Le siiiiiiigh.

The good news: Our transpacific wire transfer has successfully gone through. We’re cashed up and ready to ride dirty.

The bad news: I’m updating the blog from yet another dingy hotel room instead of the back of a bitchin’ new campervan. Four thumbs down.

The problem: There isn’t a vast selection of vans in a close proximity meeting the qualifications we’ve set. They’re too far, too expensive, too cheap, or too dirty. Most aren’t self contained (meaning your access to campsites is far more limited + you really do have to make your dumps in the woods) and the high summer season in New Zealand is just getting underway. It’s a seller’s market. And we’re on the losing side.

It didn’t really occur to me this might happen. That we’d be stranded in a string of hotels, decreasing our daily budget as each calendar day disappears. With our to-do lists dramatically shrunk, we now spend an increasing amount of time doing research into the various options we have. I’ve found old ambulances, converted ice cream trucks, and quirky trailers. (All ideas Eric was quick to pull the plug on.) We’ve considered flying down to the south island, taking a train, and bussing towards a different pool of options. There’s still a slim chance of renting until the right opportunity to purchase comes along, but that seems like a potential waste of time and an even bigger waste of money.

This trip is starting to feel like a stressful, stagnant waiting game.
If we’re in Auckland much longer, I think Eric might wake up to a little surprise parked in front of our hotel.
Wood dumps be damned.
I’m rooting for ice cream.

-K