Defender X: Munich to Budapest

More than anything, I feel extremely privileged to be part of it. In many ways it is a unique expedition. But I also have to say this honestly, I do not think I am ever as tired on my other expeditions as I am on these trips.

Last night I was exhausted.

And this is after only three days in the Land Rovers.

Compared to many of my other journeys, this has been smooth and easy. Six or seven hours on the road each day. No real drama. But still, the fatigue is intense.

This is the morning of day four and we are in extraordinary Budapest, staying in an extraordinary hotel with a view over a magnificent city. I have not seen much of it yet, but what I have seen makes me say wow.

Still, I have been averaging five hours of sleep, and that is simply not enough.

And it is not just me. Everybody gets very little sleep on this kind of trip. The days are long, the work continues after the driving ends, and somehow everyone keeps going.

That is part of what makes Defender X so special. No matter how tired you are, there is this feeling that you are part of something unique.

It is almost always the same for me. Day three is hard. Day four I begin to wake up again.

And this time it is a short trip. Two more days of travel and then this leg is over. We are relocating the trucks to Istanbul.

You sit there all day, six or seven hours, and I honestly cannot imagine how tired the drivers must be. The concentration they need, hour after hour, day after day. I am so impressed.

Jeff and Steve are just incredible. To stay focused and drive as well as they do all the time is seriously impressive.

The rest of us try to film, do interviews, and have discussions along the way. Today we have more interviews coming up. I would love to interview Meg, who is an extraordinary person in every way. So capable, so kind, and so attentive to everyone around her. Truly amazing.

And everyone on this trip is impressive in their own way.

Yesterday I was really impressed by Sophie. She held the camera steady for more than two hours while interviewing Steve Saprili, who has had an extraordinary life journey, from the Philippines to the top of Everest, and then on to a career as an investment banker in France. A kind, warm person, and a real pleasure to travel with.

But the tiredness last night really hit me.

We went to another extraordinary place for dinner, planning the next three legs ahead, all the way until the preparations for the crossing toward Australia. Not Australia yet, of course, but China comes later, on the fourth-last leg.

Then there is one part of my work that sounds simple but takes hours. Transferring all the material from Sophie’s camera, my own cameras, and the others, onto hard drives.

I just finished now.

Three or four hours gone. But that is part of it too.

What struck me most is that the exhaustion last night was in my head, not in my body. Physically I felt surprisingly good, especially when I got out for about an hour in Budapest, walking across the great river with the Hilton overlooking this magnificent city.

I think this is my 129th country now. My girls checked the number the other day.

Anyway, we move on now. Bucharest tonight, if I am right. Nine hours away.

And again, I am so impressed with the drivers.

Jeff and Steve, the concentration they keep, and the way they drive, all the time, is just awesome.