It's time to leave for our first camping experience in a van. A little nervous and excited, we stuffed the fridge with some food and got our clothes ready for the little adventure. At that moment, we realized how easy it was to leave with a van! Everything we needed was already in our second home: bed, dishes, camping accessories, firewood and other essentials. The only thing left to do is to fill the water tank and off we go!
The road is lovely and sitting in a bus is a way better experience. With the wide windshield and the height of the seats, we can really appreciate the landscapes. 90km/h is our cruising speed. The bus is heavy and the suspension is not very smooth over the several bumps on the road, this is one of the disadvantages of a school bus. We have to slow down even more on the small country roads because the tight turns become difficult and the road conditions deteriorate. We notice at this moment there is a couple of cars stuck behind us! We feel bad to cause traffic but we're doing our best to let them pass. We notice that people are comprehensive when they see our old machine and it is much more pleasant not to be in a hurry on the road. We raise the volume of the music and enjoy the landscapes with an iced coffee in hand. Life is good! My brother invited us to spend a few nights at his cabin in Saint-Calixte. Once we arrived at our destination, we chose to park in a quiet spot near the forest to experience the "vanlife".
We can hear a little creek a few steps from the bus and it makes the atmosphere very peaceful. There is a lot of natural light in the bus, thanks to the multiple windows. You can see everything around and it doesn't feel like a small space. It took us some time to get used to this new way of life but it is still weird to sleep, cook and shower in a van. The weekend went smoothly and we enjoyed our experience.
We start the day by opening the curtains and preparing a coffee in the bodum. It is always a little chilly in the van in the morning when we're in the mountains. Even in July! That makes us wanna stay in bed under the blankets a little longer. The next step is to make ourselves a tasty breakfast: croissants toasted directly on the stove with scrambled eggs and a couple of fruits on the side. This is what you call glamping! The rest of the stay in Saint-Calixte is a compilation of picnics, BBQ, small hikes around the creek, dipping in the water and evenings around the fire.
Thanks to my brother for letting us use the toilet in the cabin! It's the only thing missing in the van. It's not a big deal because the vanlife challenge is to learn to find bathrooms on the road. We are now initiated to this lifestyle and quickly got used to it!
