An Argentine family concludes a 22-year journey around the world by car, during which they gave birth to 4 children (photos)

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An Argentine family will conclude tomorrow in the Argentine capital (Buenos Aires) a rare and crazy travel trip by car that was supposed to last six months, but it lasted 22 years, and included more than a hundred countries, during which the couple had four children, and concluded in the end that "humanity is wonderful."

In Gualeguaychú, northwest of Buenos Aires, which is one of the last stages of the journey and is a few hours and 230 kilometers from the final stop, Hermann is torn between saying "my dream is over" or "my dream came true".

"Everything was more beautiful than we imagined," he adds, and this is the most important thing for him.

When the couple set out on their journey, they were 31 and 29 years old, comfortable financially, owning a house in the suburbs of Buenos Aires, and wanting to have children.

But before that they wanted to fulfill their old dream of taking a six-month road trip from Argentina to Alaska, and so the adventure began, with them starting with $4,000.

Someone offered them an old 1928 Graham-Big for sale with wood-wrapped tires and barely able to drive, unfit for a trip like this.

However, the couple liked it, so they decided to use this "archaeological" vehicle on their journey.

They identified themselves with a sticker they put on the car, indicating that they are a "worldwide family".

With the "Graham-Big", which became the star of the trip, the number of countries it toured reached 102. The car traveled 362,000 kilometers, although it only traveled a few hours at each stop, and not at a daily pace, due to its age.

Car opens doors

"It doesn't have the best seats, it doesn't have the best shock absorbers and it doesn't have air conditioning. It makes the driver alert, but it was amazing," Hermann told AFP.

It is noted that it crossed the hearts of people, thus it constituted a source of joy for them, and prompted them to extend a helping hand to him and his wife.

Changes were made to the car since the first kilometers of the journey, which was limited to fifty kilometers on the day of its launch on January 25, 2000, before it broke down for the first time... The family had to undergo a number of repairs, and then made a major change in it represented by enlarging its size and adding 40 centimeters to it. Because the family has grown up, it includes Bamba, who is currently 19 years old, born in the United States, Tehio, 16, who was born during a visit to Argentina, Paloma, who was 14, who was born in Canada, and Alabi, who was 12 years old, who was born in Australia. Forget Timon the dog and Hakuna the cat.

And the car often represented a “main residence” for the family, as the children slept inside a tent on its roof while the parents slept inside, while the entire car was covered with cloth to preserve privacy.

"The house is small, but the garden is large, with beaches, mountains and lakes," Hermann jokes. "If you don't like the place, you can change it!"

But in fact, the family used to sleep mostly with residents in the areas where they settled, as they were hosted by more than 2,000 families in the world, according to Hermann.

"We would never have imagined that people in the world could be so kind. The humanity we belong to is wonderful," he says, adding that "many people helped us because they wanted to be part of a dream."

People are the most important discovery 

, and the trip was not always beautiful and perfect, as they faced great difficulties after witnessing conflicts and crises, experiencing bird flu in Asia, Ebola in Africa, dengue fever in Central America, and Hermann contracting malaria.

Every three years the family would return to Argentina for two or three months to visit their relatives, and then they would leave not only because they were attracted to the landscapes that prevail in regions and countries from Namibia to Everest and from Egypt to Peru, but also because their most important discovery was people.

It is difficult to predict the future after two decades full of details mentioned in a series of three books entitled "Capture Your Dream", of which 100,000 copies were sold, and part of the proceeds contributed to financing the adventure.

While Hermann points out "thousands of options", he points to the possibility of taking a cruise around the world.

Children are not enthusiastic about the idea of ​​face-to-face learning in a school after spending years learning through correspondence or the help of their mother, and geography lessons were unparalleled during them.

However, a delay may face the family in light of the successive crises the world is witnessing, forcing people to stay in their countries.

Hermann believes that there is no reason to change plans, and says, "We get out of Covid to enter a huge war, and if we wait for the right moment, there will always be a reason not to achieve our dreams."

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