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Monday 8 February 2016

My grand plan revealed, and will someone please tell spring to slow down?

I've never been a spendthrift - I was brought up to save money "for a rainy day" or "for my old age". Credit cards were only to be used when you could afford to pay them off at the end of the month. I've had the odd splurge here and there; who hasn't, but I was always fearful of the thought of being broke in my old age and only having a tiny pension to try to live off. K on the other hand was a bit of a spender when I first met him, but over the years I have got that under control ;-) although I do sometimes question his spending! He'll be reading this so I can't say too much!

However things have changed. Around the time that my chemo was ending my elderly uncle suddenly died (peacefully and painlessly) and I learned that some money was coming my way. Now in recent years we have been noticing motorhomes more and more on our travels and thinking that would be a rather useful way to holiday. We have always had touring types of holidays together and as we take everything but the kitchen sink with us (picnic gear, travel kettle, lots of books - bird ID, where to go to find said birds and guide books etc etc, not to mention photography equipment) it has been a tiring pain in the you know what with all the loading and unloading of the car at hotels and motels. OK buying a motorhome for the occasional holiday is very expensive but the idea of being able to take off for a couple of days here and there and exploring more of our local patch i.e. Brittany and the other regions around us, particularly out of the holiday season here, sounds divine. And so it was that I announced that I was going to buy a motorhome out of the money I was getting from my Uncle (reasoning that K couldn't complain cos it was my money!). I have been researching the subject for months - however there were two problems. We couldn't keep the van at home due to our steep sloping drive (and nowhere to park it anyway), and even if we found somewhere to keep it there was the small matter of the chickens and cats. Now this was a part of the reason for thinking about moving house because we could have found somewhere with large enough hard standing/parking and we wouldn't have carried on keeping poultry.

Those who read my post a few weeks back know that we decided to stay here after all and that decision was made partly after having a chat with our English neighbours about ways we could help each other out when we (each) went away. For us we will always get in housesitters when we are away for a couple of weeks, but it's the 1-3 nighters that we would like to do regularly that would have been the problem. My lovely neighbour has said she is happy to pop round and see to the chickens (and cats) as she rather likes them and that it is no problem (and if you are reading this there will be plenty of free eggs coming your way!). We also need a place to park the van the night before setting off somewhere - we can park outside our gates for loading and unloading but it's a bit big to leave there overnight so they don't mind us parking it in their flat parking area then.

And so we went shopping. By this time my OH was starting to get cold feet because of the cost, which isn't helped by the fact that there are lots of optional extras which all cost loads more money - the cheeky manufacturers charge huge amounts for certain things, many of which you can get yourself elsewhere (like TVs!) for a fraction of the cost. But many things need to be fitted into or onto the van and some of those things need to be done in the factory whilst the van is being built, although some can be done afterwards by the dealer if they have a workshop.

Finding a van to suit two tall people especially one who is 195cm tall when some of the vans have a ceiling height of just that isn't easy. But those with a height of 198cm turned out to be fine. So we looked at various models including the 'gin palace on wheels' (his words) which I really, really liked but was 'rather' expensive. Finally the lady showing us around took us inside to show us a van which was on special offer as it was last year's model, and they were trying to sell it to make space for this year's new models. It was perfect for us and had quite a hefty discount and even without that was actually cheaper than the ones I'd been looking at originally, but I had discounted that range because the website wrongly stated that the ceiling height was 195cms! K was happier seeing the price of this one and so we went back for him to test drive it and to look at it again and make our decision. He was happy with it, the seats are comfy, the beds (it's a twin bed model so no climbing over the other one to get to the loo in the middle of the night) are really comfy and long enough, it has a great big garage area in the back to fit tables, chairs, BBQ etc and loads of storage space inside. Plus the payload is high enough so we should be able to carry all those items without worrying about being overloaded. So we have siged on the dotted line, have ordered some extras that can be fitted in their workshop like a sun awning and we'll pick it up at the end of the month.

We were also dead lucky as we found a lock up garage to keep it in only 20 mins away at a place where people can keep their caravans, motorhomes, boats etc under cover when they can't keep these large vehicles at home. We got the only garage free out of 87 of them!! So that's sorted then.

I know I waffle a lot but I find it difficult to say things in few words but if you will bear with me just a little bit longer I wanted to also explain just WHY I decided to throw caution to the wind and splurge on such an expensive item. Yes I know it will devalue as soon as we buy it (although being a 2015 model possibly less so than a 2016 model?); we also have to pay for insurance, the garaging, the cost of kitting it out (but that's mostly a one off) and as we won't be touring for weeks on end regularly or setting off to the sun in Spain for 3 months during winter we won't be really getting our money's worth out of it that way. (That's mostly due to having cats). 

It's because of having had a brush with death - it makes you look at life in a different light. I want to live for and enjoy NOW. The worst thing in the world that could happen would be if my cancer were to return and all I had done in the intervening years was the same old same old. So I don't care about the money, I don't care if this costs us loads in running costs or if we lose money over it. I don't care about saving for my old age right now. I just want to have some fun and get to GO places after more than 18 months of being mostly stuck at home.* And I feel that with a camping car it's a bit more suited to being less than fit. We can park up, go for a walk then come back, have somewhere comfy to sit and put the kettle on. Then drive off to explore other new places. And camping is a whole new world for me and will be fun and different, albeit in a slightly more comfortable way than the average 'camping'. My only experience is a two man tent sleeping on hard ground in the Australian outback in winter, absolutely freezing because I hadn't realised that the desert would be hot during the day and really cold at night! And I've slept in a static caravan on holiday when I was about 10 which was full of spiders which absolutely terrified me.... I've changed a lot, haven't I? Hahaha! 

* K does feel the same way - this is not me being entirely selfish. At least I hope not.   




The following is a photo from the Burstner website of the kitchen - it will take some getting used to preparing meals in such a small space with so little work surface! Of course the vans are somewhat smaller inside than the glossy website photos would have you believe.


In other news we have finished lopping off branches and raising the canopy on some of the trees to let in more light, or to generally get past without having to duck.

Here we were removing some branches as my little Liquidambar was starting to
reach over towards the light a bit - it's the tree on the right.

Spring is happening much too early and I had my first daffodils starting to open at the beginning of the month which is about a month earlier than what I'd consider the average here. But most strange is my rhododendron starting to flower! I've checked back over several other years' photos and it is definitely April when it blooms normally.

There are more flowers out on it now than when I took this photo last week!

Small flowered narcissus.

More daffies/narcissus.

Pulmonaria, which does flower early.

Snowdrops.

And of last year's flowers....
the Calendulas are still alive and starting to flower again
although this specimen looks a bit soggy!

There are many more buds waiting to open up on the plant.

Hallie caught asleep with my phone camera.

Harry was asleep with his leg sticking out like this
but I woke him without meaning to so he gave me a filthy look....

...then tucked his leg in and went back to sleep again.
Suffice to say these baskets are in front of the wood burner!

That's it for now - blogging may be intermittent due to many things needing doing re both kitting out the new motorhome and tons more research, so that we don't look like complete and utter idiots when we first get the show on the road. :-)

39 comments:

  1. A great decision and for all the right reasons - life is for living. If you're ever this way, we'd love to see you both. Enjoy your adventures.

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    1. Thank you Ian. You never know - this autumn we want to see more of the Pyrenees but another time I would like to see more of the Atlantic coast of Spain as we have only been along the Basque bit. You don't even have to make up the spare bed! ;-)

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  2. Wonderful, we will be taking delivery of our MH at the end of Feb too! We shall both have to get used to much reduced kitchen space. I share your excitement! Enjoy enjoy enjoy! X

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    1. Maybe we will meet in a campsite or aire one of these days, Ladybug!! The only downside to my new kitchen is that it doesn't have an oven - I would have had one if we'd ordered a brand new one but they said it would be difficult to retro fit one now. So no being lazy and buying pizza! I'm excited for you too. xx

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    2. Ours hasn't got an oven either but we've got a cadac gas BBQ which I reckon we'll make good use of. Don't intend cooking too much anyway! We most certainly could bump into each other, how cool would that be. :-) hubby busy 'researching' sat dishes etc and it looks like we're off to the motorhome show in Brum at the end of the month *rolls eyes* what haveiI let myself in for! lol

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    3. Haha I'd love to have a show to go to - I believe they have one here in Rennes in November, of course that will be after we've spent a fortune knitting the thing out. We haven't got to satellites yet, reckon we'll survive on DVDs to start with, but certain equipment for receiving wifi better is on order.... boys and their toys, eh. I'm choosing the duvet covers!! I'll message you on fb as it's easier!

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  3. So pleased to hear about your Grand Plan. It sounds a brilliant idea and will suit you both so well. I hope you have years and years of pootling around, watching birds and photographing insects. The campervan looks exceptionally smart and comfortable and I'm sure you'll both enjoy a new lease of life doing something exciting and different. xx

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    1. I thought it would always be an unattainable dream Sandra, and I'm so looking forward to proper spring, better weather and visiting some birding sites for the migration season, oh and seeing some more of Brittany, amongst other places! Thank you xx

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  4. Gin palace is quite close. I did wonder if mentioning birding places a lot would eventually entice you into the camping lark.

    Excellent plan and strangely, one of my favourite throwaway comments is "it's only money". Now we only have to match holiday dates and campsites and then you can name all the birds I don't recognise.

    Get planning. 😎
    xx

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    1. I've been envious every time you've got in the camper, Nick, especially the getting away from Xmas by hiding in Spain 'somewhere'! Oh the gin palace I really would have liked would have cost about 13K more (you should have heard K's gulps) but once I learned about payloads it was discarded cos what's the point of loads of cupboards and a large garage if you can't fill it up with things?! :-) We will have to try to meet up somewhere, that's for sure. :-)

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  5. So pleased for the both of you. Wishing you lots of great times touring around France and Europe.Looks a great Camper Van. Enjoy Sabine xxx

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    1. Thanks so much, Sabine, and maybe we can meet up again when we get up your end of Brittany! xx

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    2. You are both more than welcome, we have room for the camper van plus Huelgoat 4.5km away has a proper campsite as well. xx

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    3. Sounds good - haven't got to thinking about places to visit yet other than some bird watching during spring migration! I never thought when I met you sitting in my hospital bed that I might see you again thanks to a camper van, funny how life turns out. :-) xx

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  6. That's wonderful, so glad for you! Neighbor helping neighbor is a blessing...enjoy your new adventures in style :) Looking forward to the occasional update!!

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    1. Thank you Juliet - I'm looking forward to new adventures and I'm sure there will be plenty to blog about! :-)

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  7. What a great idea, and I understand completely your reasons. That is a really neat camper and I'm sure you'll have loads of fun and take lots of pics of wildlife for us stay-at-homes.
    My sister bought one to travel Europe and especially her new country, Bulgaria. But it's huge and she (they) might find the roads here rather difficult, they have yet to find out how bad they can be!
    We have an arrangement with our neighbours too, they look out for the goatherd if we want to go out (and will look after them if we are away) and lock the goats and chooks up if necessary and we do the same for their sheep etc. But the dogs are different...we would have to take them with us, they are frightened of our scaredy dog and ancient lab!
    Looking forward to tales of your adventures.

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    1. Thanks Debrazzawoman! I've seen your sister's one and have had a look at her blog. I bet they won't have time for any more travelling for a while as they have their new house and garden to deal with. Nothing like a new adventure in your middle age, I am in awe of them! :-)

      I think I'd be more scared of the goats (or Splash!!) than your dogs, but at least it's more normal to travel with dogs than any of the other animals. I don't think my cats would be impressed by a motorhome, although I have two virtual friends who take theirs on the road with them! :-)

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  8. Fantastic! You'll have a great time, I'm so pleased for you both. We've been looking at those too.I'll look forward to reading about your adventures. Xx
    P.s They're ideal for touring Ireland.;-)
    P.s

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    1. Thanks Deb - really looking forward it! I hadn't thought about Ireland but Brittany Ferries do go there, so you never know! :-) xx

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  9. What a wonderful idea - you will both have so much fun and adventure. I can't imagine anything nicer than just being able to throw a few bags and things in the van and zoom off somewhere new. So pleased the neighbours are happy to help with the cats and hens.

    Wishing you both some wonderful times and trips in your new purchase and look forward to photos :)

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    1. Thank you RR - I'm so looking forward to getting out and about and seeing some new places! I will have a lot of photos to share, that's for sure. :-) xx

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  10. Good for you, I have always been a firm believer in doing things rather than talking about doing them. I think you have exactly the right attitude in not try to justify it over money, the frankly you didn't have before anyway.
    Have a great time and enjoy it

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    1. That's a very good way of looking at it, and anyway money earns doodlysquit in the bank these days.... :-) Cheers Colly.

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  11. You go girl... this is a great plan, better than sitting at home. With so many people passing famous and family I feel the same, making the most of every day with new things to enjoy.
    Look forward to following you on your adventures.
    Amanda xx

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    1. Thanks so much Amanda. Glad you are enjoying yourself! I think I need some time out and away from home just to make me appreciate home more and feel a bit more enthusiasm for my garden. I've spent too much time here in the last 18 months and need a bit of adventure! :-) xx

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  12. oh how exciting for you Mandy - hope you have lots of new adventures across France with your new home on wheels :)

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    1. That would be lovely although we can't just go off for weeks (or even months!) at a time like some people, however we will make the most of our minibreaks and a two week holiday once a year! Thanks Rosie. :-)

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  13. SO exciting!! We've been camping for many years in a camper (one you pull) and just love it! Although we don't get out with it as much as we'd like, we do go regularly in the summertime and store it when not in use. Going out for hikes and coming back to comfortable chairs is the best when you're just exhausted. We usually just use the table for food preparation, and cook outside on the BBQ and we have a camp stove (Coleman) which we hook up to the same gas tank as the BBQ. Cooking outdoors keeps the smells from soaking into your furnishings :) We only cook veggies and make tea on the stove inside. I'm sure you will not regret spending the money on this, and it looks very sleek. Some people even take their cats with them, although I've never seen chickens. Enjoy!
    Wendy

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    1. Thanks SV and for the tips re the cooking outside. I think we will have to invest in a gas BBQ - at home we always use charcoal as I like the flavour but I am not sure about whether campsites like you using charcoal because of the fire risk. Will have to look into that.

      I have a friend who takes her two cats camping but they are indoor cats so happy to stay in the caravan... my three would be off like a shot soon as the door was opened and as for taking chickens, well you never know, there are plenty of odd people in the world. No I am not talking about me!! :-)

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  14. The Motor Van is a great idea, probably one of your best .{:))
    Just think of all those trips to the South of the country, loads of different birds.
    I had a colleague who travelled all the way to the bottom of Italy in his.
    We nearly took the plunge once and I wish we had now, but too late.
    No more hotels. I understand that the Caravan Club is a good idea for getting places to stay for parking if that sort of thing grabs you. I guess thought hat there is plenty of places to stop with out, just needs a bit of planning.
    Great idea Mandy.

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    1. Full of good ideas, me. ;-)
      Cheers Roy. It's going to come in very handy during migration season as that's when I want a few mini breaks to some of the spots where waders and the like can be seen - just a bit too far from here to make it comfortably there and back in a day. After April/May we'll do some more touristy stuff. Maybe. :-) Well whatever, it will always be with the thought of birds and butterflies and nature in mind, apart from a few paddles in the sea and ice creams, of course.

      I think there is a French equivalent of the Caravan Club but I have not looked into any of that yet although my OH is researching that, now he is getting really into it all. This is after he got up off the floor over spending such a large sum of money. :-)

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  15. Only just seen this Mandy, flipping well done to do this, it's something I'd love to do but Alan can't be persuaded at the moment, time will tell.
    Enjoy your adventures in this lovely looking van!

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    1. Maybe one day, Philippa! You could always hire one and see if he gets into the camping mood. Thanks very much and I shall be writing about our adventures here. Can't wait! xx

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  16. Hi Mandy... Wow what a great thing to do! Look forward to seeing how your adventures in your motorhome. I watch on in envy when I am out photographing usually at the sea, thinking how easy it would be to nip out, get shot, back in, process on lappy with a cup of tea :)

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    1. Haha Ian, actually I do like the idea of being able to take everything AND the kitchen sink on holiday.... major hurdle will be trying to avoid huge crowds of campervans and jam packed camp sites, but as it won't be going anywhere during Les Vacances we should be OK...... looking forward to catching some coastal migration activity this spring. :-)

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