ABOUT

 

Peter Searle is a graduate of the Australian National University (BA (Hons) 1977; LL.B (Hons) 1980) and Monash University (LL.M 1985), tour guide, chef and barrister.

The ANU is Australia’s national and international University, and nurtured Peter's travel bug to try to follow the footsteps of the early overlanders and his heroes,  Alexander the Great and Marco Polo.

Peter was awarded a scholarship by Moscow State University for a Master of Laws course in International Air and Space Law in Russia in 1980. However, Australia cancelled educational co-operation with Russia after Russia's invasion of Afghanistan, so Peter had to find another way to Moscow and Asia.

In 1980 Peter travelled to London and started work with Top Deck Travel as courier/tour guide on the London to Kathmandu/Sydney overland (Top Deck Asian Overland brochure). Gary Hayes and Peter drove a Top Deck double decker bus, Knackers, on the eastbound overland from London to Kathmandu. 

On Day 1 of a second overland trip, the Kathmandu to London westbound overland at Nagarkot, Nepal (September 18, 1980), looking through the clouds, fog and mist towards the direction of Mount Everest, Corrie Searle (nee Van Oostveen) and Peter resolved to cross the closed border from Tibet into Nepal as soon as the Chinese border opened. As it turned out, the border opened in 1985,  and they travelled through China and crossed the Himalayas from Tibet into Nepal in 1985.

These travel guide notes and itinerary recreate/consolidate Peter and Corrie's overland, Indian, China, European and Asian trips into one Asian Overland Year Book itinerary. The Asianoverland.net Year Book calendar starts the itinerary from Corfu, Greece on 1 January, where Corrie and Peter celebrated New Years Eve during a Winter European trip in 1980/1981, and continues through Europe, Russia-Scandinavia, Turkey, the Middle East, South Asia, Australia, South East Asia, China, across the Himalayas from Lhasa, Tibet to Kathmandu and back to London and Corfu. 

These notes summarise Peter's tour guide daily spiel of the country, plants, animals, people, and their history and customs. They could help you on a self drive tour, but you should take your time and enjoy the wonderful countries, plants, animals, people and history in your area.

Daily tasks are to feed yourself, preferably with the local "international meals" from country to country.

Monthly tasks are to consider how Asian overland and European history can assist in the peaceful settlement of international disputes.

Standard interlocutory orders for each monthly debate/moot are:

1. Applicant's written submissions by the 7th
2. Respondent's written submissions by the 14th
3. Oral submissions on or before the 21st (live, zoom or taped as the case may be)
4. Draft judgment and/or Treaty/Terms of Settlement/Consent Orders by the 28th.

Suggested debate/moot questions for the 2025 Asian overland are-

January (Europe) - Should Britain return the Parthenon Marbles to Greece?

February (Russia-Scandi) - Is Crimea and/or Donbas part of Russia?

March (France to Türkiye) - Does the Montreaux Convention, 1937 permit Türkiye to refuse Russian, British, American and Ukrainian warships entry to the Black Sea?

April (Middle East) - Is Kurdistan a State?

May (South Asia) - Is Imran Khan guilty of disclosing Pakistan State secrets?

June (Southeast Asia to Australia) – Are the Wiradjuri people entitled to native title rights in their traditional lands?

July (Australia to Java) - Is Rio Tinto liable to native title holders for the destruction of Juukan Gorge? 

August (East Asia) - Is Emperor Hirohito guilty of Japan's WW11 war crimes?

September (China, Tibet, Nepal) - Is Tibet a State?

October (India and Pakistan) - Is Kashmir east of the Line of Control part of India?

November (Palestine to Europe) - Is Palestine a State?

December (Winter European) - Is Galileo guilty of heresy for his flat earth theory?

 

© This work is copyright. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process, nor may any other exclusive right be exercised, without the permission of Peter Searle, peter@portseavillageresort.com; 1980-2024.