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Welcome to episode three of our biggest adventure ever. Every year around a 100 teams set off to drive over 5,000 miles from Europe to Asia in tiny cars that were never designed to make it that far. But we needed something a little bigger for our team of nine. Meet Big Bertha. We bought this retired school bus off a government auction website in Colorado. We're just bus owners now. Roadt tripped it all the way across the US. shipped it across the Atlantic to Germany, then finally drove it to the start line in Prague. Now the real adventure begins.
We're going to spend the night in here. Oh no, these look so bad. I'll stay on the bus for safety. So there's no official route for the Mongol Rally, and it's not a race, just a massive challenge to make it to the finish line party in 6 weeks. But it's completely unsupported, which means once we leave the start line, we're on our own. Should I check for bed bugs? No. to navigate unpredictable border crossings, fix anything that breaks, and whatever else that will definitely go wrong along the way. The crazy people who decided to join us on this adventure are Nate's brother Dusty and his wife Sarah, the whole Knot family, who we've done some of our craziest adventures with, including riding this ridiculous
three-seater bike all the way across the US a couple years ago, and our best friend Charlie from Australia, who we've already traveled to 14 countries with. Oh, I love it. Doesn't suit me. So far, we've already driven through four different countries in 5 days. The trip started with an epic kickoff party right outside of Prague. We spent the afternoon in Bratislava. Policeman pulled up behind the car. It's like move now. Gave birth some nice little upgrades. Got to have the team name on the bus. No pressure.
Had a really fun night at a ruin bar in Budapest. And so far, the highlight of the trip has been driving into the mountains of Romania where we saw not one but eight brown bears. Shoot. And if you missed the last video, it ended with us getting denied entry at the Malddoan border. We asked if an American vehicle had ever crossed and not that the guy knew of. So, this episode picks up with us back in Romania preparing for a second attempt to cross into the elusive country of Malddova. It's not looking good. It's actually looking really bad. Good morning. It is day six of the Mongol Rally and it's already off to an exciting start. So, if you missed the
last video, we just got denied at the Maldoven border for not having a physical copy of our registration. At some point in all of that, the physical registration got lost. In Colorado, you get it on your phone. And they did not like that at all. And then we also didn't have insurance because we had been told that we could buy it at the border. So this morning, Rick and I have spent the last 2 hours running around town trying to figure out how to get like a very official looking copy of the registration, which I think we succeeded at. We found a guy who printed it on really thick paper, laminated it, and now Rick has gotten in the car with some random guy.
Bye, Rick. Moldova better be good. What could possibly go wrong? This is my friend Don who is now helping us get from Romania to Malddova. So, we just got a text from Rick. It says, "Don is so confident that we are getting across the border that he took me to his farm to fill up a jug of wine for us to drink in Malddova." So, um I have no idea what's happening this morning. We're now at about the sixth place this guy's taking me to. I think he's actually just going through a ton of trouble to help me. We're at his farm at this point. And now I think he's getting loaded up for the journey to uh Malddova.
Don, thank you. We got this. We're going to make it. Okay. I think we're going to do it. All right. So, you're going with Don? Yeah. I'm going to go with Don. And uh they follow. Are we driving both vehicles or just the bus? Let the bus follow us in my car. Yeah. Okay. Great. Okay. Perfect. I feel like at this point if we don't make it into Malddova today, no one can say we didn't try our hardest. Before we attempt to cross into Malddova again, let me say a huge thank you to BetterHelp for sponsoring this video.
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Therapy should be too. Click the link in the description or go to betterhelp.com/kn to get 10% off your first month. Okay, back to the border. We have officially exited Romania. It only took 25 minutes this time. Now we're heading to the Moldovven border. Here goes nothing. I just cannot believe Rick is in the car with two random Romanian guys right now. Somehow they picked up a second. At this point, I'm not sure if these guys are going to help or hurt our case.
Yeah. Well, I don't see him and I don't see the guy's car. Just would have thought they would have been parked here. Just got some bad news. There is a group text with all of the people on the rally where people send updates and there's a Canadian guy who was also denied at the border and he said it was because they didn't accept his vehicle registration. So all of a sudden I don't have a good feeling about this again. It's 572 Moldovven. Muldovven and how much are they charging Rick right now? $1,200. But that's Muldoven. They're not charging US dollars here. So, they did take the registration like they haven't questioned it.
He handed me back the insurance because this is not the proper insurance for Malddova. And then he handed me back the registration like he didn't need it. And then he took the title and then he came back and he was like, "Is this the registration?" And I said no. And then I handed in the laminated sheet of paper and then he looked for the plate number on it and it matched. And that's where we are. There's not anybody behind me, is there? I think he just wants me to move it so we're not blocking the lane while he spends more time figuring out if he's going to let us in or not. We just had the border guard come back to the bus and he told us to give him a little more time because this is the
first American vehicle they've ever seen at this border crossing except for yesterday. We're probably not actually the first American vehicle to pass through here, but definitely the first that these guards have ever seen. Everyone's seeming a little more friendly than yesterday, so feeling semi hopeful. Still very much 50/50. Rick just pre-bought the insurance. Now he's on his way back. I'm hoping that'll be just enough to uh push us over the edge. It's uh it's not looking good. It's actually looking really bad. Unless Don, the new friend we made today, can um talk them out of rejecting us. We're about to turn around and go back into Romania again.
They had an excited body language just now. Yeah, you did. Oh my gosh, he's pointing. He's pointing in Malddova. I like all the movement going on. There's progress one way or the other right now. OH MY GOSH, we got a bounce. Yes. [screaming] What the heck? cannot believe that I had fully accepted our fate of not going to Malddova. Oh my gosh. I mean, this guy's just driven half an hour out of his way. He spent two or three hours with us at this point. He's involved all these people around. And I was like, can I said, "Can I give you some gas money to get back?" He won't take it.
He won't take any. He's just He won't take a penny. We paid $30 to for the T. I mean, no one's trying to rip us off. Like, he won't even take my money. and he gave us a like I think 1.5 liter I think on the line. So I am in disbelief right now. He came out here and told us you are denied. They're writing it on the papers right now. The registration isn't original. There's nothing they can do. Romania. [screaming] I cannot believe we're in this country right now. There's Don there. I think the other turn.
We got to get a selfie. All of us. I'm still in shock that we're in Malddova. The drive to the capital city has been beautiful. Vineyards, sunflowers, rolling hills. So, we found a big parking lot in the middle of the city and there is one hotel nearby that I think is going to be an experience. It's in a big Soviet style building and apparently it doesn't have the best reviews. So, it gets a total score of a 5.9 on which pretty bad. And if I sort by reviews, James from Malaysia says one out of 10. What was wrong with it? Everything. And in the what was good about it, very bad hotel.
This was in 2026, too. Communist rooms. They look horrible. The heat was lacking. I've never seen something like this. Bad. Bad, bad, bad. Three times. Such a What's bad about it? Everything. Starting the staff and ending the breakfast. I can agree with the staff there. Bugs. Oh no, these pictures look bad. I'll stay on the bus for safety. I'm in. We found a giant parking lot in the middle of the city and the hotel is two steps away.
All and it'll make for a fun story. If you're in for staying here, raise your hand. All right. If Frankie's in, we got Frankie is ready to get off the bus. All right, we're doing it. Oh my gosh. Stop number one. Trying to get our back. And we've been given beer, wine, cheese. What is happening? OH MY GOSH. This is so nice of you. I can't tell you how much this means to us. Really, it does. Thank you so much.
How do you say cheers in Malddova? Noro. Turns out this is just a normal business day for them. They saw us in the parking lot and came out and hosted a little party. I love Moldova. He runs the bus tour company right here and just saw us in the parking lot. Guys, my god, what the heck? Welcome to Malddova. What just happened? do this. I feel like the Romanians and Muldovans are having a competition. I think they're trying to see who can outdo each other.
Yeah. And I'm not sure who's winning right now. That was so unexpected and the best way to start off our trip in a country that we're not even supposed to be in. I just wanted to tell you guys that um I watch your videos all the time. I can't believe you came to Moldova. Hi, Carol. We can't believe we're here either. Hello. It's nice to meet you. Happy to see you. We're in save these rooms. Kind of be ify if we can all fit in here. All right. Reverse and Oh no.
Oh yeah, we wow. That almost took my backpack off. But do we did we max out the weight limit? We'll see. We should. We're going to spend the night in here. Oh, this broke right now. I'll start crying. That was dramatic. So far, this is freaking great. Look at it. It's got a lounge room. Oh, you got to see this TV. This is epic. No way. I think our expectations were set correctly. I mean, the reviews I Unless like someone like bangs on the door and like blows smoke under it and kicks me out of my bed. This is wonderful.
Smells nice. It smells good. You got like a straight shot down the main street. I mean, yeah, everything's dated. It's from the '7s or whatever, but like I think that's exactly what you want when you come here. Anyway, we actually learned from somebody that we met on the street that this was the first hotel ever built in Malddova. And uh they've kept the original charm. Yeah. What a view. Oh, I love old glass that still looks wavy like that. That is so cool. That's the main drag. Great view. We can keep an eye on the bus. All right. The bathroom waves a little bit to be desired. I mean, that's a deep tub and there's no shower curtain.
Actually, no shower. It's going to be one of those little standup wand job. Oh my gosh, look at this TV. It's this wide. I might turn that on. I love this. Oh, you have like a whole living room. Look at this weird like wraparound chair thing. Is this old Soviet furniture? I kind of love it. This is kind of like romantic. Yeah. Should I check for bed bugs? No. Let's just live in bliss. Blissful ignorance. So far, 10 out of 10. when your expectations are set correctly.
We're watching TV in your room tonight. This is so cool. Look at it. Everyone was dancing in a circle and we were just kind of making it up and so a couple local ladies jumped in to teach us how to do it. Not sure we ever nailed it, but Malddova just keeps getting better. We're just out walking around with no idea where we're going. And now we've ended up in some huge festival. There's a stage. There's people dancing. Charlie bought a mask. I love making a ridiculous purchase. He's a bit surprised. I was like, "Yeah, we will take it." Actually, this is going to be the best purchase of the trip.
Oh, I love it. Does it suit me? This was meant to be. Oh, I love it. Sorry. We've ended up at the restaurant that the guy that met us in the parking lot that gave us the wine recommended for a traditional Malddoan meal. Live music and we have ordered way too much food. So, in addition to about 10 appetizers, the majority of the table has ordered placenta, which is basically like a um a Moldovven pie. This one's got potatoes and mushrooms. Charlie got the meat. It's like a savory funnel cake. Looks incredible. anything fried like this. How was it? So good. Honestly, it's the perfect thing to pair with Muldovan wine. It's greasy and delicious.
Chef's kiss. Good morning. It is day seven of the Mongol Rally. We worked so hard to get into Malddova and had such a good time yesterday that we've decided to stay for an extra day. So, Cara and I are up early before everybody else. We're heading to the big central market and then later this afternoon. We're going on a super unique Maldovian wine tour. It's kind of like an ultramarathon except we're not running. We're just getting taken from one place to the next in a train. So, this is kind of like our first rest day, although I'm not sure how restful it's actually going to be. We are really in the heart of the market now. This is one of my favorite kinds of local markets. It's full of locals and
it's kind of like Walmart. There's tons of local produce, handpicked flowers, fresh herbs, but then there's just everything else you could possibly need like shoes, clothes, pillows, coffee pots, paper towels, cookies. I mean, just everything. And this is just where people come stock up for the week. It's so much better than Walmart. I need some fiber. So, we were just walking in circles and this kind local came up to us and said, "You should go in here." And it's this huge like refrigerated area with tons of fresh cheese. Like the smell of cheese just smacks you in the face, but it smells amazing. The cheese here is like salty and moist and crumbly. So good. But I can't eat it.
[screaming] I'VE worked walnuts covered in honey. Wow, that looks so good. Can't have honey either. It's like burada. A salty burado. Yum. I just watched fire and she pointed at it and she basically said, "Try it." is what I assume in Romania. They speak Romanian here, not Muldoven. So, we've learned throughout our travels that when you travel to places that don't get tourists often, I think people just have more capacity to go out of their way and like make your experience more special. And since entering the market, we've already had three people come up to us just telling us different
things we had to see, places we had to go, telling us welcome to Malddova. Like this whole country so far has just been so full of the kindness of strangers. Look at this mountain of groceries. I just want to like This market is never ending. I love it. All the produce is so beautiful and it's so busy. So, this market has been here for over 200 years, and there's over 2,500 stalls, and apparently the whole thing is kind of run by babushkas or grandmothers. Just when I think we've seen it all, it just keeps going. Just had an amazing experience. I'm buying a few little vegetables to take back. And I picked up two of these cucumbers and asked like, "Can I put
these on the scale to buy?" And he looked at me and then was just like I was like, "Oh." And I like went to put them back and he was like, and he just told me to take them. So many friendly people. Oh my gosh. Just waving and saying hello and asking us where we're from. This is obviously a place where people come and stock up on things. I haven't seen anyone buy a singular vegetable yet except for me. That is five beaches for 50ents. I'm really hoping this is just the beginning. like on the Mongol Rally. We're just going to keep experiencing places like this cuz we're just getting further and further away from the popular countries.
Cheers. I love it here. Oh my gosh. Wow. So good. All right. So our day two here in Malddova. The first day was an absolute ripper. And uh we were greeting the parking lot with wine and we decided this morning we woke up and we should go directly back to another place to drink more wine. But it is actually one of the world's largest underground wine seller storage areas from what we understand. There's a couple places like this here in Malddova. And we're going about 30 minutes north from Chisol, the main city to we believe it's pronounced winery.
Drink more wine. The rock. Frank, are you excited about this? Mhm. You going to keep me warm? Mhm. So, the reason that we chose this winery is because it has the second largest seller in the entire world. It's 75 m long. It's an old limestone cave that they've turned into a wine seller. When we got here, the receptionist said, "Did you bring any jackets?" Um, and we didn't, but apparently it's freezing down there. And this is an hour and a half tour, so we bought blankets. 54° can get cold. Woo! It's like a Disney ride. This is crazy. We have been melting today. This feels so good. This is beautiful. It's way fancier than I thought. I expected just like limestone walls. The walls look like marble.
Wow. Look at all these barrels. We are going so fast. Wonder when like the actual tour starts. Are they going to talk to us about They just drive us for 75 minutes. We just get a little road trip done. Disappearing into a dark tunnel. Wow, what a start. Yeah, I feel like a roller coaster. All right, first stop. 11 million bottles of wine. 70% of that is sparkling water. The wine literally goes on for further than you can see. There is two kilometers of bottles stored in here and it's all champagne style wine. This
winery was the first one to do it in Malddova and uh there are five ladies that are in charge of turning the bottles because they put yeast in it. That's what starts the secondary fermentation and they have to be turned by hand and it's five ladies jobs and it takes them 10 weeks. Off to stop number two. This place is so big that they literally have street sides. I think we're uh watching a movie. Cheers team. Cheers. What is wine? Is it hope or maybe it is a way of living? The movie was a little corny but also very fascinating. We learned that during the Soviet Union, Malddova was the largest wine producer and produced the
majority of the wine inside of the Soviet Union, which was absolutely massive. All right, stop number three. It's kind of like an ultramarathon, except we're not running. We're just getting taken from one place to the next in a train. So now we're in some sort of museum with like a bunch of really old wine bottles a lot back from when they were producing for the Soviet Union. And we learned that during the time of the Soviet Union, they were producing 40 million lers of wine here in Malddova. These bottles are so cool. They've just got like dust and mold on them. It's wild. They just said Angela Merkel has her own collection of wine. All these like European diplomats. I think so.
like she's on that wall over there and they're like, "Oh, some of these are diplines. Some of these people have their own collection of wine. Some are both like Angela Merkel. I don't like how many bottles of wine there are that they're never going to do anything with." I understand having like a section. There's like so many thousands that are just going to be here forever. I'm pretty sure I read online and we should uh fact check me that there are over a million bottles of wine stored in here.
These are from the USSR 1953. Crack one open real quick. Wo, that is mold. This is the oldest bottle in the whole collection from 1902. 1935. The moral of this wine story is drink the good wine while you're still alive. Yeah. A lot of this stuff's just falling apart, disappearing, evaporating. And uh the last stop of any wine tour. I mean, how you're not going to buy that? That's That's the one for sure. Part of the culture here. We're embracing it. By far the most interesting wine tour I've ever been on.
All right, for dinner tonight, we have driven out to the town of Oveki. According to archaeologists, this town has been continuously inhabited for over 30,000 years. And it's super famous for this beautiful monastery that sits up on this cliff. And underneath it, hundreds of years ago, the monks dug all of these tunnels. And they lived below the monastery in these tunnels. And tonight we're eating not at the monastery in a tunnel, but in another some kind of rock tunnel restaurant. I'm still wearing my hat. Should I go put it back? This is like even cooler than the winery we were just in. I like the rawness of And of course, there's still a bunch of wine stuck in the walls. And there's wine everywhere. We're
basically back at the winery this year. I ordered what the Mulovians call Muldoven. Mulovans. all what they call eggplant caviar. It's like smoked eggplant that's just been like with fresh dill on top which made me so happy because I saw this everywhere in the market today and it I think I ordered potatoes too. There aren't a lot of veg options for main courses so I ordered a bunch of sides thinking they would be about this big. One palenta. Two the biggest plate of pickle veggies I've ever seen. Three grilled vegetables. And I thought this was soup. And how many more do you have coming?
One more order of potatoes. No way. That's enough to feed this entire table. Also, each dish cost $5, which is another reason I expected them to be this big. Three, two, one. Perfect. All right, get on the bus. She loves you. Cuz I gave her chicken bus. Well, we almost had a pat. All right, back to the Chisna Hotel. I can't believe out of all the places that we chose to stay two nights, it was the Soviet hotel in Malddova. Tomorrow, if all goes as planned, we are heading to what might be the most unique place we
visit during the entire Mongol Rally. It's called Transnistria. And it's this autonomous region that sits on the border between Malddova and Ukraine. So they claim to be their own country, but like the UN doesn't recognize them as a country. Malddova, Ukraine, like it's basically a country that's not on a map. And from what we hear, it's basically like a time capsule of the Soviet Union. So when you go there, it feels like you're in the 1950s. And there technically is a border that we have to cross to get there. And with as much trouble as we had getting into Malddova, we're definitely not guaranteed to make it. But um we will see. And I really hope we do because it's one of those
places that like you kind of can't believe it still exists today. See you in the next one. Hey, I want to tell you something. I want to tell you something. The bus is a vibe. Okay, so I'm just waiting in line to buy my blueberry and a lady walked by behind me and like felt the cherry like the ripess and then she said something to the lady behind the cash register and then the lady behind the cash register started yelling and then she started yelling back and they had this little tip and then the lady threw the cherry back at her.
Some grandma drama going on in this market. Rick, how did you find this place? I mean, I got a very complex sort of system I use. I go into Google and I'm like sweet restaurants nearby. I love that you're carrying your sleeping bag through the winery. This was totally unnecessary. They really We obviously don't know Celsius Fahrenheit conversion very well. They told us it was going to be very cold and it was going to be 12°.
