Many have asked me what it was like planning my year of travel and living out of a car in New Zealand for 4 months. For those who are interested, I’ve compiled my responses to some of those questions below 🙂
Why a year of travel? Travel has been a part of my life since I was born, and I knew at an early age that I wanted to spend a year doing something completely different. It was based on the premise that 1) putting yourself in new and uncomfortable situations is a thrilling way to grow, and 2) for the lessons to stick you have to give yourself time; time to disconnect completely from the life you were living, time to explore without direction, time to come to the ‘so whats’ organically. And of course, as I explained previously, I prefer to ask the question ‘Why not’ rather than ‘Why’ 😉
Were you nervous? Yes and no. Yes, because it was hard to let go of my wonderful life in New York and because I knew almost nothing about cars. No, because if you knew me you knew I had been talking about this for years. What helped was just taking the leap. It started small (telling my friends and family I was going to do it), got bigger (telling work, not renewing my lease), and bigger (booking my flight, planning & packing), so that when I finally took the last leap to board my one-way flight to New Zealand, there was nothing but excitement.
How did you plan? I didn’t want to plan at all and ended up planning way too much *smh*. The ~2 months leading up to my departure were pure mayhem. Some of it was necessary; a lot of it ended up being completely useless
- Leaving NYC – Where do I store my belongings (thank you aunt!)? Where do I send my mail (thank you work!)? Where do I stay now that I don’t have an apartment (thank you best sublet ever!)?
- Logistical planning – Will I get citizenship in time (thank you USA!)? Do I rent or buy a car (thank god I rented!)? Where do I go when I land (thank you Erica!)? Should I do a work exchange during my first month (cue hours of research looking for hosts on WWOOF)? Shit I need to book the Great Walks in advance?!?! How the hell do I pick a date when I don’t want to plan yarggggg (cue getting recommendations from people)!?!
Shopping – I admit, I had a spreadsheet… I listed all the items I would need by category (electronics, packing/storage, clothes, accessories, toiletries), whether I had the item, and the various options to buy that I’d spent hours researching. It was great for things like finding a travel computer (thank you Asus T100!), or finding the few multi-purpose clothes I’d have to wear for a year. But creating this list also meant spending too much time buying useless things like the small speakers I used twice, the jump rope I used thrice, and the mosquito net I used once…
How did you pack and what were your most valuable items? I had my electronics, valuables, and camera in my day pack, and my sleeping bag, clothes, toiletries, and miscellaneous items in my backpack. I got all my car camping gear when I arrived in New Zealand. The most valuable items (aside from my passport & expensive things like my camera etc.) were 1) the packing tubes I used to stay organized, 2) my all-in-one scarf/shawl/blanket, and 3) my foam roller for that post-hike relaxation 😛
How did you know where did you go? I didn’t. But thankfully I got some great advice from locals on my first night, I had NZ Frenzy guide me to new wonders, and I had Campermate keep me alive.
What was your car set up? I put the back seat down, put my bed behind the driver’s seat, my ‘closet’ and ‘pantry’ in milk crates behind the passenger’s seat, and my ‘refrigerator’ in the front seat next to me. For a deeper look into my ‘Cribs’ check out my 6 minute ramble 😛
What was your typical day? Usually waking up later than I should, a long breakfast if I had the time, driving while listening to music/podcasts and making pit stops along the way, walking and hiking, yoga, cooking dinner, reading, and sleeping. Maybe a shower every few days. Oh the joys of simple living!
What would you eat? So. Many. Omelettes. The usual had spinach, mushrooms, onions, and cheese; sometimes I’d throw some broccoli into the mix or have an avocado toast on the side. On the unfortunate days I couldn’t go omelette cray cray, I went with oatmeal and fruit. Lunch varied between vegetable wraps or dope cracker spreads. I had a solid dinner rhythm most of the time – every 3-4 days I’d find a good enough kitchen to make a big pot of vegetable and mixed bean stew. I’d freeze it in separate containers to give some added power to my ‘refrigerator,’ and simply thaw each day while roasting a side of asparagus and snacking on some cheese and crackers. On other days I’d cook vegetable stirfries, curries, chicken, quesadillas, or throw in the occasional frozen pizza when I was feeling lazy. Nom nom nom no wonder I never ate out except for the odd Ferg Burger 😛
Where would you sleep? Combination of Department of Conservation campsites & huts, holiday parks, and hostels. Check out my favorite places to stay for more info!
How did you budget? I knew this part of my year was not going to be cheap. Travelers’ average daily spending was ~$100 NZD (~$70 USD), and while some ultra-budget travelers were able to pull off $30-40 NZD (~$25 USD) by couch surfing, cooking all their meals, and doing work exchanges, I had the pleasure of living out of my car 🙂 which meant MAD $$$ towards rent and gas 😦 I aimed to spend ~$80 NZD (~$56 USD) daily and was surprised that I ended up under budget, even despite those nasty 1 time costs (read: totaling car, fixing broken phone screen, car battery dying)!
While car costs made up half of my spending and groceries were frightfully expensive, I was able to save by doing some work exchanges and rarely eating out.
What were the highlights? So many to choose from! Since I was a consultant, I’ll limit it to 3 😛
- Being introduced to the beauty of solitude on the first night in my car in the remote northern tip of New Zealand, and on the epic drive down the 90 Mile Beach the following day
- Feeling the power of awe while bawling like a little girl on the ridge line of the Kepler Track as the clouds parted and revealed a sea of mountains in every direction
- Living simply with nature while doing my most challenging hike over the Gillespie Pass (and the clearing of the mind that comes with hours of walking alone), and from my general day-to-day lifestyle of cooking, reading, and being outside
What were the biggest challenges you faced?
- Anger towards myself when I totaled (read: full 360 degree flipped) my car, came back with the police to find several items were stolen, and subsequently realized my auto insurance would not cover the damages. I kept replaying the incident in my mind, beating myself up for getting into the mess, instead of feeling grateful that I had survived
- Guilt and helplessness towards others when my friend broke her ankle midway down the Gertrude Saddle and had to cancel her grand travel plans. I couldn’t help but feel guilt – for suggesting the hike and for continuing on with my travels when my friend had to go home – while also feeling helpless because it all really was out of my control
- Anxiety towards limited & non-optimal time when I didn’t take advantage of a perfect weather day, when I couldn’t fit in all the stops I wanted to make, when the days became limited and there was still so much to do, when I hadn’t done as many work exchanges as I thought I would, and when I didn’t have any big epiphanies about myself or clear ‘takeaways’ as this chapter came to a close *chuckles*
Did you ever get lonely living out of a car by yourself? I thought I would, so I armed myself with a massive list of books, podcasts, and activities to keep me entertained. I was so scared of wasting time, of not making productive use of this year of privilege, that I anxiously took people’s advice to find a ‘theme’ for my travels – a skill I wanted to develop, a sector I wanted to explore. Well, all that turned to shit when I realized I never got tired of being alone. In fact, I was craving it. I couldn’t get enough of it. There were so many things I wanted to do (hike, cook, explore, read, meditate, yoga) and not enough solo time to even make a dent in my army of entertainment. So screw having a theme to my travels, screw trying to get through the never ending list of entertainment. I wanted to experience that feeling of having no obligations and no expectations, even when they were my own. It didn’t come easily and still doesn’t, but with solitude came the freedom to listen to no one but myself, the reality that I had no one but myself, and the slow, gradual, clarity from finally being able to hear no one but myself. More to come…
If the weather’s looking good in Westland, make Rapahoe your base to explore the famous 
Makes sense given the hut receives 8,000-9,000 visitors in season… book ASAP!
MJ & the world 