We Live Out of a Box 📤
Digital Nomads in a Van
We are digital nomads and in spring and summer, we tour Europe by van. We are also minimalists.
All our clothes are stored in two boxes in our van. Each of us owes one box. When we rent an apartment, each of us takes their box out, making any wardrobe superfluous. At home (we still have a home base), the wardrobe was bought only for guests. During our tours, we rent out our apartment on Airbnb.
If you are interested in our Airbnb side hustle, check out the link below.
When we return home, we just store our entire boxes in the wardrobe.
How can you live with such few pieces of clothing?
Even in our boxes are some clothes which we hardly use. The chic dress, the beach top…
And after each trip some clothes normally have to go. As we wash almost all our clothes once a week, some clothes are torn after three months. But still, our motto is: Wear it till you tear it!
And then you buy new clothes, right?
Buying new clothes is a super rare event! We are not keen on rummaging through stores, pushing through crowds in malls, or sending wrong-sized items back by post. We rather focus on exploring nature, new towns, and new cultures. We also love spending time in restaurants, pubs, and cafés, trying out new cuisines.
One of us gets most of her clothes from friends and family and adjusts each piece to her size.
“The best thing my grandma taught me was sewing. I am petite and most of the off-the-rack pieces don’t fit anyway. Hence, I have been altering clothes to my size for many years. These days, I just adjust the hand-me-down clothes from friends and family to my fit.”
“Taking good care of your clothes and mending them, also helps. I have a dress that I bought when I was 18 or 19. Now, I am 38, and I still wear it every week in summer. “
But yes, once in a while, we do need to buy some items. Shoes, underwear, swimwear, or socks. Items where you simply want to be the first one to wear them.
But surely you still have some clothes at home?
That’s right. Each of us has a small rucksack of winter clothes stored in our apartment, so we can easily exchange it in the colder season. But in winter, we normally seek out warmer climates, such as the Canary Islands or Madeira, however, we still board flights only with hand luggage.
What else do you need?
As digital nomads, we work on our trips. Thus, our laptops, phones, plus the matching cables are essentials.
Also, we carry a few toiletries and two towels along.
Don’t you have any extras?
Yeah, in the van, we store more than the bare minimum, just because we have the space. Some few pieces of sports equipment (badminton bats, different balls, a basketball, a yoga mat, an air mattress for swimming etc.), bigger things, e.g., bikes, scooters, stand-up paddleboards, or canoes, we rent along the way.
As the van offers the possibility to cook, we also have some few cooking utensils, ah, and bedding, of course.
Also, we always bring along books. We love reading. But books come and go. Once the book is read, we normally leave it one of the apartments that we have rented, or book booths, and public bookshelves for others to read.
Don’t you miss anything?
We have everything we need — and much more. As we are constantly in new surroundings and always keen on gleaning the most of each destination, material things, such as clothes or fancy appliances become uninteresting. Our focus lies on exploring the richness, the curiosities, and the beauty of this amazing planet.
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