After completing the first natural gas-powered circumnavigation of the world, Rainer Zietlow and photographer Franz Janusiewicz started their next tour on September 17, 2007, in Berlin.
They drove a Volkswagen Caddy EcoFuel via Shanghai to Bangkok, arriving on November 15, 2007.
This 22,535-kilometer marathon drive was an on-road test for a new granulated material that was supposed to increase the range of natural gas as a fuel source. It was the first time a German natural gas car had driven across Nepal and into the Himalayan highlands to Tibet, crossing the access road to the Mount Everest base camp.
In China, the team attended the "Challenge Bibendum," the world's largest event of its kind for alternative fuels. Zietlow and Janusiewicz were the only participants to arrive by car. China has a well-developed network of natural gas stations, with many taxis and buses running on gas.
The team then traveled via Laos and Vietnam to Bangkok, where the Volkswagen Caddy EcoFuel was presented at the world's largest natural gas trade fair.
Once again, Rainer Zietlow donated to the charity SOS Children's Villages. For every kilometer driven, 20 euro cents went to two Children's Villages in Kathmandu, Nepal, and Lhasa, Tibet.
