So what comes next?

That was the question we had to consider once we returned home from our weekend away.  After 26 years I had decided that my Redundancy was a sign that it was time I retired.  Bill now decided that he too did not want to race back into the workforce, certainly not at the same level he had just left.  

Our plans had always been to sell the apartment when we retired and find a little house in the country where we could travel from.  Next step would be to trade in the trusty camper and buy a caravan that would take us anywhere we decided to explore.

While we were away in Maryborough I had found an advertisement for a new off road caravan in Melbourne that seemed to tick all the boxes.  Thinking this was too good to be true we decided to drive out to the yard and have a look.  Of course we had no intention of buying it but once there we discovered that yes, it was everything we were looking for and the display van could be had for a very good price.  

As a display van there were lots of extras that were not usually included as standard and the longer we considered the more bits our friendly salesman threw in.  And so yes, you guessed right, we bought the van and now own a beautiful JB Scorpion Off Road Caravan.  It is 20ft long and has a full ensuite, washing machine, great kitchen with oven and a very comfy Queen Size bed.

The only issue was they didn't do trade ins and so we have to sell the camper ourselves.  It has been a great little van and we have certainly got our money's worth out of it.  As I read back through my ramblings here I find that we have done 14 or 15 trips each year, some only 2 or 3 days, others 2 and 3 weeks and we have had a ball doing them all.  So while it will be sad to let it go we now look forward to more adventures in our new van.  And the good news is the camper has been sold back to the dealer we bought it from.

So with phase one of the plan taken care of, albeit out of order, we continued on and set phase two in action.  The apartment is now officially 'on the market' and we will see what happens next.  So far we still haven't totally figured out where in the country we might like to live but have decided that it shouldn't be a problem as we can put the furniture into storage and just take a long trip away perhaps finding the 'perfect' place as we go.  

So while 'what to do next' is a bit scary we have decided that we would take a leap of faith, give it a go and hopefully all will be well.  

The following Thursday we made our way back to the JB Yard to pick up the van.  The salesman had told us to allow a couple of hours as we had to go over all the operational info.  We arrived as planned at 10 am and our two hours turned into five as the chap who took us through everything was interesting to say the least.  Still at last it was time to hitch up and leave and oh no our tow hitch was not suitable so two hours later and lots more $$$$ we were all hitched up and on our way back to the yard where we had to leave it for two days until our first trip.

We returned the next day and spent most of the day transferring the contents from the old to the new.  I was absolutely convinced that it would never fit but of course Bill was right and everything went in with loads of room to spare.  So all we had to do was do the shopping on the way home, pack the bags and return in the morning ready to rock and roll.

We did find time to catch up with friends during these last two weeks having dinner with Suzie and Bryce in Albert Park on the saturday night and lunch with Astrid and Hans at the RAC Club in Healesville the day before.  It was good to see them all again before we headed off for our first trip.  Not really sure what the 'pick up sticks' sculpture is all about at the RAC but it caught my eye so here it is!

Watch this space for the adventures of Rhossie and Bill as we roam around this great country of ours.  From this moment on we become 'nomads'!

until next time........