Taking on a journey always takes its preparations, but going away for a year or even longer with your own van, shipping it to another continent, getting all the papers, changing different energy sources and other tweeks in order to have it endure extreme temperature while only depending on batteries and gasoline, making all kinds of work arrangements and so on. We prepared for an entire year to get the van and ourselves on the way, and when the van had to be put on the boat in Antwerp, it was just finished in time, as were we, on July 1.

Arriving at Halifax didn’t mean driving off.

It meant three days in a somewhat grey hotel near a grey shopping center, watching spiders make webs in the sun beams that traversed the heavy clouds, going to the harbour to get all the papers done, and then cleaning the van and reorganising it with the contents of our suitcases.

After three days all was ready.

We were finally on the road!