Life in our motorhome

After 42 days on the road we have learnt many things about life in our motorhome:

- it's possible to sit in the "lounge room" and get all the ingredients and utensils for making a sandwich without leaving your chair.
- driving is better when done from an armchair.
- it's amazing how little space you actually need to live.
- it takes roughly 4 weeks for your body to remember when to automatically duck and weave in the motorhome. If not, bumps on the head and funny bone are inevitable.
- if the oil in your saucepan catches fire because your hire place gave you dodgy saucepans don't panic. Just open the door and carry the flaming container outside and extinguish it on the grass.
- parking the wrong way on the slightest slope will cause difficulty when sleeping with the blood rushing to your head.
- use your wedges to make the motorhome level when parked on uneven ground.
- it's wonderful to unpack your suitcase once into your cupboards and not think about it for 4 months.
- not properly locking the cupboards or fridge will cause them to open while driving.
- sweeping the floor takes a total of 1 minute and is done with a dustpan and brush.
- the fridge is cooled by a burning flame running on gas. Wha?
- our motorhome only has one power point and it only works when we are plugged into electricity somewhere. Double adapters quickly become your friend.
- only store soft items in the overhead cupboards. They may move while driving and fall out when next opened.
- when a jar of coffee falls out of an overhead cupboard it will break and send coffee everywhere.
- instant coffee granules when left with a little water in the sink, eventually turn into something that looks a lot like coffee.
- the glove compartment in front of the passenger holds a total of one book
- things can be stored under the bed (picnic chairs; table; 3 suitcases; electrical, cleaning and toilet equipment; 2 large gas bottles and wedges for stabilising the motorhome), under the floor (10L water; 2L juice), under the seats (8 pairs of shoes), under the fridge (more shoes) and above the front seats (books, maps, 2 hard drives, electrical equipment, souvenirs, stationary)
- you must buckle in the laptop bag while driving.
- before driving you must check: that all 6 windows and all 3 skylights are shut, that the fridge is switched to battery power, that the step is retracted, that all 9 cupboards, 3 drawers and the fridge are locked, that our pesky sliding door is closed, that we're disconnected from the electrical grid, that the electrical cable, table and chairs are packed away, that the toilet is shut, that the shower curtain is tied up, that there's nothing in the sink and that the bike rack is closed.
- when the only thing to cook on is two gas stoves, a steamer becomes your friend. That said, it is possible to cook delish meals at 'home'.
- to utilise storage space place a glass inside a cup. But make sure to wrap them in a plastic bag first, to stop them from clattering when you drive.
- get all your cutlery and wrap it in not slip fabric. Do the same for your utensils. It will stop them sliding around in your drawers.
- we have one drawer that won't open properly and needs a bit of a whack to unlock it. We have called it the slap drawer.
- all drawers are named in relation to the slap drawer, for example: "it's in the one above the slap drawer".
- when you wash your clothes but don't have access to a dryer it's remarkable how many things you can hang up in the motorhome using rope attached from cupboards and random places to lay or hang things. We, at one time, had a fitted sheet, 3 dress shirts, jeans, shorts, 7 t-shirts, 5 tea towels, 2 towels and underware draped around our motorhome. We left if for the day and it was dry when we came back.
- showering in the motorhome is surprisingly wonderful!
- a dark van can become very hot in the morning sun.
- it can be hard to locate the source of a smell. If in doubt, empty all tanks.
- driving at 130km/hr is awesome.

Rachel and Matt

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