Istanbul

It's the end of their journey, and Mom & Dad make a final stop in Milan. They probably shouldn't have.

Mom & Dad fly to Athens, and then take a ferry to Hydra to spend a few dreary days on the island. Later, they head to Zagreb and leave almost immediately.

Mom & Dad spend a few days in Istanbul. They also say a bittersweet goodbye to the bus.

A run-in with the Iranian military leaves Mom & Dad feeling uneasy, Dad has a Turkish steam bath, and the bus breaks down (again & again & again).

After 2am tea in Kandahar, the bus breaks down in the Desert of Death on the way to Herat. So Mom & Dad hitch a ride with a drug smuggling Dutchman driving a beat-up old Chevy across Afghanistan.

Four days in Kabul. Mom & Dad go antiquing, explore the backstreets and dance the night away at a disco. Kabul is better than they expected.

After an inauspicious start, the bus journey from Delhi to Istanbul begins. Mom & Dad spend a night in Lahore, have lunch in Peshawar and trundle through the infamous Khyber Pass.

A series of mini mishaps befall Mom and Dad. In Benares, they nearly get trampled by a bull and have to wait 11 hours for their train. In Delhi they go see a movie, Ben Hur, and it breaks down; later they get locked in a linen closet. But in Agra they are able to see the Taj Mahal in peace - it's 1971 and there's no crowds.

Mom & Dad spend a week in beautiful Kathmandu. They do lots of bike riding, frighten some monkeys, and Mom gets an earache. We learn that yak skin jackets are a thing in 1971.

Mom & Dad battle crowds at the Calcutta train station, trade money on the black market (!) and finally arrive in Kathmandu. They do see Mt Everest from the bus.