Prague to Japan by car: seven Czech old-timers en route to Osaka EXPO 2025
An ambitious expedition of seven cars, led by the legendary Czech-made 1959 model Tatra 603, took off from Prague Castle on June 21st. Inspired by the Sakura mission, in which four young Czechs hitchhiked to the first Osaka EXPO in 1970, the voyage has now completed its “European stage”, having crossed the Caspian Sea by boat into Kazakhstan.
The journey from Prague to EXPO Osaka is the brainchild of Josef Zajíček, mission leader and automotive entrepreneur, who pitched the idea in an unrelated conversation with Czech Commissioner General at the EXPO Ondřej Soška:
“He was showing me plans of the Czech pavilion, and he had a bunch of empty spaces around. So I asked: ‘What are you going to exhibit here?’ He said he didn’t know. So I said: ‘In Japan, we should show Czech cars and Czech industry. The Japanese appreciate it.’ In fact, the Japanese emperor was driving a Škoda, or Laurin & Klement as it was known at the time, in 1915-16. So Czech cars need to be there.”
The mission which ultimately emerged from that idea carries the name ROBOT – a word of Czech origin, coined by writer and playwright Karel Čapek in 1920. The trajectory itself draws inspiration from the 1970 Sakura mission, when four young Czechs were selected by Japanese TV to hitchhike all the way to the 1970 Osaka EXPO – an odyssey of nine months at the time.
A member of the Sakura mission, Zdeněk Thoma, was present at the delegation’s departure, along with President Petr Pavel and Japanese ambassador Kansuke Nagaoka. With their blessing, the seven veterans set out to travel a distance of roughly 16,000 kilometers spread across 13 different countries.
Through Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Turkey, the cars made their way to the Caucasus. As Zajíček points out, geopolitical tensions in the region were a complicating factor in the planning of the journey:
“You have the Georgia-Azerbaijan border, which has been closed to the public for five years now. Thanks to the Foreign Ministry and Czech embassy we managed to get a diplomatic note, so we have all the necessary documents.”
The mission has now successfully crossed Azerbaijan and the Caspian Sea into Kazakhstan, heading forth into Uzbekistan. In China and South Korea, the delegation will be joined by an escort, something that was not easy to secure, according to Zajíček.
The old-timers underway to Osaka are, after all, not a common sight on the road. Iconic Škoda models – Octavia (1961 & 1962), 100 L (1973), and 120 (1980) – are joined by the expeditions centerpiece, a Tatra 603 from 1959. According to Zajíček, they can expect an enthusiastic reception:
“When we went to Istanbul all of Turkey was on its feet, they were waving to us, so I think it definitely gets some excitement going. But I have to say we also have one Toyota in the group. I thought it would be nice to have both Czech and Japanese cars, so we took a Toyota on board. It was manufactured in Japan, and now it is returning there.”
The Toyota Celicia ST (1977) and a Ford Mustang Hardtop (1966) complete the septet of old-timers, together with a service vehicle as an honorary eighth member.
The aim of the self-declared “mission of friendship and peace between nations” is to complete the entire journey in 33 days, which would get the cars into Osaka just in time for the Czech national day at the EXPO, on July 24th.
Live location here: https://www.czecholdtimerexpress.cz/expedice-osaka/
