Interview for Ali (and Mike) Kingston Diverse Traveller 2011
1. The first time we ‘met’ you were finishing off a lengthy tour of North America that was in 2004.
Tell us about yourself, especially about your life in the UK and your life now - what have you been
doing since then?
When we returned to the UK at the end of 2004 we resumed a 'settled' life. I got a job in
Pharmaceutical Sales and Mike continued with both his businesses, which he had been
managing while we were away. One is his modular building company and the other home rentals
based in East Dereham, Norfolk. We continued to use our motorhome for holidays. Travelling has
always been been the goal and our return to 'normal' life in the UK was a comma rather than a full
stop.
We traded our motorhome in for a new American 'RV' in June 2006. We got married in the
November of that year in Las Vegas and set off 'full-timing' in the motorhome a month later. This
was a different style of motorhoming as it was so much bigger. We always stayed on camp sites
and towed a car which we used as our everyday vehicle. We spent the whole of 2007 touring
Spain, Portugal and France. We then stored the motorhome in Spain in 2008 and purchased
another RV in Florida. The idea was that we would have two homes. One in Europe, and the
other for touring the USA. American motorhomes really are houses on wheels and this would give
us several options for travelling and touring.
We left Florida in March 2008 and headed north to Alaska. We enjoyed the longest day in
Fairbanks Alaska, having had a distressing journey north. This was caused by multiple 'teething'
problems with the RV. In fact we had so many breakdowns we lost confidence in the vehicle and
decided to sell it. A long term plan became a short term one! In the meantime we still had our
European based motorhome which served us well until June 2009 when we sold it on e Bay. I
returned to work in the UK in December 2009 and Mike got involved with various house repairs,
renovations and advertising for new tenants.
At the beginning of 2010 we were planning our next motorhome and we decided to go small
again. The main reason for this decision was that the big RVs were wonderful to live in but
painful to manoeuvre. A small van would give us adequate living space and the flexibility to drive
around Europe's smaller roads without the fear of driving into a small medieval village with
nowhere to turn. We looked at the van conversions available to buy from the dealerships and in
one instance the bed fell apart in our hands. This made us question the build quality so we looked
to the specialist manufacturers of bespoke van conversions. Having had so many years of full
time living in a motorhome we knew what we really needed. Mike trawled the motorhome
magazines to find the companies and then spoke to them on the phone to explain what we
wanted. We settled upon Wildax who are based in Elland, West Yorkshire. We set off in our new
van in October 2010 and have lived in it full time ever since. We are very please with the layout,
design and build quality. Wildax have also made the grade with their customer care after we
purchased it.
2. You are currently touring Europe in a camper van with your husband Mike. What prompted this
journey? Do you always travel with Mike?
We love travelling in a motorhome as it gives us so much flexibility and choice. I can't think of any
other form of travel where if you like a place you can just stop and stay. We have even pulled
over somewhere for a cup of tea and decided to make it the next camperstop for a night or two.
We always travel together except for if we are away touring and one of us has had to return to the
UK. For Mike this has always been business related and for me to go to a party or family get
together.
3. How do you cope being away, for so long, from family and friends? Do you miss not having a
permanent home?
I don't miss having a permanent home. This may have something to do with my upbringing in the
forces. We were always packing and moving either to move house or at the beginning or end of
the school term. I do miss friends and family but communication nowadays is so much quicker,
easier and cheaper than it used to be. Visiting across Europe has also become a lot easier with
the advent of the budget airlines.
4. Have you made new friends while travelling? How easy / difficult is/ was it to make new friends?
We make new friends all the time while travelling. Some just for the duration of a stay, so perhaps
a few days. I don't know what the formula is but some have stayed in touch and have developed
into very firm lasting friendships.
5. Give us an insight into a travelling day week – planning process - who does what, how do you
decide where to go and where to stop?
We try not to make too much of a plan as they can get disrupted for any reason. The only type we
do make is if a friend or relative has a significant birthday or event we would like to go to or if
Mike has a business 'emergency' that needs attending to.
We made a decision to drive to the North Cape in Norway over this summer. Unfortunately this
has been shelved as we have had to drive back to have a leaky shower tray replaced. This aptly
demonstrates why we don't make a long term plan.
Fellow motorhomers give us ideas of where to go and we read up on places using the internet
and travel guide books. If we like somewhere we may stop longer and then make a move
depending on what facilities are available.
6. How do you cope being cooped up together for so long; what are the positives and challenges?
We are great friends and respect each other's space, needs and can anticipate our moods. We
are both good natured, have a similar outlook on life, sharing goals and aspirations. We tend to
back off and avoid a conflict if we are aware one is brewing because we know nothing really
would get resolved with a fight and we would just hurt each others feelings.
The only time we're 'cooped up' is in bad weather. If we are indoors I may go and lie on the bed
and read, do some writing, or watch a DVD on the laptop with the headphones on. Mike would
then be doing similar stuff in the main living area of the van. He spends a lot of time undertaking
practical tasks like filling the fresh water tank, emptying the grey and foul waste tanks. He also
chats to other people and can be away for a considerable length of time A certain task would
have taken about 20 minutes but he could be away for an hour or so. We also go off on a
separate bike ride or walk leaving the other for 2 or 3 hours.
7. From all your ‘motor home’ travels where is your favourite place and least favourite; why?
Really tough... for me Portugal. The people are lovely, seem to be laid back and are tolerant of
motorhomes. The scenery and coastline is stunning.
Least favourite would be parts of the world that suffer from mass urban sprawl. Soulless, ugly,
apartment blocks. Parts of the USA and Spain spring to mind.
8. When you travel what one thing are you always happy to leave behind?
Commitments.
9. What one thing do you miss?
Having a good long natter with Katrina over a bottle of wine. We know each other very well as
well as each other's families. I can say something and she can just sum it up so well for me.
She's not chatty on the phone so I always like to get her on her own and we can just have a good
gossip about anything and everything.
10. What one piece of travel advice would you give to other women travellers?
Forget worrying about stereotypical roles and what it means. I know I am a very capable woman
who could enjoy an independent career. I have made a decision to spend my life travelling with
my husband. An example of this is that I do the majority of the cooking and cleaning. Mike is very
good at both of these tasks. I don't resent doing this because it would be impractical for us both in
such a small space.
11. What one piece of advice would you give women thinking of travelling long-term with their
partner, especially in some sort of motor home?
If you are sure something really matters to you, think again. Does it really mean that much? This
doesn't just apply to objects of desire or material goods (e.g. shoes and handbags). Asking this
question can also help to meet your partner's aspirations as well.
12. Mike: What one piece of advice would you give men thinking of travelling long-term with their
partner, especially in some sort of motor home?
In a word tolerance. Living in such a small space I find I am very aware that Ali does seem to
occupy a lot of it! I also think that not every relationship is suited to this style of living. Some
couples would not be able to be so tolerant as their personality type would not be suitable to the
environment and lifestyle.
I
1. The first time we ‘met’ you were finishing off a lengthy tour of North America that was in 2004.
Tell us about yourself, especially about your life in the UK and your life now - what have you been
doing since then?
When we returned to the UK at the end of 2004 we resumed a 'settled' life. I got a job in
Pharmaceutical Sales and Mike continued with both his businesses, which he had been
managing while we were away. One is his modular building company and the other home rentals
based in East Dereham, Norfolk. We continued to use our motorhome for holidays. Travelling has
always been been the goal and our return to 'normal' life in the UK was a comma rather than a full
stop.
We traded our motorhome in for a new American 'RV' in June 2006. We got married in the
November of that year in Las Vegas and set off 'full-timing' in the motorhome a month later. This
was a different style of motorhoming as it was so much bigger. We always stayed on camp sites
and towed a car which we used as our everyday vehicle. We spent the whole of 2007 touring
Spain, Portugal and France. We then stored the motorhome in Spain in 2008 and purchased
another RV in Florida. The idea was that we would have two homes. One in Europe, and the
other for touring the USA. American motorhomes really are houses on wheels and this would give
us several options for travelling and touring.
We left Florida in March 2008 and headed north to Alaska. We enjoyed the longest day in
Fairbanks Alaska, having had a distressing journey north. This was caused by multiple 'teething'
problems with the RV. In fact we had so many breakdowns we lost confidence in the vehicle and
decided to sell it. A long term plan became a short term one! In the meantime we still had our
European based motorhome which served us well until June 2009 when we sold it on e Bay. I
returned to work in the UK in December 2009 and Mike got involved with various house repairs,
renovations and advertising for new tenants.
At the beginning of 2010 we were planning our next motorhome and we decided to go small
again. The main reason for this decision was that the big RVs were wonderful to live in but
painful to manoeuvre. A small van would give us adequate living space and the flexibility to drive
around Europe's smaller roads without the fear of driving into a small medieval village with
nowhere to turn. We looked at the van conversions available to buy from the dealerships and in
one instance the bed fell apart in our hands. This made us question the build quality so we looked
to the specialist manufacturers of bespoke van conversions. Having had so many years of full
time living in a motorhome we knew what we really needed. Mike trawled the motorhome
magazines to find the companies and then spoke to them on the phone to explain what we
wanted. We settled upon Wildax who are based in Elland, West Yorkshire. We set off in our new
van in October 2010 and have lived in it full time ever since. We are very please with the layout,
design and build quality. Wildax have also made the grade with their customer care after we
purchased it.
2. You are currently touring Europe in a camper van with your husband Mike. What prompted this
journey? Do you always travel with Mike?
We love travelling in a motorhome as it gives us so much flexibility and choice. I can't think of any
other form of travel where if you like a place you can just stop and stay. We have even pulled
over somewhere for a cup of tea and decided to make it the next camperstop for a night or two.
We always travel together except for if we are away touring and one of us has had to return to the
UK. For Mike this has always been business related and for me to go to a party or family get
together.
3. How do you cope being away, for so long, from family and friends? Do you miss not having a
permanent home?
I don't miss having a permanent home. This may have something to do with my upbringing in the
forces. We were always packing and moving either to move house or at the beginning or end of
the school term. I do miss friends and family but communication nowadays is so much quicker,
easier and cheaper than it used to be. Visiting across Europe has also become a lot easier with
the advent of the budget airlines.
4. Have you made new friends while travelling? How easy / difficult is/ was it to make new friends?
We make new friends all the time while travelling. Some just for the duration of a stay, so perhaps
a few days. I don't know what the formula is but some have stayed in touch and have developed
into very firm lasting friendships.
5. Give us an insight into a travelling day week – planning process - who does what, how do you
decide where to go and where to stop?
We try not to make too much of a plan as they can get disrupted for any reason. The only type we
do make is if a friend or relative has a significant birthday or event we would like to go to or if
Mike has a business 'emergency' that needs attending to.
We made a decision to drive to the North Cape in Norway over this summer. Unfortunately this
has been shelved as we have had to drive back to have a leaky shower tray replaced. This aptly
demonstrates why we don't make a long term plan.
Fellow motorhomers give us ideas of where to go and we read up on places using the internet
and travel guide books. If we like somewhere we may stop longer and then make a move
depending on what facilities are available.
6. How do you cope being cooped up together for so long; what are the positives and challenges?
We are great friends and respect each other's space, needs and can anticipate our moods. We
are both good natured, have a similar outlook on life, sharing goals and aspirations. We tend to
back off and avoid a conflict if we are aware one is brewing because we know nothing really
would get resolved with a fight and we would just hurt each others feelings.
The only time we're 'cooped up' is in bad weather. If we are indoors I may go and lie on the bed
and read, do some writing, or watch a DVD on the laptop with the headphones on. Mike would
then be doing similar stuff in the main living area of the van. He spends a lot of time undertaking
practical tasks like filling the fresh water tank, emptying the grey and foul waste tanks. He also
chats to other people and can be away for a considerable length of time A certain task would
have taken about 20 minutes but he could be away for an hour or so. We also go off on a
separate bike ride or walk leaving the other for 2 or 3 hours.
7. From all your ‘motor home’ travels where is your favourite place and least favourite; why?
Really tough... for me Portugal. The people are lovely, seem to be laid back and are tolerant of
motorhomes. The scenery and coastline is stunning.
Least favourite would be parts of the world that suffer from mass urban sprawl. Soulless, ugly,
apartment blocks. Parts of the USA and Spain spring to mind.
8. When you travel what one thing are you always happy to leave behind?
Commitments.
9. What one thing do you miss?
Having a good long natter with Katrina over a bottle of wine. We know each other very well as
well as each other's families. I can say something and she can just sum it up so well for me.
She's not chatty on the phone so I always like to get her on her own and we can just have a good
gossip about anything and everything.
10. What one piece of travel advice would you give to other women travellers?
Forget worrying about stereotypical roles and what it means. I know I am a very capable woman
who could enjoy an independent career. I have made a decision to spend my life travelling with
my husband. An example of this is that I do the majority of the cooking and cleaning. Mike is very
good at both of these tasks. I don't resent doing this because it would be impractical for us both in
such a small space.
11. What one piece of advice would you give women thinking of travelling long-term with their
partner, especially in some sort of motor home?
If you are sure something really matters to you, think again. Does it really mean that much? This
doesn't just apply to objects of desire or material goods (e.g. shoes and handbags). Asking this
question can also help to meet your partner's aspirations as well.
12. Mike: What one piece of advice would you give men thinking of travelling long-term with their
partner, especially in some sort of motor home?
In a word tolerance. Living in such a small space I find I am very aware that Ali does seem to
occupy a lot of it! I also think that not every relationship is suited to this style of living. Some
couples would not be able to be so tolerant as their personality type would not be suitable to the
environment and lifestyle.
I
