The moment we were waiting for, after five long months we finally got to meet our truck and camper in Phoenix, Arizona. Our vacation lasted three weeks and we had planned to spend Christmas with our good friends Denise and Roland, get our new home on wheels ready and take it out for a mini adventure. However, things always take a little longer than expected and we nearly missed that mini adventure. But let’s start from the beginning.
After a few phone calls to different insurance companies, we found ourselves getting car insurance at an antique shop! Yes that’s right, it doesn’t just happen in the movies. There in the corner of a large collection of old furniture, USA memorabilia and those one-of a kind finds, stood the ‘office’ of Glenzona Insurance Agency. Successful and a few hundred dollars lighter, we were able to move onto our next stop, the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) to get our very own Arizona number plate. How proud were we? Fixing the number plate onto our Dodge Ram as foreigners, after only one day, a Saturday even, is pretty awesome – only in America!
Having got the pick-up truck ready, it was now time to open the door of our camper. The state of the camper didn’t quite meet our standards of cleanliness, plus there were a few things that needed to be fixed. So we rolled up our sleeves and got to work. Over the next ten days we gave it a thorough clean and took trips back and forth to Home Depot, Harbor Freight and ‘Bed, Bath and Beyond’. We ordered a few things off Amazon and organised new upholstery with the wonderful seamstress, Rhonda.
We couldn’t have done this work without our perfect hosts. Roland has a delicate hand for wiring and dedicated all of his spare time helping getting this camper onto the truck bed. Denise provided us with the best cleaning products and tips in town and nourished us with her delicious meals and smoothies. They made sure we still took time to celebrate the festive season and enjoy the fun stuff too! We got to spend an afternoon at Stu’s Garage, eating the BEST ribs of our lives (thanks Stuart, we’ll definitely be back), and checked out Roland’s new workplace, meeting his fantastic work colleagues at Tuft & Needle – Hi John and Rhonda. We also spent some evenings out at local restaurants and the cinema, and took a glorious day trip to Castle Hot Springs (with our new ride of course), having fun shooting cans in the desert.
Time was running out and we didn’t want to return to Switzerland without taking our camper for a spin. We wanted to get a glimpse into our new life. With only three days to spare, we drove all the way to Palm Springs, California and spent three nights in an RV campground at Desert Hot Springs. After a quick read through the manuals, the fridge was cool, the heater was running and the toilet was hooked up. Waking up on our new Tuft & Needle mattress (thanks again Roland) really made us feel at home.
Having been to Palm Springs before, our aim this time was to explore Joshua Tree National Park, and what a treat that was. Even though it poured down with rain all night, the clouds cleared up and the sky was perfectly blue! We took a walk in the park (no pun intended) and got up close and personal with the unique, fuzzy trees and the mighty boulders that surround them. We played hide and seek with Jack Rabbits and even caught one on camera.
What a great end to our Christmas holidays. We want to thank Denise und Roland for everything they have done for us. We are truly blessed to have such good friends. Even though there are still a few bits and bobs to do, we can now return to Europe, knowing that our new home is ready to hit the roads next October.
But for now, we still have a million things to organise here in Switzerland and will start getting things ready for our baby which is due at the end of march. We’ll keep you posted.
Bye for now!
