We built a Campervan

I love the idea of living in a van.

Months of working restlessly allow us to be financially prepared purchasing a van. We travelled 3hours to Whakapapa region on a gravel road just to check the van condition. It was listed on Trademe.com (a NZ-based buy and sell website). The initial price was NZ$5500 and in the end we settled for NZ$5000, we took a huge, huge risk (which we regretted short after) for not sending the vehicle for mechanical inspection.

A week later, the van arrives at our doorstep. We name him Bay Max, the adorable, plus-sized inflatable robot in Big Hero 6. He is empty on the inside, we've got a lot of works to do.

Baymax was born in 1987 - he is 28 years old when we first met him.
Yes, all manual and no power-steering.

We decided to build a Campervan myself.

At this of point the COF (certificate of fitness) is expiring and when we have to send in to do inspection. We were told that the van needs a lot of repairs which include rust removal, gearbox leakage, light indicator replacement, underbody rust removal, body dents, and brake adjustments. We asked some shop for quotes and all of that will cost more than the car price ($5000) itself! Then having no choice, we decided to fix them all by ourselves..

Inside Baymax has a simple build up, but we didn't really like it. So we dismantle everything and rebuild it all over. We wanted a bigger table top, more storage, extendable bed frame, electrical system that allows all our gadget to stay recharged without power hook up and water solution.

In the progress to build a simple cabinet with plywood from Bunnings, and used tabletop from Trademe

Grey water tank to store dirty water, and fresh water tank to supply clean water.
You need to have both and also a toilet in order to be a certified campervan where you can overnight at many places.

Extendable bed frame for 2 people to sleep.

Bed time set up.

The best decision is to experience New Zealand with Campervan.

Bay max has a kitchen, living room, sleeping space, and everything else you need to go on a road trip.

Cooking utensils hanging on the cabinet. 

12V deep-cycle battery system with 300W inverter to charge camera batteries and also my Macbook Air.Also built with voltage monitor and switches.

Extra storage on overhead compartment.

Equipment storage.

Enjoy the life, the New Zealand way.

Immerse yourself with the mother nature. Wake up to a beautiful scenery, take a sip of hot boiled-coffee, cook and eat with your own schedule, without having to worry about the checkout time. 

Need a break? no problem, stop and take a nap at any places you want to recharge. You have the luxury to spend your holiday at the slowest pace, which i really enjoy doing so. 

Abel Tasman National Park

Kaikoura Peninsular.

Along the motorway AKL - Taupo.

Vineyard at Blenheim - Kaikoura

Hanmer Spring

Have you ever travel in a campervan before? It's easy, any backpackers can do it, and so can you. If

you have any questions, leave it below the comment box.

byUnknown

in Travel

13:12:00

We built a Campervan

I love the idea of living in a van. Months of working restlessly allow us to be financially prepared purchasing a van. We travelled 3hours...

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Our first experience with Workaway.info - Castlemaine, Australia

At the end of our New Zealand working holiday trip, we have decided to visit to a nearby country before we head back home. Yes, we decided to explore Australia because it was one of the cheapest option to fly into from NZ. 

We were using this website called www.workaway.info, it allows us to be in touch with hosts around the world to do work in exchange for food and accommodation. Carla listing tops the search result and we are very impress on the pictures and fellow members' feedback at her place. [You have to pay an annual fee in order to use their service]

After a quick conversation with the host, she accepted our request and we did the necessary transport arrangement to meet her at Castlemaine.

It was me and Liyi' first time experiencing Workaway.info (work in exchange for accommodation) in Australia. Carla Styles, our host was extremely friendly and informative. We spent time exploring nearby region during our day-off. 

The entire house was built with recycle materials. Each wood-piece, windows, ceilings, and even cabinets were all recycled. Overall it is a very cozy, modern, yet preserving the authentic western country-home architecture.

There are many first time in this place, like mountain bike through the woods, train track, getting lost in the jungle, and finally meet up with our host and her friends just in time to get some beer prior to dinner. Life is just awesome.

Anyone wants to cleanse himself from the root of evil?

 

Heathcote, this is where we taste the first sip of wine in Australia. One of the best thing with workaway.info/couchsurfing.org websites is you go places that locals go. One of the best wine region in Central Victoria but very less oversea' tourists. One of the most enjoyable activity to do in Australia/ New Zealand is picnic, go to any public places with your food and enjoy, no one throws weird judgements on you because it's a norm here.

Me, Liyi, Carla, and 2 other workaway-er picture before they left to Melbourne.

She was one of the inspiration why i turned vegetarian. We exchanged philosophy and thoughts on this topic and i got inspired. At the same time, she showed me vegetarian meal can taste as good, if not better than non-vege meal. 

Thanks again, for having us with you in your beautiful house. 

*If you have any question regarding the experience on using this website, feel free to be in contact, i'd be glad to share my experiences.

byUnknown

in Travel

09:53:00

Our first experience with Workaway.info - Castlemaine, Australia

At the end of our New Zealand working holiday trip, we have decided to visit to a nearby country before we head back home. Yes, we decided ...

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