I now find myself in the french west coast In a free campsite directly on the coast traveling up to Amsterdam by camper-van. Well, actually it's my brothers van. It's not even a van, you'll see a pic at the bottom.
This morning I woke up in a hostel in San Sebastian. After driving from the south south of Spain all the way up to the Basque lands of the north, I arrived at that beautiful city, went swimming straight away, then rather than leaving to go camp somewhere I found a really cool modern well designed sexy lookin' surfer hostel bang in the center (it's called Surfing etxea if you are ever in the area). In less than 2 hour we were finishing our drinks at the hostel bar and heading out to dinner in the old town with a dutch couple, a another dutch solo traveler girl, a german guy who seemed funny but I didn't quite get and an english guy from Manchester who was doing the camino de Santiago, backwards, which I thought was rather cool. Devil like. We had some lovely octopus and a bunch of strange fusion delicacies whilst also consuming large amounts of alcohol. After that we went looking for "a place with cheaper alcohol". Needless to say, we all got absolutely mangoed. Completely chaired. We were super submarined. - Inside joke: You can use any noun with ed at the end with an english accent, and it will almost always be understood as drunk.- We got palmtreed out of our faces.
I love going to hostels precisely for this. It is so easy to meet new people. Staying in a hostel is an open invitation to being social. You find all the solo travellers all with great stories to tell. The sad part, is that in the morning, we all leave our own ways.
Sooo, I drove into France along the west coast heading north for about 3-4 hours all without taking any highways. You can select this option on google maps and its a wonderful way to see the country. You go through all the small towns. The architecture. The colours. The coast. Yes, no highway means the coast road. To get up to San Sebastian the days before I didn't do this. I bombed it up through Spain just to get here. The point of this trip is France.
The spot Im at now was recommended to me by my little hippy brother (he's not little, he's just younger than me. He's even taller than me!). He's done quite a few camper van trips and knows the spots. This one not only does not disappoint... It exceeds expectation. I am 20 meters away from the ocean, from an extensive beach that goes far on both sides with clear sand and dunes. And 40 meters behind me there is a deep forest with tall green trees.
This is my first camper van trip. Well, no thats not true. I've gone to Portugal with camper vans before, but they were short surf trips no longer than 7 or 8 days. The difference is that this time im going alone. And even though I am at some of the most amazing surf spots in the world, I do not have a board or wetsuit with me. Why? Because I am actually taking the van up to Amsterdam for my brother to pack up his apartment with his 2 guitars, piano, mic stands, guitar pedals, 4 massive speakers, two guitar amps and all his clothes. He is a musician hippy, he doesn't have many clothes, his things are music. He explicitly told me not to bring a board or anything that wasn't crucial. He needs all the space. He even wanted me to unscrew and take out the cupboard and kitchen table from the van. Also, I didn't bring a board possibly because I am not yet a "true blood surfer". But I'm sure you already knew that from reading my other post the unspoken side of surfing.
Traveling in a camper has It's pros and cons. You can go anywhere and sleep anywhere. But you have to shit in the wild (or hold it for many hours until you are at a petrol station), shower in public showers (or not shower, which happens more often in my case). Everything you need is here. I am sitting on the "bed", drinking mate, writing, in essentially what could be a home. It's warm and cosy. The view is spectacular. But there isn't much space. If I open the "door" there is the whole world at my feet. But ultimately, the door is open and there is less privacy. There is no wifi (of course) which is cool for disconnecting with the world and go into nature. But also, I need internet for my work. I've been using 4G, but the signal is not so stable. I am sure there is a lesson about modesty and using only the bare necessities you learn from travelling in a van... But I don't think im there yet. Another big distinction is travelling or living in a van. Im enjoying my time in the van and i've just started but I don't think I could live in one for a long time... Maybe 1 or 2 months max? I don't know...
The good stuff is still to come. But I think I enjoy more the hostel way of travelling. Meeting strangers and making improv plans on the spot and spending the day together. Maybe It's because I haven't met any people whilst being on the van except for the hostel night I took so I could shower (like proper shower). I also don't think I could live in a van... It's not really my world. But, the good stuff is still to come! Right? Right.
I also love driving, which is awesome for van travel. But I love driving fast. Not fast fast. Just fast enough for it to be exciting. A teaser. My usual car is a bit of a sports car... so I am used to an agile fast-accelerating close-to-the-ground watch-your-neck-for-the-whiplash type of feel whilst driving. This is quite the contrary. It's another concept. I have been driving slower than 110km on this thing (I got excited on a long downhill when I was able to slightly pass 130km. Wow the rush!) It's heavy and slow to accelerate. The suspension is a lot softer and it is 2m high, which makes the whole thing tilt to each side on each curve like a flag when the wind changes (sometimes even up to a point where you stop laughing and swallow). The clutch is so hard, its almost like doing a leg work out only with my left leg only. I get to see a lot more of the sights which is... the point... I guess?. the driving part is not a "fun drive" in itself. It's about the things you see. Not taking highways, passing through all the postcard french towns. It's a slow appreciative drive that fills your eyes/soul rather than your adrenaline. It's not what I'm used to, but it's growing on me.
I'd be lying if I didn't say the slow speed is not making me anxious...Those who know me, know that patience is not one (of my many) strengths. I am a loyal old time member of the club of the impatient.
At the club of the impatient... we host our yearly meetings... every six months... Blog comedy. How do you tell a joke in writing? It's not the same if you don't see me pulling a serious face when I say it. Do you know what else we do at the yearly meetings of the club of the impatient? We light the fireworks at 3pm. Acid sour humor. Love it.
It's strange this blog post... I've always written more likeee ideas. This has been based more around my trip, which is only starting. I wanted to tell you about how I am so rich because I dispose of more than 85% of my time to do exactly as I please and 100% of my location. I don't have to be anywhere, (which reverses to, I can be anywhere!) and I work significantly less than the average. I only need internet connection and im all good... Except that here, tonight, I don't really have it... Oh well.
I know lots of people who have done extensive travel with a van. I even have a few friends who have lived in one or are living in one now. It's really something. Everyone has their own experience... Last trips when I was with people, the van life seemed a lot less serious. I am now in charge completely which has its pros and cons of itself... but lets not drag this on too much. Its only been a few days and I feel like I've seen so much. And it's only getting started. I am excited for the rest.
Have you ever travelled by van? Do you want to? How long do you think you could live in a van for? Europe van destination recommendations? Let me know below!
Like always, sending love. Remember to do what you want. It is your life. Your time. Make it count. You are in charge of your own happiness.
The "Van" which is not really a van... It's a Land Rover Defender.
I think I will make a little video of this trip and start developing the Vlog part of this Blog.
Comentarios