#NerdsUnite: The journey is the destination

<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

Well thankfully for us this last week has been much less eventful than the previous couple.  We found some breath-takingly beautiful spots to chill out by the sea and recharge our batteries.  We’ve driven some amazing routes, including up a mountain so high we drove through a cloud!  You can read all about our adventures over at the blog www.lifeon4wheels.co.uk   

This week also saw the anniversary of our first month on the road and <insert Carrie moment> it got me thinking about how things are going so far and how it all measures up to our expectations.  My first thought is that this whole thing has been tougher than I’d expected.  To be fair I didn’t really know what to expect, hey I hadn’t even spent 24 hours inside a campervan when we got on the road!  Driving is the biggie really and I’ve gotta say I still haven’t had the balls!  The van is massive, heavy and sluggish.  We don’t have power steering and it exhausts my weedy arms to turn the damn thing.  Plus people here drive like lunatics!  Almost all the cars you see have dents and scrapes like battle scars, hell I even saw one HELD TOGETHER WITH TAPE (I shit you not)!  The boyfriend is doing an amazing job of holding his nerve and to be honest I think he’s more frightened of me driving than I am!  I guess I sort of had this idea in my mind of us blasting out tunes and burning up the miles in the sunshine.  Whilst that is sometimes the case it’s more likely I’ll be yelling at the Sat Nav and he’s yelling at the other drivers whilst we both worry if the van is up to the job!

Finding places to stop off has gotten easier and I’m managing better than I expected with the lack of home comforts (although the things I’d do for a decent pizza don’t bear mentioning!)  It’s really odd sometimes to go about our day using public toilets and showers on the beach and sort of feeling like a homeless person and then we come back to the van, cuddle up under the duvet, crack open a beer and watch Star Wars just like we would at home!  It’s a bit surreal.

The solar panel is doing a great job of keeping us powered up but I do miss having the internet at my fingers 24/7!  Most cities we’ve come across have their own free wifi and I spend a lot of time hanging around beside McDonald’s branches using their internet.  It’s only a matter of time before the restraining order comes through! 

Most of all I miss these wonderful people, my awesome friends.  This picture was taken just before I left Nottingham at an event I labeled on Facebook as the Last Supper, so restaging the famous painting seemed a must - that’s me as Jeebus (obvs!)  I’d love to be able to pop home and go out for a pint with them all. 

All in all, it’s not exactly a walk in the park but I certainly wouldn’t change it and it *IS* getting easier.  I haven’t woken up to an alarm in over a month which is utterly blissful.  I spend my days exploring cities and or hanging out by the beach. 

There are so many annoyances, it’s easy to get frustrated sometimes.  I’d kill for a washing machine, a long hot shower and a meat feast pizza!  Whenever I get annoyed though I can just put into context what I’m doing in the simplest possible way – I’m travelling the world with the man I love – and I doubt it gets better than that.

#thatisall

click here to follow Ali on twitter!

#NerdsUnite: Around the world with @HeatherReusz

<editorsnote> Nerds, meet my buddy Heather. She's a nerd who is currently living in Japan by way of Chicago. Yep, talk about a culture shock. She's here today to talk about her life, love (which she is currently balancing long distance) and all things nerd. I only have one more thing left to say ... HIT IT HEATHER!!!</editorsnote>

#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @HeatherReusz

I’ve just had one of the best weekends ever! Mainly because my boyfriend came to visit. I’ve been counting down to this day for months. I can’t even describe how amazing it was to finally be together after nine and a half months apart.

It was especially sweet because I wasn’t even sure if he was going to be able to make it out to Japan. As a freelance artist he wasn’t sure that he could make the money to come. I begged and pleaded with him to just get out here and I would pay for everything. Hell, I even offered to pay for his flight out here as well as all the food and traveling costs. He refused not wanting to be a bum. I offered to make it a loan that he would have to pay back. Again, he refused. I was crushed. How was I supposed to get through a whole year without him? Finally, in about February, he had saved enough to comfortably make the trip. He immediately booked a flight and the countdown began.

Unfortunately, he did have to come while I was working. We had only three whole days together. It didn’t matter though; we were both so excited about getting to be together again.

His flight landed on Friday afternoon. Since I was working, I couldn’t pick him up from Narita. I had to give him directions to my place. It involved two train transfers and a two and a half hour commute but he made it. He arrived just as I got off of work. I found him at the main entrance of the station just waiting against a pillar. My heart leapt into my throat and I full on tackled him with a bear hug. We both tried to hold back the tears as we embraced. It’s not culturally appropriate to show extreme emotions in public in Japan. I was pushing the cultural expectation as was with our huge embrace. I had explained this nuance to him before he had left so he would know that we couldn’t really kiss or cry without me being ostracized. We had our first meal in Japan…at Burger King since all other restaurants were closed and we were both exhausted.

We had an amazing night. It made me really see all the things that I had been missing. I don’t just mean the sexual stuff although that was pretty amazing. I relished in everything: the way he smelled, how his eyes sparkled, how safe I felt sleeping next to him again.

I had to go to work on Saturday but promised him a great date night as I get out of work on Saturdays at a relatively early time. After work, I took him to Yokohama. We had a great meal in the Yokohama Chinatown and took a night time stroll down the pier. It was romantic and beautiful. Perfection.

The next day was a big sightseeing day. I took him to one of my favorite places in Japan: Kamakura. Most of you probably have not really heard of this town. It was the seat of Japanese power in the Kamakura period which was in the 13^th century. I love it because it has a ton of old temples and castles mixed in with the more modern beach resorts since it’s on the coast. We spent the morning on an island walking through caves and enjoying the great view of Mt. Fuji. In the afternoon we took the historic train line, which is over 100 years old, to two of my favorite temples. Another fun and perfect day.

Monday and Tuesday were a bit of a change of pace. We’re both nerds so we focused on doing some super nerdy things in Tokyo. First stop was the Studio Ghibli museum in Mitaka. We both grew up on and adored the works of Hayo Miyazaki. Those of you who aren’t even anime nerds may know some of his work: Totoro, Spirited Away, Ponyo, Princess Monoke, etc. It was a fantastic experience. The museum made you feel like a child again. It was set up in a way that just captured the imagination and absorbed you in. We walked through rooms designed after his movies, saw some of his original sketches and storyboards from the movies, and saw an original animated short. After the museum, we went to Akihabara which is the anime, manga, video game, and electronics capital of Tokyo. We shopped around at my favorite places grabbing some really sweet anime collectibles. The night ended with dinner and drinks at the Gundam Café, an café themed after my favorite anime franchise Mobile Suit Gundam.

Our final day together was another nerd extravaganza. We headed over to Odaiba, Tokyo to see the life size Gundam. This is the third time I’ve seen it but it is mind blowing every time. To put it in perspective, it’s about 8 stories tall. It stands in front of a new mall. The top floor of the mall is a Gundam theme park basically. We had tickets and spent all day nerding out. I also had a lot of strangers randomly ask for my picture. This happens kind of frequently here for me especially when I go to Gundam events. Most fans are guys so the hard core otaku freak out a little bit when there is a girl let alone a foreign girl going to these things. At least Lucas thought it was hilarious.

The days passed as wonderful blurs. Nerd love is the best kind of love, you know. I wish that he was still here but then I remember that I only have a month and a half left here in Japan! My how time flies!

#nerdsunite

click here to follow Heather on Twitter!