It has been far too long since we have written a blog. Now that we have settled into our life in Singapore again it is time to share a few stories of our wonderful time reuniting with family, friends and our fabulous bus in December and January.
Leaving Singapore after Covid
It was magical to walk onto a plane again, the first time in 2 years. The journey was exciting! The send-off experience at Singapore Changi Airport – considered one of the best airports in the world – was disappointing. Covid regulations were still taken very seriously at the airport, resulting in taped-off zones, like a scary crime zone.
There were hardly any food options for our picky eaters so we grabbed a few snacks at the convenience store and ate stale chips and chocolate bars at an empty plastic, no atmosphere, socially distanced table. Honestly, we might as well be at some isolated far away airport, not some happening award-winning airport hub.
All was forgotten tough when we stepped on board our flight. As I said, magical! The crew made us feel at home and smiled behind their masks. We had plenty to be happy about, we were on our way to being reunited with our family, friends and LYFE!
Arriving in The Netherlands
During the landing I shed a few tears – this caught me completely off guard – but in hindsight a perfectly normal reaction, after what we have all gone through the last few years.
At Schiphol, we fell into ‘what had been our’ usual early morning arrival routine. Coffee, a quick shop for a takeaway breakfast at Albert Heijn & enormous bouquet of flowers for my parents. It felt so good being back in a world where they were just living with covid. Life felt normal.
We picked up our rental car and soon we were on our way to give my parents the biggest hug ever!! Before we did that though - “that hug” – we did a quick ART test in the car…. Being covid-trained and 'tracked' in Singapore for 2 years we would need time to adjust to the European covid-narrative.
Not before long we hugged my parents & enjoyed coffee & apple pie together in our favourite room in the house; the ‘serre’ (conservatory) After an hour of chatting, Frank got restless and said 'we need to pick up the bus'! The boys’ got ready and together they drove down to the garage where LYFE was already waiting for us after the inspection. That, by the way, is another story!
Within an hour I heard the familiar sound of our American school bus…., there it was, Frank carefully manoeuvred it around some tight corners and neatly parked it at our parking spot. Halfway in my parent’s drive, the other half sticking out on the street!
We had expected a dirty, dusty, musky bus but everything was intact, incredible! So its 2,5-year parking spot had paid off! So worth it. For the rest of the day we settled in. The plan was to use our tiny house on the road as an extra guestroom. So Frank and I would sleep on the bus while our boys’ would sleep at the main house.
The plan was also to take LYFE out for short trips around the Netherlands. Day trips or maybe even some long winter trips. But to be fair, we arrived without any plans. Covid regulations, a new variant (omicron) had taken the fun out of any planning. We were just happy to have arrived!
That first week we adjusted to living in a country where Covid did not make the daily headlines. It felt so good!
Here are some photos of the day-trips we did with LYFE. We celebrated Christmas in style, that first family Christmas after covid. The pandemic made our holiday gathering very special and it made us realise to not take spending time with family for granted. We made unforgettable memories.
Life inside LYFE
Frank loves driving and my passion (Edith) is making spaces look nice. It doesn’t need to be expensive or exclusive – but pleasing to the eye with a combination of family keep-sakes, thrift store finds and adding comfortable & warm touches. In short, find creative ways to do more with less in a small space!
With lockdown rumours in the air, we quickly went shopping and bought a few things to make the bus a bit more comfortable and make the space our own! We purchased 3 small carpets, shelves, a stool and a few cute fake plants to add a splash of colour! In a bus, things need to be versatile & handy to store.
A tiny home interior can quickly feel cluttered and therefore we have used light blocked colours (neutrals like whites, greys and beiges) but with some texture. At the same time we have tried to define our 3 little areas into zones; the comfy sitting area, the kitchen and the bedroom in the back. All with a similar colour scheme to make the space feel airier and larger because they reflect light!
So wherever we are travelling to, and depending on the colourful places we are visiting and surrounding ourselves with, coming home to our bus will be the space to unwind, to relax, to plan but also to invite new friends.
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