Meet the Schmidts: German family traveling across India in an ’80s Mercedes truck – Times of India

What do you get when you combine a German couple’s love for travel, an ’80s Mercedes-Benz truck, and a map of the world? Simply put, a grand adventure. Meet Thorben and Mitchie Schmidt, a German couple currently traveling the Silk Road with their two children, Romy (8) and Levi (6). TOI Auto in Leh caught with family, Ladakh and talked to him about his experiences and his self-modified truck, which was affectionately nicknamed ‘Frog’.

The couple told TOI Auto that they have been traveling around the world for the past 12 years. they went on their first tour Germany Came to India in 2010, during which he traveled in a 1946 year old Mercedes-Benz van. The journey lasted for a year and since then the couple has not looked back. In 2012, the couple spotted an 80s 911 Mercedes-Benz truck near Agonda beach in South Goa while on vacation. At the time, the truck belonged to another German couple who were looking to sell it. schmidts Bought the truck and shipped it back to Germany where they self-modified the truck and have been using it ever since. In 2015, a family of three, the Schmidts took their Panamericana trip. He drove his truck to the United States, New York, from where he traveled to Alaska, covering the Arctic Ocean and all the way to Argentina. Levi was born mid-trip in 2016, when the family was in Mexico. He further took a detour to Brazil, from where he drove the truck back to Germany in 2017.

Originally a 1980-year Mercedes-Benz LA911B border patrol truck, the ‘frog’ has been heavily modified by Thorben to accommodate his family during their long trips. Currently, Mercedes-Benz OM 352 inline 6, diesel engine, is powering the house on wheels. The 5,675cc engine produces 131PS of power and can pull up to 9 tonnes of weight. Thorben has added a special 500-litre diesel tank that gives the truck a range of up to 2,700 km when it is full. The truck also gets a switchable all-wheel-drive powertrain and a rear-differential lock. The 20-inch 365/80 section multipurpose tires keep the family rolling on all terrains. Thorben makes sure to keep the two rear parts of the truck together at all times.

The 8.5 square meter motor home has a living room, bathroom, kitchen and four beds. The on-board water provision includes 400-litres of freshwater and an additional 40-litres of hot water, which can be heated during the cooling cycle of the engine and heater. Thorben has also added a 960W solar panel on the roof of the truck and a 200Ah lithium battery to power the 148 liter refrigerator and other essential electronic components and features. A complete set of tools and spare parts are neatly kept in a storage box at the rear of the truck, which helps the family run their household at all times.

In 2019, the family of four decided to go on their third expedition and cover the historic Silk Road. He began his journey from Germany, and traversed Eastern and Southern Europe before sending the truck to Israel. From Israel he went to Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Oman and UAE. But in March 2020, he got stuck due to the COVID-19 induced lockdown and had to go back to Germany, leaving behind his beloved truck. Eventually, the truck was parked in the UAE for 1.5 years until the family resumed their journey in September 2021.

From Dubai, the ‘frog’ was flown to Mumbai in December 2021 and Schmidt has been exploring India ever since. He first went to Goa and from there to Hampi in Karnataka. During his travels, he also visited several places in Kerala before heading towards Ladakh. According to Michi, his original plan was to reach Mongolia and travel to Kazakhstan, Khergistan and Uzbekistan. But the ongoing lockdown due to a new spread of Covid-19 in China has forced them to re-chart their campaign. Now the German family plans to travel to Nepal and return to India before heading to Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. They look forward to completing their Silk Road campaign through China in 2023.

While many would say that traveling is the best school in life, both parents make sure to keep their children’s educational qualifications updated during their travels. For this, they were able to obtain special permission from a children’s school in Germany, which keeps them up to date with the academic schedule. The curriculum is home school because online education is not possible for Schmidt children due to being in remote areas. When a new grade begins, new books are shipped wherever the family is traveling.

When asked why the family chooses to live this life, Meichi says, ‘For us, traveling is a way to feel free, see the world and see how it really is. Contrary to what the mainstream media was telling us about these countries, we wanted to experience them ourselves. Meet people and experience different cultures, food and everything else.’
Social media ignored the visit of the Schmidt families, the couple runs an Instagram page called hippie.trail, which currently has 123,000 followers. As he travels through the countries, he meets his many followers and always shares and makes new memories.