ADVENTUROUS King’s duo Phil and Merrick busked and bartered their way from London to Germany in less than 36 hours – without spending a dime of their own money.
The daredevil globetrotters set out without a penny in their pockets, relying on random well-wishers, a cheeky spot of fare dodging and their slick charm (with a bit of shoddy German thrown in).
What’s more, the students raised a £180 bounty for charity as part of the GKT RAG Soc.
The 36 hour dash began outside Guy’s campus at 9am where the pair set off with four rival Roadrunner teams, all competing to get as far from London as possible.
They hopped on a clipper ferry down the Thames, which they managed to negotiate for free through a friend at the boat company.
Phil playing the guitar outside the Louvre in Paris
After charming a bus driver, they travelled from Embankment to Victoria without parting with a single penny.
They raised £100 in loose change by busking at Victoria coach station and spent it on a bus to Dover and a ferry to Calais – driving into Paris at 6am.
“[We] sneaked on and off the Metro and got to the Louvre in time for the sunrise,†the boys remember. After touring the streets of Paris, they arranged a free ride share with a “random Russian guyâ€.
"Random russian guy" (right) and Merrick (left)
Arriving in Luxembourg later in the afternoon, they once again jumped the barriers onto a train to Trier in Germany.
Yet it seemed the boys were to finally run out of luck when a ticket conductor approached them – or so they thought. “Phil speaks German,†Merrick remembers, “we convinced [him] to let us go free†(avoiding a hefty €150 fine).
Finally, they reached Trier after covering 512 km through four countries in less than 36 hours.
They then flew back home to London from Luxembourg – raising a grand total of £180 for charity East African Playgrounds.
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