A group of mentally ill Italian people are getting ready to smash stereotypes at home and abroad by following Marco Polo's tracks to China.
They are going to take an epic train ride around Eastern Europe and the Far East in the company of their families and their health professionals from August 8 to 28.
"The main aim is to combat the stigma and prejudices that too often complicate the lives of the mentally ill," said the Le Parole Ritrovate movement, which is organizing the trip with another Italian charity, ANPIS.
"The passengers will be the special ambassadors of a world without prejudice.
"This is the world that most of us want to leave to our children".
Organizers say it is particularly important to take this message to parts of the world where mental asylums still exist and where mentally-ill people are seen by many as a threat.
The tour will show that the mentally ill can be an active part of society with the same rights as the rest of the community, they say.
"Any initiative that puts the issue of mental health into an everyday context is vital," said Corrado Mandreoli of the CGIL trade union, which is one of the tour's sponsors.
"It combats prejudices and promotes the integration of the mentally ill into society and the world of work".
The group, who number over 210, will set off for Budapest from Venice on August 8.
They will then head for Moscow, where they will take the Trans-Siberian railway to the Russian city of Irkutsk in Siberia.
After that they will go the capital of Mongolia, Ulan Bator, before steaming towards their final destination, Beijing.
The group will meet politicians, charities and representatives of the mental health world along the way to raise this issue's media profile in the countries visited.
State broadcaster Rai will make a documentary about the expedition.
The mentally-ill participants will produce a tour travel log about their experiences too.
As well as the CGIL, the initiative - entitled Quel Treno Speciale per Pechino (That Special Train for Beijing) - is also being sponsored by the Italian Health Ministry, the European Union and the World Health Organization, among others.
