It’s today! Mine and LVB’s one year anniversary. It’s been exactly 365 days since I handed back the keys to my house and officially became a vanlifer!
And what a year it has been. If you had told me at the beginning of the build how this year would pan out I would not have believed you! It’s been truely incredible.
Almost as soon as I started the van I got signed to Soft Rock Record and launched my album Pivotal. I have been on two national tours that have taken me the length and breadth of the UK to play in some of the best venues we have (And camped in their loading docks – oh yeah.. and met Jack Savoretti!! He’s the theme song to my vanlife). I have had a midnight break in, and been the victim of a drive by shooting that made the national papers! I have driven through the alps, and along the full length of the French Rivera, I have joined the National Trust and visited many of their beauty spots. I have been to Brittany, and Scotland twice, in fact right now I am en route to Scotland for a third time! I’ve camped out at music festivals, beside beaches, and at friends weddings not to mention numerous stays on Big G’s driveway working on music. I have even overcome my fear and parked LVB up and left her for a week while I went on holiday!
I have mostly got my routines down (I say mostly for the parts where I can’t be bothered). I know where to get water anywhere in the country, I know how to empty my black waste on the stealth where necessary. I know where I can get rid of my rubbish and recycling. The van is well and truely broken in, I know all her idiosyncrasies, I have fixed all her teething troubles, added everything she needed and I know where to park safely in almost any part of the UK now. And I have only been ‘moved on’ twice.
We’ve reached temperatures of 36 degrees in the height of summer, and even managed to keep the temperature up to 26 when it was -5 outside in the dead of winter! I’ve even had a Vanlife Christmas and cooked a full Christmas dinner.
I have recently met another like minded van girl who showed me some new ropes and did away with some redundant fears. She also introduced me to a new and exciting community that I am looking forward to getting to know more.
And I have found new love and all the joy that wonderful adventure has had to offer. My new partner and I have learned to choreograph life in van so that we work great together even in the small space.
It has really been the most amazing and fantastic year of my life to date and I couldn’t be more pleased that I took the leap, designed and built LVB, and set of on this most incredible adventure.
Whilst some parts have been scarey (That’s another blog post) or frustrating, I’ve only come to love vanlife more as time has passed. I am far from done with it yet… So I wonder.. If that was year one, what will year two bring?
Stay along for the ride and we’ll find out?! And if you want to catch up on recent adventures checkout my Instagram @NikkiLoyMusic
Van Life Loy is brought to you by Kustom Revival – Keeping the show on the road since 2016.
Love from Luna Van Blanc and