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Char Is Far

the journey begins where the road ends

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  • Destinations
    • Africa
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      • Singapore
      • Sri Lanka
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    • Europe
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    Bosnia and Herzegovina,  Destinations,  Europe,  Expedition Overland,  Montenegro

    Overland Journal Day 11-16: Bosnia and Herzegovina & Montenegro

    April 11, 2024 / No comments

    We drove 3240 kilometers in total. After Croatia, we made our way to Sarajevo. What a beautiful and impressive city. I mistakenly assumed that I would see mostly concrete Soviet apartment buildings. How I was wrong. Instead, we walked through narrow alleys in the historic, Ottomon city center. We learned a lot about the war in the ‘90s and the divisions that still exist in the country. Our…

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  • Croatia sunset Dubrovnik
    Austria,  Croatia,  Destinations,  Europe,  Expedition Overland,  Germany,  Slovenia,  The Netherlands

    Overland Journal Day 1-10: Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Slovenia & Croatia

    April 5, 2024 / 2 Comments

    Ten days ago we departed from our rainy hometown, Utrecht in the Netherlands. So far we have driven 2243 kilometers. Via the Netherlands, Germany, Austria and Slovenia we currently find ourselves in Croatia. And most importantly: we also found the sun here! What did we see and do during the trip until now? Read all about our first ten days here. Overlanding Germany: Autobahn and Neuschwanstein Castle On…

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  • Toyota 4Runner overland
    Austria,  Destinations,  Europe,  Expedition Overland,  Germany,  Slovenia,  The Netherlands

    The Start Of Our Overland Adventure

    March 28, 2024 / 6 Comments

    We finally hit the road: we’re 4 days, 1400 kilometers and 4 countries in. We crossed The Netherlands, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. In this blog you read more about the highs and lows and the life lessons we learned so far. Ultimate freedom We were so busy preparing for the trip the last few weeks that we didn’t really have time to think about what we were going…

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  • freedom travel to kyrgyzstan
    Destinations,  Kyrgyzstan

    Kyrgyzstan 2-Week Itinerary: Epic Self Drive With 4×4 and Rooftop Tent

    January 24, 2024 / 11 Comments

    I fell utterly, hopelessly, and completely in love with Kyrgyzstan. This remarkable country captured my heart and imagination in ways I never expected. The call of an unknown adventure echoed in my soul, and in the summer of 2023, I finally answered. I booked my plane ticket to Kyrgyzstan. Joined by my boyfriend, we embarked on a two-week journey through jaw-dropping, rugged landscapes in a 4×4 car with…

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  • travel kyrgzystan self drive
    Destinations,  Kyrgyzstan

    Kyrgyzstan Travel: Everything You Need To Know

    January 12, 2024 / 7 Comments

    Kyrgyzstan. The land of nomads, yurts, eagles, horses, yaks, mountains and vast steppes. The land of rugged nature and authentic hospitality. A place where nature commands respect with its grandeur. A place made for adventure – you can’t escape it. There is only one certainty about a trip to Kyrgyzstan: you won’t regret it. In this blog I tell you everything you need to know about traveling to…

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Char Is Far

We’re Charelle and Marcel, living for off-road adventures and the freedom that comes with it. Char Is Far is your invitation to break free, chase dreams, and explore the unknown. In 2024 we drove from The Netherlands to Singapore in our 4x4 with rooftop tent, and the road ahead is calling again. Ready to leave your comfort zone and see what's out there?

Travel with us



Popular posts

Overland Itinerary: Driving From The Netherlands to Singapore

The Ultimate Guide On Riding The Ha Giang Loop In Vietnam (4 Days)

Kyrgyzstan 2-Week Itinerary: Epic Self Drive With 4×4 and Rooftop Tent

Overland Journal Day 26-40: Türkiye

Overland Journal Day 117: Border Crossing Into China

The Start Of Our Overland Adventure

Overland Journal Day 41-52: Iran

Driving to Thailand with your own car: Foreign Vehicle Permit and border crossing guide

Overland Journal Day 129-142: Xi’an, Chengdu and Ancient Towns (China)

Overland Journal Day 72-81: Tajikistan (Panjakent and Dushanbe)

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This is NOT the Spain we expected 🤯 We’re driving This is NOT the Spain we expected 🤯

We’re driving ridges with nothing but desert landscapes stretching to the horizon. Then we drop into canyons, kicking up dust with our tyres. Hours pass without seeing a single car.

Set up camp on a hill with stellar views of the badlands. Cooking, watching the sky turn orange, then fade into a sky full of stars.

Hard to believe this is still Southern Spain.

About half of this route really needs a 4x4 / high clearance. The other half is easily doable with a van (we get that question a lot 😅). 

What. A. Spot.

When we got back home 2 old pipes gave up after all that rough terrain. Nothing dramatic though. New parts are on the way and we’ll be back out there soon for more weekend trips 😍

Would you drive this?

📍 Gorafe Desert, Spain

#gorafe #sierranevada #spaintrip #overlandtravel #overlandbound
What if there’s another way? To escape the crowds What if there’s another way?

To escape the crowds. Because yes, this is also Spain.

But more importantly: to choose how you spend your time.

This is what our weekends look like now 🧡

Gorafe surprised us; we absolutely loved it! Those badlands views are unlike anything we've seen before.

Have you heard of this place before?

#overlandtravel #gorafe  #spaintrip #sierranevada #4x4ing
El Caminito del Rey exceeded our expectations by f El Caminito del Rey exceeded our expectations by far 🧡 

Normally we’re not that into ultra-touristy activities. We tend to avoid crowds and look for quieter, more remote places. But sometimes… something is popular for a reason.

Caminito del Rey is def one of those places 🙌

Originally built for workers to access the hydroelectric plants deep in the gorge, the path later fell into disrepair and became infamous for how dangerous it was. After several fatal accidents, it was closed for years and eventually rebuilt into the safe walkway it is today.

Walking it now, you can still see how exposed it once was. Narrow paths pinned to vertical rock faces, suspended high above the canyon floor. Never seen anything like it. 

Normally it's sold out months in advance. We decided to just go to the north entrance gate, and were able to buy a ticket there! So make sure to give this a try if it's sold out.

Yeah, we’ll admit it. This one lives up to the hype.

Have you been here already?

#caminitodelrey #spaintrip #caminito #explorespain
Our favorite places from our favorite country in t Our favorite places from our favorite country in the world 🇰🇬

Plus Marcel with a Kyrgyz hat (scroll to the end 👀) .

We’ve now been to Kyrgyzstan twice. First time in 2023, renting a car with a rooftop tent. Our very first taste of overland travel. We were hooked instantly.

Back home in the Netherlands, we did the only logical thing. Bought our own 4x4 with rooftop tent and drove all the way back. And beyond.

Exactly one year later (to the day!), we crossed into Kyrgyzstan again. This time in our own car, chasing the remote mountain corners we missed the first time.

Our Kyrgyzstan blogs are still the most read on our site. Not surprising. This place is wild 🧡

So here it is. Our favorite spots across the country after two extensive visits.

Want the full route? Our 2-week itinerary is in the link in bio. Save for later 🙌

Have you been? Or still on your list? (It should be!)

And any tips for other countries that we should visit? Drop 'em below.

📸 Kel Suu photo by @klaus_promberger, give him a follow!

#kyrgyzstan #discoverkyrgyzstan #travelkyrgyzstan #visitkyrgyzstan #overlandtravel
Be scared, and do it anyway. That’s the one thing Be scared, and do it anyway. That’s the one thing the road taught us.

When we decided to drive from the Netherlands to Singapore, we weren’t sure we’d actually make it.

Logistically, financially… plenty of reasons not to.
Same with this.

Moving to Spain. Working remotely. Figuring out a new rhythm. We didn’t know if it would work. But we tried it anyway.

Not because we’re fearless. But because we’ve learned that waiting until something feels completely certain usually means you’ll never do it.

So we make deliberate choices. Not the obvious ones. Not always the comfortable ones. Just the ones that feel like this might make life a bit more interesting. A bit more alive.

Sometimes that means driving across continents.
Sometimes it just means starting a life in a new place.

From the outside it might look like we’ve got it all figured out.
We don’t.

We're just willing to try.

What’s something you want to try this year?

📸 Shots from our stunning new hometown, Frigiliana!

#frigiliana #workingremotely #spaintrip #travelcouplelife
When we decided to drive from the Netherlands to S When we decided to drive from the Netherlands to Singapore, it was never really about the destination. It was always about the journey.

We simply looked at a map and searched for one of the longest overland routes we could possibly drive.

Sure, it would've been easy to get on a plane and fly to Singapore. But where's the fun in that?

One of our favorite quotes by @officiallymcconaughey: 

'I love road trips. I think I've learned more on road trips than I've learned just about anywhere else in life. 

It's like a classroom. It's like an office.

It's a place where my memory catches up with me. It's a place where I can get far away enough from past that I'm not worried about it and something about that makes me not even worry about my damn future.' 🧡

Location: Mirador Fin del Mundo, Sierra Nevada, Spain 🇪🇸

#roadtripadventures #sierranevada #overlandtravel
Mountain roads > everything ⛰️ It feels so good t Mountain roads > everything ⛰️

It feels so good to be out exploring again. Somehow we feel more at home on the road than in our house back in the Netherlands. Like life is supposed to feel like this.

There’s something different this time though.

During our overland expedition we saw a lot of the world, and now the contrast hits differently. We’re driving mountain roads, chasing views, building a life we genuinely love. 

At the same time, friends we met on that journey are hiding in shelters. Simply because they were born somewhere else.

It’s a strange feeling to carry both things at once. Deep gratitude for the life we get to live. And a quiet awareness of how unequal the world can be.

Not sure if this resonates with anyone, but these thoughts have been on our minds. Anyone else recognizes this feeling? 🫶

📍 Fin del Mundo, Sierra Nevada, Spain

- Follow along on our journey of trying out remote life from Spain, while exploring 4x4 tracks on the weekends (we're much better at keeping up with stories than posts anyway)

#sierranevada #spaintrip #overlandtravel #overlandinglife #overlandvehicle
Slowly integrating into Spanish life 🇪🇸 We spent Slowly integrating into Spanish life 🇪🇸

We spent the past two weeks on the Costa Blanca, with Dénia as our base, exploring the Valencia region. Orange trees everywhere, long sunny days, colorful houses. Quite the contrast from the snow in the Pyrenees just days before.
And this is exactly what we love.

Switching to remote work has been even better than we expected. And our expectations were high to begin with. It still feels slightly unreal that this is our life now.

We’ve now moved further south (near Málaga) into a house we rented for three months, close to both the coast and the mountains.

To be honest, we were a bit worried about focus. A lot of people told us it would be difficult to stay productive. But we’ve built a steady rhythm: coworking three days a week, structure during the week, exploring on the (long) weekends. It works surprisingly well.

Also VERY excited to go off-roading in the weekends. Plenty of tracks here.

Have you ever lived abroad for a while or worked remotely? What were the pros and cons for you? Or any questions about our switch? Let us know 🔥🧡

#workingremotely #digitalnomadlife #remoteworking #spaintrip #explorespain
This is what working remotely from the Pyrenees lo This is what working remotely from the Pyrenees looks like 😍

Week 2 of remote life and it’s already better than we imagined. 

Working from tiny mountain villages in northern Spain. And navigating some very questionable, narrow streets (see photo 7) 😬

Weekend? Road tripping through a snowy Andorra.

Further south we go. So happy we took the leap 🫶

#workingremotely #overlandtravel #pyreneesmountains #andorra #spaintrip
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