Tag 155 - We're back, it continues!!! Start in Phuket

Hello everyone!

Wow, where do we start after such a long blog break?

Probably the easiest thing is to start with a brief summary of the past few months :)

As most of you know, we stayed in our camper the whole time. We were very lucky to be able to rent a spot on a farm in Würenlos. We had a wonderful time there! We were parked in the middle of a beautiful meadow (which was honestly a disadvantage in winter and rain, but absolutely fantastic in sunny weather) together with other campers and travelers. There's nothing bad to say about the neighborhood, "live and let live" is the motto there, which we really liked.

Work also went well, exactly as planned, and after just one week, we were both back in the swing of things. Somehow, everything was much easier than expected....

After a while, we decided to take action and booked our flight to Asia. Specifically, our journey starts in Phuket, Thailand. We also booked two more flights: one to Manila, Philippines and one to Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam.

At first, the starting shot seemed so far away... Three good months after the booking... But time flies!

Now it's really happening and the journey continues!

The last few days, we spent a lot of time on preparations and organizational matters. One of the vehicles had to go (we were able to sell it and it should be picked up this week), the camper had to be stored, another car went into a garage, and at some point we had to pack our backpacks. Since our backpacks are huge and we have limited space in the camper, it didn't make sense to prepare them weeks in advance. You can imagine how that turned out: two days ago we started packing and hope that nothing was forgotten and that we don't have anything completely unnecessary with us. After all, we're carrying everything on our backs :).

However, nevertheless: now we're sitting on the plane and by the time you read this text, we will already be in the warmth!

Behind us lies an exhausting, emotional, wonderful time with many surprises! It was great to come back - but also to go again.

We're really looking forward to everything that lies ahead in the next few months! However, we're also a little nervous and have some respect for what we're undertaking.

Actually... it's exactly the same as when we set off with the camper in April :)

Furthermore, we're really excited to report to you regularly again and to let you be part of our adventure :)

To be honest, I missed the blog a little bit :D

So folks, now we're taking on the last two hours of the flight, changing planes in Singapore, and shortly after that, you'll have something to read again :)

Already in advance, we would like to thank everyone who reads our blog or just looks at the pictures and follows us diligently :)

So, small change of plans :)

We're writing to you again today, although this was not originally planned :).

By now it's 7 p.m., we survived the flight, found our way to our accommodation, and now we're sitting outside in wonderful 28 degrees and twilight.

The journey here was a bit rough... Arriving at Phuket Airport, we had already been awake for about 20 hours, as we couldn't really sleep on the plane. We probably dozed off from time to time, but still felt exhausted. Then came the best part: an unbelievable queue at the immigration counters! We spent a good 1.5 hours waiting in line and got a border officer who had no idea what airbnb (the website where we booked our accommodation) was. Since accommodation must be declared upon entry and the officer insisted on a hotel, the whole thing turned into a slightly tedious conversation. We showed him the booking confirmation and thanks to his lack of knowledge of German, he was satisfied when we gave "Your villa booking" as the hotel name. It took a lot of effort not to burst into laughter, but more or less it worked. Then we were finally out! Because everything took so long, our checked-in backpacks were already on a pile of luggage. Until we finally found them......! The next flop: we were actually supposed to be picked up by our host.... But he simply forgot about us! So we took a taxi. We paid easily four times as much as the usual fare for the ride. That was the moment when we thought of our colleague Dino's statement: "In the beginning, you will be ripped off and get really annoyed about it, because you know that it's completely overpriced." Yes, we still have a lot to learn. However, to be honest, at that point we were already pretty much at the end of our nerves and didn't have the energy to look for a cheaper option.

Our first stop was a bar near our accommodation. There we had one or two cocktails with a fantastic view of the sea. After that, we definitely headed to our place. The booked villa is incredible! For once, the pictures didn't promise too much! Big windows, modern and bright furnishings, a private pool (which we can jump into from the bedroom!) and upstairs a terrace with a breathtaking view! However, as soon as the host was gone, I fell into a Sleeping Beauty-worthy sleep, thanks to Kevin, only for two hours. After that, I was a total wreck. But after some time, I recovered and so far I feel surprisingly fit. No idea where Kevin gets his energy from... While I was unresponsive, he even went out for a quick shopping trip (we rented a scooter for our stay here) and is now at least as fit as I am.

Afterwards, we went down to the beach for a moment to feel the water temperature (it's not that warm by the way! :)) and bought wine and beer for tonight.

So, I think everything has been told now :).

You're up to date and we're still enjoying our first evening by the beautifully lit pool with the occasional snooze ;)

Very sunny greetings and from now on it's again: See you tomorrow :D