On The Road Again

Here's the truth. And it kind of snuck up on me.

I Love RVing!

Don't get me wrong. I pretty much figured I would enjoy it, but there was a question mark in my mind as to whether I would like it more or less than simple car and motel travel.

When we first started looking at RVs, it was an interesting process. At one point I realized Larry and I were looking at very different things. He looked at the construction and the floor layout (meaning the amenities that were offered.) Some of the interior things that tripped his trigger were things like a desk and a fireplace, or where the TV was located. As for me, I looked at Storage. I wanted to know where clothes would go. Pots, pans, cooking utensils, FOOD?? Where did it go? And I also cared where the TV was located. It sounds silly, but go look at a few RVs. It may be over the driver's seat, or in a wall separating the living area from the kitchen area. Some take up good usable storage space. We wanted to maximize all the usable space and make things convenient for everyone.

Once we got a handle on what each other was looking for, the selection process became a little easier. And the more we looked the more we were able to fine tune what was important to us. But, through it all, in the back of my mind, I would wonder if the convenience of an RV would outweigh the convenience of a hotel. (In a hotel, they clean up after you, wash your towels, vacuum your floor, clean the bathroom....and provide breakfast.) In an RV, I was pretty sure, most of that would fall on my capable, (but willing??) fingers.

I was right. I sweep the floor, daily. We are pretty independent, so we each fix our own breakfast, but I still clean it up. I wipe down the shower, and make the bed. But....and here is the epiphany... I don't care! I love the RV.

In a hotel, the room is always either too cold, or stuffy. Larry and I never agree on the temperature. I've yet to figure out why, in a hotel, he likes the room at 58 and at home, the thermostat is set at 68. I just know I have to pack my thermals, heavy socks, and winter robe when we travel in August. In a hotel, you get up, hit the shower, and hustle downstairs to get a luke-warm, prepackaged, but 'free' breakfast. We stay at nice hotels, and one of our favorites, has several pillows of various densities. With all that selection, I've yet to find one that feels right. And no matter how nice they make the rooms, it just isn't homey. I never feel quite settled.

In the RV, the temperature is set and stays fairly stable. The bed is VERY comfortable, and the pillows are ours. I often sleep better in the RV than I do at home. And then there is morning. Larry is up before the sun.

He fixes his coffee and settles in to watch whatever is on at that hour. I get up considerably later, when the sun is up and television has resumed it's regularly scheduled programming. (Meaning Good Morning America is on.) He gets his cereal, I work out or walk, and fix my tea. Eventually, we decide its time to plan the day. Life is so relaxing.

But one of my favorite parts is simple. In a hotel, every day you pack and unpack. In an RV you only do that on the first and last day of the trip.

On week 3 of our trip we were getting ready to move on to the next stop and all I could think of, as I tucked the coffee maker back into the cupboard and made sure there were no potentially flying objects sitting on the counter, was I LOVE THIS! This is so much nicer than living out of a hotel.

So we packed up to leave the Orlando/Sanford area and go to Savannah. We had seen old friends, had dinner with neighbors from PA that had moved to Florida, spent time with the grandkids. Now it was time for the next leg, where we would hook up with another friend. I felt like Willie Nelson singing "On the Road Again".

And I was loving it.