Today we embarked on a whole new journey. Not only have we never spent time in a campervan, we have never driven on the left side of the road, co-piloted in a country that is backwards to everything common sense to us Americans, been able to walk around and go to the bathroom in our moving vehicle, sit above the driver's head, or prepared a meal inside a closet, which is both our vehicle and bedroom. This will truly test Dad and his fascination with the tiny house movement, not to mention test all of us on a whole new level! But hey, our oldest wanted to have his 4th birthday party in an RV, so we are doing our best to make every dream a reality-ha!
It is common for tourists to travel this way in New Zealand. The scenery is phenomenal and we've heard some of the best moments are when one gets off the beaten track and explores a bit.
After a lesson on our new multi-purpose vehicle, we started with a short drive to a supermarket to stock up on meals for a couple of days. Unsure of where we would be spending the night, we re-evaluated our later-than-expected start and came up with Plan B for our destination - Waitomo. This spontaneity is a big stretch for one of us firstborns for sure! Our first journey was about 2.5 hours south and somewhat in the rain. Starbucks in hand, we set off and only missing one turn, we felt fairly proud of ourselves. Along the way the kids wrestled, did gymnastics and only needed reprimanding 102 times. We found our destination in the parking lot of what seems to be an almost-deserted restaurant at the top of a hill, on an animal farm. This is referred to as "free-camping", which means that because our vehicle is self-contained we can park here for free overnight. It's rained the whole time since we parked, which has confined us to the camper only.
We managed to make an excellent spaghetti dinner and only broke one glass-yeah this will be interesting :)
There are three beds (unusual sizes but maybe queen-ish), one is above the driver/co-pilot, one is right behind the driver & co-pilot seats, and one is in the back. Each bed can be partitioned off by curtains. There are areas behind both the driver & co-pilot's seats to erect a small table each, and an area in the back where we set up a larger table and managed to fit all of us around it for dinner. The "kitchen sink" folds down flat, and we learned immediately that everything needs to be in its place or things fly when we drive. Our bathroom is going to create some interesting maneuvers to allow us adults to shower... There is a toilet and a small sink, with all of the walls made of a shower material. The faucet for the sink is on a vertical rod so that when you shower you just raise the faucet and TADA... the entire sink, toilet and all become part of the shower closet..awesome!
Neat! Lisa Medin and I are also taken with the tiny house movement! We will all have to talk when you return. Love to you all wherever you might be today. May you walk the path of blessing and find your little hands in the Father's great big hand. <3
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