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As you know, we're preparing for the long journey with the motorhome. But how do you actually do that? Well, we don't really know, but so far the preparations have mainly been about everything that needs to be fixed at home. Here you can see a small list of things we are doing. Feel free to tell us what else we should think about!
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ShareThings to prepare for the long journey
- Closing tasks - I have taken a leave of absence and since most of my tasks are in project form, there is a lot to be finalised or handed over.
- Letting the accommodation at home - In order to travel, we have to rent out our home. All the practicalities of this need to be sorted out and the renter might also need some kind of... manual?
- Cleaning and clearing - As we are going to rent out, we have to empty the house of clothes and other personal items. We have a storage room, but it's not very big. So it's time for a big clean!
- Arranging insurance - We need insurance for our home, motorhome and ourselves. It's a big job to find out which ones cover what and which ones have the lowest price...
- Reducing expenditure - When you get rid of income, you also have to get rid of expenses. We go through all the bills and remove anything we don't need (or can't afford), such as phones and the internet.
- Redirect mail - We would prefer to have mail delivered not to the letterbox but to the e-mail, and there are many companies that need to be informed about this. At the same time, we have some e-mail addresses that will disappear, so those e-mails must also be redirected.
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BP says:
Oh dear! There is a lot to think about. You really have to be very structured for such tasks. I wonder if I could do it...
15 October 2014 - 17:07
Mr Steve says:
There is certainly a puzzle to be put together for such a long journey.
15 October 2014 - 17:16
Marina says:
That's a lot...!
15 October 2014 - 18:51
Ditte says:
You are well on your way, but there is a lot to organise and everything takes a lot of time. A jigsaw puzzle with small pieces was a good symbol.
The time for your departure is getting closer every day.
Maybe you have friends with storage facilities where you can deposit a few boxes... But it's good to declutter as well.
What an adventure it will be! Very exciting to follow you via the blog.
15 October 2014 - 20:09
Snows says:
So exciting but I have missed your plans. How long will you be gone and where will you go?
15 October 2014 - 21:47
Lena in Wales says:
A lot to do before a trip, but you seem very organised so I think you'll get it together. What about Wales?
15 October 2014 - 23:38
Anki says:
It's a real labour of love to get all the pieces in place... and I don't mean the nice puzzle on Freedom...
It will be exciting to follow you on the long journey 🙂.
16 October 2014 - 6:52
admin says:
BP, I don't know if we are so structured either... trying to work on...
😉
Steve, yes, that's what it feels like... and it's hard to know if you have all the pieces or if you've missed some.
😉
Ditte, let's see if extra storage is needed. Let's start by clearing out!
Znogge, we're travelling with the camper van and plan to be away for a year (!) The plan is Europe... and maybe Morocco... and the details are unplanned... We want to travel spontaneously, at a leisurely pace and have time to do some other things, like writing for example.
Lena in Wales, initially we are hungry for more heat so we will go more south, towards Portugal type. We have not planned for Wales, but you never know what will happen!?
Anki, glad you want to follow us!
🙂
16 October 2014 - 7:28
Lars Permeln says:
How exciting to have a long journey in a year.
Then I think you have to think first of all about the basic things, such as the fact that you can get sick and have an accident. Some kind of lifeline is probably not a bad idea.
It's also good to have a motorhome that has been properly checked and has fresh tyres.
16 October 2014 - 9:24
Lena says:
Bravo, you're well on your way with the checklist, I'd like to suggest a few points:
-Pause the TV subscription, access to free channels.
-Subscribe to possibly. SVT World for a little more choice.
-Pause rubbish collection (not possible when renting).
-Take out Folksam insurance via membership of the motorhome club, including assistance, which is included when 185 days of travel are covered.
-Register the mailbox for the snail mail.
-Don't overload your motorhome, the entire EU (at least) has everything you need.
-The EU health insurance card (certifying that you have health insurance) entitles you to the same treatment in the EU.
-Get vaccinated against 'regular flu' at home or in the EU.
-Reduce the heating in the houseboat (not applicable for rentals).
16 October 2014 - 9:59
Ama de casa says:
Of course there is a lot to think about. We had many things on the list when we were going to move to Spain. But renting out and storing was not an option. For us it was all about selling and "getting rid of".
🙂
We have ensured that virtually all the bills and things that arrive in the letterbox at regular intervals either do not arrive at all or arrive online. We have such a small mailbox that it would be overwhelmed even on short trips. We also have all fixed costs on direct debit, so you don't have to think about them so much. You don't always have access to the internet to fix things.
🙂
16 October 2014 - 10:29
admin says:
Lars, good points! We have tried to look into insurance, but it's not easy to know how to go about it. Good thoughts also with the tyres!
Lena, oh so many good tips! Thank you very much! That Folksam insurance sounded interesting! Now we have ifs taken out other insurance, but maybe I should check it out anyway! We have fixed the EU health insurance card. Good idea also with not overloading the motorhome!
Ama de casa, so very good with tips from you who have experience with these things! We have tried to fix so that bills should come by e-mail instead. I think we have mainly solved it, maybe there is still a company to call ...
16 October 2014 - 15:39
Inga M says:
What a project! You are not afraid of trouble and really want to experience life in every way, not just let it pass you by. It's impressive. It will be fun to follow your six-month / year-long trip down Europe. Because you will continue to blog on the trip, right? Fun for us who stay at home all the time.
18 October 2014 - 10:23
admin says:
Inga M, haha, yes that is probably a correct analysis... no we think life should be lived! And of course we will blog!
🙂
18 October 2014 - 10:39