Travel Journal: South America

From Prague to Cape Town in a Trabant. Two cylinders, two strokes, two Trabants, 20,000 kilometers. Through deserts, mountains, sand, and mud. Trabant Across Africa is a film about a journey. A journey worth taking, even if you keep telling yourself never again, and if you do, then not in a Trabant. A film about what it means to travel across the Dark Continent in the footsteps of the forgotten predecessors Hanzelka and Zikmund in one of the most primitive cars ever made. No embellishments, no script, no accompanying crew in Land Rovers. No certainty that we will make it. Eleven African countries: Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. Africa swallowed us up, chewed us up, and spat us out. Stunned, exhausted, determined to return.

Probably the most famous Czech traveler of today, Dan Přibáň, has undertaken his most challenging expedition yet. The crews of two yellow Trabants, a Polish Fiat (aka Maluch), a Čezeta, a Jawa, and even two wheelchairs set off from Perth, Australia, and during their six-month adventure traveled through East Timor, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.

In July 2007, a three-member expedition set off in a Trabant along the Silk Road to the deserts of Central Asia. The odometer of the small yellow Trabant has clocked up 15,000 kilometers. Half of Europe and most of Central Asia have disappeared beneath its wheels. After six weeks spent in its cramped interior, Dan Přibáň, Vladislav Růžička, and Jan Martin Kozel traveled through Central Europe, the Balkans, Turkey, Iran, and Turkmenistan, before turning west again in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, and returning home via Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine. 15,000 kilometers is a very long journey, during which many details can be lost.

The Yellow Expedition is coming home! The final great transcontinental journey is drawing to a close. This time, there are no women on the team, and the expedition—led by traveler Dan Přibáň—is picking up speed. The "Yellow Circus" is making the long trek from India all the way back home. Along the way, the crew conquers the Himalayas, navigates dictatorships, sets altitude records, and even manages to outrun the police. In short, this crew never disappoints; undaunted, they tackle every challenge with dark humor and self-deprecating wit. The homecoming is more moving than ever, proving that adventure doesn't require luxury—all you need are two Trabants, one Maluch, one Jawa motorcycle, and a group of great people.

The third installment in Dan Přibáň's series of travel documentaries describes the author's journey with his friends across South America in vehicles that are often notorious but cult in their own way. The charming dynamics of the group on screen are further enhanced by the high-quality craftsmanship.

Trabants have traveled the world, now frogs are swimming! Traveler Dan Přibáň returns to cinemas after six years – this time in an amphibious vehicle LuAZ 967 nicknamed the yellow frog, which not only drives, but also swims! Together with him, a Czech-Slovak group of crazy adventurers, including the indestructible Marek Slobodník on a floating motorcycle tricycle, set off on a wild journey. The goal? 18,000 kilometers from Prague to Ulaanbaatar. The means? Used, dangerous and funny machines. The challenges? The pitfalls of exotic countries, bizarre regimes, disappearing rivers, blooming deserts and endless plains where there are no roads – only directions. And Mongolia – the land of blue skies. The least populated country in the world. A country that breaks hearts and fulfills dreams. In the finale, under the dunes of the Gobi Desert, the moved guys discover that it was really worth it and that miracles do happen... But sometimes completely differently than they expected.

The final leg of Dan Přibáň and his “Yellow Circus” expedition brings their round-the-world journey to a close, marked by the discovery of the new and a touch of nostalgia for the old.