We’re back in the good old US of A! We had a great time living and working in Amsterdam for the last 2 months, and are now back in North Carolina ready to keep living it up.
Our original plan when I quit my job back in May was to spend the summer getting the bus ready for a long road-trip. By August, it was clear that the project was going to take a lot more work (and welding equipment) than I was willing to invest. So we decided to outsource the thing to a local VW shop, and see what they could get done. Well… it turns out my luck with find an efficient and timely VW place has not improved at all since the Illinois days! The bus has sat outside for 2 months with nothing done. At this point, I know I don’t want to do all of the heavy lifting myself, and it seems like I can’t even pay someone else to do it either – so we’re moving to plan B.
What is plan B you ask? Such a great question! While the details are still being fleshed out, it might involve something along the lines of a cute vintage pull-behind camper, and a fully functioning (already paid for) Jeep Liberty on a road trip around the US and Canada. If we can get this plan off the ground, good times will be had by all!
To get a feel for things to come, Norm and Carla took us up to the Blue Ridge Parkway for a little side trip. The leaves are just turning, and the scenery up there is truly breathtaking. Something about a belly full of Chik-fil-a seems to make those vibrant fall colors look even more awesome!
We’re also back in the market for some sweet antique camping gear. I’m always looking for a good deal and good find.
Yes. BBQ. Mmmm Yes.
A little fun at Bass Pro!
The first part of plan B is to get Noelle’s Jeep cleaned up and trailer ready. The U-haul hitch electrical connector that we’ve had trouble with in the past finally gave out when we were towing the bus to NC. We got them to look at it, and it turns out that a wire was installed incorrectly. This had caused a short that fried the electronic tow module. Sparks flying inside concealed compartments of the car – not cool! Luckily for us, nothing really bad had happened, and they replaced it all under warranty.
Next, we tackled the shabby front grill on the Liberty. This thing is some aftermarket addition that is falling apart. A little googling told me we could pop the entire front piece off very easily, and we quickly found out that this plastic chrome-ish nightmare is just clipped on. Pulled it off, cleaned the underlying grill, re-installed. In about 30 minutes it feels like we have a brand new looking car – success!
We’ve also decided to plan on spending a big chunk of our time in Florida – warm weather, sandy beaches, no state income tax, and we’ve got family there on my dad’s side – I’m sold! We will drive down to get everything set up when we eventually find a camper.