Croatian markets filled with seasonal fruits. Oh my! A pomegranate the size of my head, super fresh clementines & lemons, hot chestnuts, the most succulent figs and carob(the long brown pods) which I’ve never eaten like this before – you just bite of a chunk and chew. Tastes slightly chocolatey and a bit like coffee – I’ve used the flour before as a cocoa substitute as it’s rich in protein & vitamins. Anyway – now it definitely feels like…
Beautiful evening in Split. Sunset is divine. Unfortunately we’re here because we think we left our passports at the Slovenian border control. They searched the van and the dogs were barking so it was a bit confusing – anyway that was the last time we remember them. We only realised this today. The British Consulate in Split have been so helpful but still, the border says our passports are not there so who knows where we lost them.…
I wrote a piece for Caught by the River’s Shadows & Reflections series. Here’s an extract (link in biog for full piece). Also, take some time to explore their site, it’s overflowing with beautiful words & art❤️. Photo of the van in Austria by Andy Garside… This has been a year of weavings and unravellings, of building a day from nothing; of inviting change into our lives, both good and bad and embracing the consequences; of responding to…
Croatia has won our hearts. Honestly the most friendly country we’ve visited so far. Yesterday after the jump-start-wine incident (see post below) we briefly met a general from the Croatian war of Independence who is a legend in his own lifetime around these parts – so much so that after he left people came to talk to us to tell us who he is and took time to explain just how much they admire and respect him. Then we…
Fashion takes on new dimensions living full time in a van without a heater. We all change our clothing to suit the weather – winter wool jumpers or summer shorts, but it makes me realise how much fashion is still really only useful for a very narrow set of temperatures. Probably because nowadays we spend the majority of our days in heated/air-conditioned buildings. When we first moved into the van it was November last year and already cold, but…
Parked up at the most amazing beach, but the rain is hammering down and it’s pitch dark outside. Time to get festive! We’ve always left Xmas decorations until quite close to the day. It feels weird seeing them around too early. Mainland Europe appears to have a more sensible approach to the whole thing so we’re not overwhelmed by Xmas tat. Neither of us are even slightly religious – I’d go so far as to say that I’ve felt…
One of the things I love about Vanlife is the sense of achievement that comes from small but significant things as we take greater control of our lives. This week all the chores needed doing at once: we had to sort out a new gas bottle suitable for exchange in the Balkans, fill the water tanks, do all the laundry, find a decent parkup… the list feels endless, but now, when we’re sat by the sea watching the sunset,…
Love my #topnine. A reminder of this crazy-amazing year and the promise of more to come. There’s photos here from the U.K., Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. My most travelled year ever. One to tell the grandson about when he gets older – we’ll fill his head with wild tales from abroad and hopefully take him on a few when he gets bigger. Last year I deleted Insta, Twitter & FB as they were becoming a burden instead…
Lessons learned today: no matter how many gas cylinders & adapters we have, there’s always room for more. Our original Calor gas can only really be replaced/refilled in the U.K. so we invested in Campingaz for Europe. But now discover neither of those are exchangeable in the Balkans. But now we have a beast of a gas cylinder that should keep us going for months and that fits our Calor adapter – so it turned out ok in the…