#NerdsUnite: The journey is the destination
Thursday, May 17, 2012 at 11:55AM<editorsnote> Nerds, meet my buddy Ali. She and I bonded on Facebook a few years back over our love of everything Pete Cashmore. ::SIGH:: so dreamy. She is here today to talk to you all about her new adventure which included quitting her job and hitting the road. Pretty rad right? I only have one more thing left to say ... HIT IT ALI!!! </editorsnote>
#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @lifeon4wheelsUK
Wowzers, has it really only been a week? It seems too crazy to believe that there could be this much of a rollercoaster in just one week!
After enjoying a few more long hot showers and a great night’s sleep in the hotel we headed off to pick up the van from the garage. I can’t explain the relief at getting our beloved Van Diesel back and having a home again.
We drove over to Santander to check out the city and have another van problem looked over. Since France the fan has been intermittent and the van has been running very hot. We’ve been doing what we can to take short trips and keep the temperature down but the weather here is now 34 degrees and we have to admit it’s just not safe anymore. The garage we find is staffed by one of the grumpiest mechanics in the world. He huffs and puffs and throws the tools around like a petulant child. We’d hoped the issue may just be a faulty connection or grit in the van but after a while Senor Grumpy informs us we need a new part. The part needs altering and even then doesn’t do the trick.
The van is also now in the way of another car so Grumpypants pulls out into the street so the other car can get out. Sadly however he also drives Van Diesel straight into a brand new shiny red car on the opposite side of the street. The red car has two huge dints and a massive scrape and the owner is FURIOUS. Van Diesel has only a very minor scuff on the front bumper, she’s a hardy one! Thankfully the whole issue gets solved without our involvement and a new mechanic called Jesus has got involved. After another couple of hours of waiting Jesus informs us via broken English, slow Spanish and Google Translate that the van cannot be fixed by them.
‘What are the options available?’ we type into the translator. ‘Call a tow truck’ comes the reply.
It felt like someone had shoved a stake through my chest at that point. That’s it? That’s how this ends? I didn’t have the heart to call the breakdown company. The boyfriend had to do it whilst I was busy being a complete mess. The advisor Stephanie at the breakdown place asked to speak to Jesus and he explained what was going on. She explained that the company had a contract with the garage and so if he was going to say the van needed to be shipped back to the UK he better be damn sure it cannot be fixed. Minutes later the van is going up on the ramps and the mechanics are back tinkering. Go Team Stephanie! We get ushered off to await the phone call from the breakdown company with news. We spend the next few hours looking for suitcases to get our stuff home, figuring out how to get to the airport and discussing what we’ll do now if it’s really all over.
Hours later we finally hear from the breakdown people and Jesus (the mechanic) is our savior! The van can be fixed and we can have it back tonight. I refuse to believe it until we’re paying for the work (ouch!) and driving away. The relief was beyond measure. The adventure continues. Thank you Jesus (the mechanic not the other one, I’m not a religious kinda gal!).
We’re careful with Van Diesel over the next few days and make only short trips. Sadly we’re in Cantabria and they seem to hate campervans here. Every possible parking spot has a no campers sign and we’re basically chased out of the region as there’s nowhere to stop. It feels like we’re criminals on the run and after such a stressful time it’s the last thing we need.
We escape to nearby Asturias and everything is different. Beautiful spots beside quiet beaches are the order of the day and we get chance to recharge our batteries. We fall asleep listening to the waves and wake up to look out of the window at the beach and sea. Some of these spots are so deserted it’s just us here to enjoy them and since we have the van it means that even just for a night we can call these spots home. Home is wherever we put the van in neutral and that makes the whole world our garden.
