up the next groups to overfly at Quetta after they came up on a train from Karachi and continued with the rest of the trip to Kathmandu. We got into Kathmandu Christmas Eve 1982.

Following that on the 1st January 1983 I had a 4 week India trip around India with a new bunch of passengers which finished in New Delhi. Then an almost empty bus back up to Kathmandu for the return trip to London.

On 20th February 1983 two buses, mne and another began on the return trip to London. With the aid of a bottle of scotch we had the buses transferred into our couriers names so they could drive the Pakistan portion of the trip and our passports were sent to London once again for iran visas. The two couriers met us back at the india/Pakistan border and we got the buses transferred back into our names.

The couriers and passengers then did the public transport things again and flew out of Karachi to Amman, Jordan and did all the Joran Middle East part on public transport.

The other driver and I then did an almost non stop drive from Lahore to the Turkey/Syria border to meet them.
From Lahore, Multan, Jacobbabad, Bolan Pass, Dalbundin, Taftan the Pakistan – Iran Border we lost a day in Zahedan getting the Iran guard, Bam, Ardestan, Zanjan, Bazagan – Dogubeyazit border nestled under Mt. Ararat, we lost more time there getting through the (Iran – Turkey border), Tahir Pass between Agri and Erzurum, Tunceli pass, Elazig, Malatya, Gaziantep, Antakya. Total 5,755km.

Despite our best efforts, we encountered a few minor breakdowns along the way. We spent a memorable night at a Turkish truck stop with English TIR truck drivers and lots of Efes beer, leaving the next morning with a hangover. We encountered a sandstorm in Iran at one stage and had to wait that out and Bill running off the road also in Iran, and we ran out of money to buy fuel towards in Eastern Turkey.

I am told the story goes we ran out of money because we didn’t have enough from the start; we were short on funds when we left Lahore. As for the fuel, Bill swapped the bloke at the servo in Turkey 4 pairs of Levi’s for 2 tanks of fuel, the Levi’s were a present for Nazir up in Srinagar but he left them on Crunch in Jammu by mistake and didn’t take them up. But, we can assure you that everything was carried out in a true Top Deck manner (lots of luck and not good management). We arrived near the border at Antakya on the 17th April 1983.

We arrived with 5 hours to spare and picked up the passengers and continued to London via all the great Turkish places to visit we had come to love. Apart from a blowout tyre, running out of fuel (twice), frozen engine near the Iran/Turkey border, a speeding fine through a small town, spending all the trip funds and borrowing off the passengers to get us back to London, a strip search at French customs then not being allowed into France all went quite well and we only got to London two days late.