Six months on (the motorhome tour) and still living the dream!

It doesn’t feel like six months since we packed up all our worldly goods in a storage container, rented out our house and set off down the A1, bound for the Eurotunnel.  It still feels strange that we are not going back to our working lives, but a really nice feeling!

We are currently parked up at the bottom of Mount Etna, Sicilly contemplating life and what has happened since we left England on 27 December 2016.  We are watching the volcano carefully for any signs of eruption and have noted all exits from the car park!

Mount Etna, Sicily

In the last six months, we have:

Travelled – 6,748 Miles (10,797 kilometres)
Visited many countries (our route in red) – France, Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar, Morocco, Andorra, Monaco, Italy, and Sicily (autonomous region of Italy), and have many more to see.

We have:

·       Spent 39 wonderful days in Morocco, making it as far as the Sahara Dessert, and overcoming our apprehensions of the country.  Morocco is still our favourite country to date and ironically probably the one we have felt most safe in.

·       Encountered some scary moments on the roads in Italy, including a VERY NEAR miss on the scooter with a crazy Italian driver, and lived to tell the tale.

·       Survived each other’s company 24/7; although a few angry words have been spoken, we never stay cross with each other for long! 

·       Learnt some more foreign words – French, Spanish, a bit of Arabic and Berber, and Italian.

·       Become very familiar with shopping in Lidl – they are everywhere apart from Morocco… well, not yet!

·       Met some amazing and inspirational people on our travels.

·       Had lots of breakages on the motorhome and learnt to take a deep breath, not panic and be optimistic about getting them sorted.

·       Realised that materialistic things are no longer that important to us, but family and friends are.

·       Come to realise how popular motorhoming is abroad, mostly with the over 60’s but realised that age is no barrier, as we met a couple from Holland who were 80 years old.

·       Managed on a daily budget of €50 – so far!

·       Relied on our motorhome Mi-Fi for information from the internet and grabbed any ‘free’ wi-fi we can on the way. Used Apps such as Maps.Me (off-line), Camperstop and ACSI Card for cheaper stays at campsites, Caxton Card (for getting the best rate for your Euro).  Knowing where to stop for free, avoiding toll costs, making the most of the country you visit is key.
·       We have not seen daytime rain since the end of  February and experienced temperatures in the mid 40 degrees C.

·       Difficulty remembering what day of the week it is and the date!

·       To remember we are not on holiday – but what else do we call it...?

Since being away we have spent – €9,019.34 /  £7981.72 (based on £1 = €1.13).  When we left England the rate for the £1 was €1.18 and is now only €1.13)

What we have spent our dosh on:

Diesel for the Motorhome = €1,120.88

Petrol for the Scooter = €44.82

LPG = €41.16

Tolls = €262.93

Transport (Channel Tunnel, ferries, trains, buses) = €849.26

Repairs/Tyres for motorhome = €313.50

Food and Drink: 

   Supermarkets = €1,604.27

   Eating and drinking out = €1,979.15

Entries into = €464.20

Laundry = €94.00

Phone Cards (3 top-up cards for the Mi-Fi) = €115.30

Overnight stays on Campsites/Aires/Sostas = €1,066.68

Bank Charges from cash withdrawals = €127.15

Other (not covered in above) = €936.04

A lot has happened in the world since we left England, which just makes us want to grab every bit of fun and opportunity we can from life.  Our advice would be: 'don’t put off until tomorrow what you can get done today - life is too short'

Be Happy!

Sally and Mel x