I was on the subway on my way to the office when YouTube’s algorithm recommended a video from “The Mini Diaries.” Its protagonists: a 1976 Mini Cooper named Bob and its driver, somewhere in the Sahara Desert. On my phone screen, I watched the rugged landscape unfold, with the tiny car climbing hills and reaching villages in Tunisia where scenes from “Star Wars” were filmed. At one point, when the driver paused to share tips on maintaining and repairing Bob, my eye caught the car’s frame – covered with small verses written in Greek, like good-luck charms. Jorge Donios, an engineer and photographer based in the northern port city of Thessaloniki, took a 50-day road trip across Tunisia last spring, covering 7,500 kilometers in this little Mini.

How I met Bob 

In 2006, parts of the Egnatia Odos highway in Epirus were still under construction, and Donios was working there as an engineer. “I was driving back to Thessaloniki and stopped in Ioannina for a meal. In a square, I saw Bob parked with a ‘For sale’ sign. I fell in love instantly. I went back to Thessaloniki, but the next day I returned to Ioannina by intercity bus and decided to buy it.” He named it Bob after its chassis number, which contained the letter “B,” a mark showing it had been assembled in Belgium.

Road trips had always been one of Donios’ favorite pursuits, but he dreamed of the day he’d embark on a truly long and ambitious one. “I was inspired by people posting their journeys on YouTube, but what really lit the spark was an essay by Greek writer Nikos Dimou titled “The Man Who Was Preparing His Car.” The story was about a man who spent his life keeping his car ready for a great journey. Before he finally set out, he died – and never made the trip. That’s when I told myself, the time had come.”

Using his engineering skills, Donios repaired and modified Bob for the demands of a challenging road trip, added a few of his own inventions, and mapped a route to Tunisia via southern Italy and Sicily. “At first, you’re scared – thinking of a thousand things that could go wrong. But the moral satisfaction of having transformed a car yourself and then driving it down an endless straight road in the Sahara makes you feel whole.”

When he left Thessaloniki, rushing to catch the ferry in Igoumenitsa, in western Greece, the calendar read March 16, 2025.

Wit and battle-ready

As we talk, it quickly becomes clear how naturally he speaks and how effortlessly he connects with people. That same gift helped him meet locals willing to open their homes to him. “To manage my limited budget, I stayed with a family in the coastal town of Monastir in exchange for work. For three weeks, a few hours each day, I worked with the father of the family at the shipyard. He had an old schooner, and I helped repair it. Although the stop delayed my journey, it gave me the chance to truly get to know the people and the place. Those people made me feel at home – as if I were part of their family.”

One of his most memorable experiences was stumbling upon an electronic music festival, where artists from across the Arab world gathered in a desert oasis to perform beneath the starry sky. The return trip to his accommodation, however, proved unexpectedly challenging. “I try to avoid driving at night because of poor visibility – unless it’s absolutely necessary. At one point, I thought my tires had run over a plastic bag. The next day, I heard noises coming from the wheel. Something was wrong – I discovered a rusty ball of wire. It could have cut my brakes or damaged the suspension, but luckily, it didn’t.”

Bob never failed him. After all, he was well prepared. Donios’ luggage was minimal – most of the car’s space was taken up by spare parts and tools, ready for any emergency. “He got me there and back like a true champion. Still, in my rush to ensure every mechanical detail was perfect, I ended up neglecting myself.”

The big opportunity 

Now back in his garage in Thessaloniki, he’s working to improve the Mini Cooper so that on his next journey, the physical strain from long hours of driving will be as light as possible. At the same time, he’s carefully preserving the handwritten messages and wishes left by friends and people he met along the way, protecting them from the wear of time.

By the time you read these lines, Donios may already be somewhere in Asia, following the path of the Silk Road. He hasn’t yet decided whether to circle the Caspian Sea or head toward China, but he sees this as the perfect moment to make his dream come true. “I’ve saved some money, and since I’m not working right now, I have the luxury of time.”

Bob, of course, is ready for whatever comes next.

This article was first published, in Greek, in Kathimerini’s K magazine.