Three months ago I moved into a Van. To escape winter in Austria and be close to the Ocean. I was looking forward to finally be able to travel in a Camper so badly, but I didn´t think I would like it that much. I fell in love with Vanlife. And here is why:
Vanlife, that’s freedom on every single level. It´s a rolling home. More than just a Camper. Living in a Van
The conversion process
It all started when we converted the Van. We were simply sitting there, getting ideas on how to build the table, the bed, our workspace, the kitchen … Almost as if we would plan our own little house. Wait. We actually did plan our own little house – our little 6qm home on wheels. This was an exciting time!
On the one hand, there are so many options, on the other hand, you have to fit everything into a very tiny space. Also, I wasn´t going onto this journey by myself. It was the first time on my travel path, that I was planning to share my adventures with someone else. Which did not make it easier! Still. The idea of having everything with us and not having to carry your backpack from one hostel to another encouraged us. When we finally found a vehicle that would suit all our wished, we started converting it. It was an intense time, but there is something magic about building your own home. The spark of seeing everything slowly coming together and turning out to be your own work feels remarkable.
For everyone who wants to get more details into the conversion process – you can check out our Vanlife Instagram Account “salty
Packing up – so much space!
One of the big advantages of having your home with you is, that you are packing your whole life. It´s nothing compared to packing your backpack! Well, to be honest, I think in the end I am having the same amount of clothes with me, but what I mean is the following: I have my own kitchen stuff. My own bed linen and pillow. I have 2 surfboards with me (and boyfriend two more!), that I don’t have to carry around on my shoulder.
I have my Laptop, my UE Boombox, some books and a lot more, that I would normally don´t take with me. I can easily leave my things lying around on the bed without wondering if a stranger is gonna borrow it. Also, we have a little save hidden and fixed onto the Van. All my belongings are safe and so do I feel as well. Save. I arrived. This is my Home.
Home
This is my own space. I can do whatever I want, whenever I want. There is never ever someone coming into my room, waking me up or asking me to change into another bed. No one is gonna be in my Kitchen, using the pan that I planned to take for my pancakes. There are no other travelers that will take your food out of the fridge. My olive oil will only be
Every single time I come back to the Van it feels like coming home. Everything is familiar and I know where I leave my things. In the morning we open the doors and let fresh air in, breathing in the salty ocean air, I am thankful to be at home. Right now this word does not describe a certain destination. For
Be wherever you want to be
Having your own little rolling home also gives you the advantage of just moving whenever you feel like. If we like it somewhere, we stay there for way longer – as we did in Imsouane, Morocco for example. We can move with the waves and the swell, we are not attached to anything.
I wanna be honest with you: I did not think, that I would love it that much! This adventure was something that just happened and I am excited to see what´s next!
For everyone speaking German – you can check out our plattform www.mein-camperaubau.de where we are writing more about the conversion of the van, the travels, our budget and much more vanlife related contend!
