3 weeks of vanlife! — Life Done Differently

3 weeks of vanlife today! Yip, actually had to double check that twice but it has really been three weeks already.

3 weeks ago today, I packed up the last of my stuff, moved out of the temporary home I had stayed at for the last 4 weeks and into the van to start the big adventure.

To sum up the last three weeks in one word: ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! I know that’s technically two words but just ‘amazing’ wouldn’t do it justice :)

After a great weekend in Muriwai with a lot of my friends, followed by a week in Taupo for work, I headed south east to the Bay of Plenty. I spend 10 days going from Whakatane which is at the southern end of the Bay of Plenty to Waihi Beach at the northern end.

Those 10 days in the Bay have been amazing. I surfed every day – often twice, met up with friends, explored new places, went on walks and bike rides, spend time reading and writing and did some work along the way as well.

The weather was amazing as well. Sun non-stop with only one cloudy day with a few shower! I might actually be getting a bit of a tan :)

Perfect conditions to fly with the wind at Muriwai

This week, I started to make my way north. I stopped in Auckland for a night to spend half a day in the office and to see some friends. Luck and the wind gods were clearly on my side because my favourite kitesurfing spot turned it on for the one day I was there so I got out for a kite at Muriwai as well which was awesome.

Heading further north I stopped in Whangarei for a night to see a good friend of mine and to get some minor work done on the van. Maybe the only challenge vanlife presented so far, was getting access to power to keep my laptop and phone charged. Since I am working remotely this is obviously important and there are only so many Flat Whites you can drink in cafes to use their power. The solution to the problem was quite simple. A car electrician added a 12-volt socket to my house battery (which is charged by a solar panel). Since I’ve already got an inverter to charge my laptop of a 12v outlet I’m now all good to go!

Oops... Pretty sure that used to have a cover ;)

A less planned little repair was to get a new cover for the outside access point for my water heater. The lesson I learnt here is that, when it sounds like some part just flew off your van while driving then you’ve probably just lost a part of your van… ;) But other than that Josie has been running like a charm!

Yesterday, I then made my way to the Far North where I’ll be spending the next few weeks. I decided to spend a couple of nights at a campground in a tiny little place called Hihi Beach.

There is nothing here and the entire east coast has been super flat so no surf and there isn’t much wind on the cards either.

View over Hihi Beach at sunset last night

But I really needed a proper shower and a washing machine :) And after a few days in bigger cities, I really liked the idea of going remote and off the beaten track for a while. I’ll be meeting up with friends for Christmas and New Years up at the Karikari Peninsular which is only another 30min drive from here.

So, as you can see, quite a lot has happened in the last 3 weeks. Maybe that is why it feels like it’s been much longer than that and at the same time I can’t believe it’s already been 3 weeks.

It’s been an absolutely amazing three weeks. I’m loving the vanlife! All of it and everything about it. I love the freedom and independence, I love how slow and simple life is. I love living in my ‘tiny space’. I love visiting and exploring all these different places.

Needless to say, I’m doing great and I can wait for more time on the road and more vanlife adventures.

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