Confessions of a Traveler, Camp 1899
One of the best things about travel is meeting new people and hearing their stories. This is why we bring you Confessions of a Traveler. We love sharing others travel stories to educate, entertain and inspire you to go outside and play!
Meet Tiffany of Camp 1899.com! I (nikki) have been following her blog for a while now and have virtually fallen in love with her and I think you will too! Tiffany went through some of the normal expected steps of life: Get married, buy house, sell house, and rent townhome….
Now this is where she gets interesting: buys airstream, sells everything, travels the country by airstream, and finally finds the perfect tiny bungalow in Edgewater, CO and still travels loves to travel in Eddie (the airstream)!
I told you she was a cool chic! Tiffany is big on style, design, DIY, Travel…and much more. So, until I can get a camera on her in person, she agreed to hash out some of her travel confessions here! So here we go!
What do you love most about traveling?
I love so many things about traveling. I love wide open spaces, visiting new cities, the entire adventure of being out & about and meeting new people. The excitement of what’s around the next corner…
What is your favorite mode of travel and why? (You don’t have to answer Eddie)
A Prius (or similar). I love our tiny airstream but I also love the freedom of no towing, no driving an rv, no hooking & unhooking the septic (big bonus!), just jumping in a small, gas efficient car and the open road. I think have home will travel is amazing; at the end of the day you have your own bed and accoutrements that make you feel cozy but the appeal of traveling ultra light in a car and stopping at a mom & pop motel or whatever along the way, there’s so much freedom in that. (and much lower gas bills!) Although I wouldn’t mind trying a little VW van, room to snooze and keep some food for the road…also very appealing, and simple.
When you travel in Eddie do you prefer to stay in an RV Park, State / National Park, or Boondock on National Forest or BLM and why?
We love state/national parks. Although boondocking has great financial benefits, state and national parks offer more of an opportunity to meet fellow campers and are often the most beautiful places to spend the night.
We are all suckers for horror stories! What has been your worst travel experience with Eddie?
Our worst story is less of a oh.my.word. I can’t believe that just happened and more of a wish-we-had-known-this-to-begin-with! Our Airstream is vintage, 1973, and wasn’t entirely equipped for self-sufficiency. We naively had no idea starting out that most state and national parks were not equipped for full-hook up and for much of our travel we were limited because of this. We learned the hard way about gray/black tanks, generators, solar, and back up battery power. All the things that allow you to stay almost anywhere regardless of what hookups are offered.
When traveling, what type of places do you seek out and where do you go to hang out with like minded people?
We equally love teeny tiny towns with character, quiet, beautiful landscape, the joys of small town life (great examples, Marathon, TX and Roslyn, WA), and the hustle and bustle of city life. We love walking every street of a city and taking it all in. We’ve walked miles and miles in NYC, San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, so many places, and we never tire of it. We try to find out where the locals go and hit at least one or two spots wherever we travel that are completely off the tourist path. We’ve met really fun people this way, learned a little more of the lay of the land and felt like we’ve gotten a much better sense of what an area was all about. A good local dive bar is always a good bet!
If you were only allowed to bring 3 items (not clothing) on a month long trip what would they be and why?
- Chapstick. Can’t go a day without it, dry lips are the worst!
- Sunglasses. The slightest glare and I feel blinded, and squinting is not my best look. (;
- This is a tough one, on one hand my camera, to capture all the moments. However, my pillow is tough to leave behind, the perfect pillow does make for good beauty sleep. And sunscreen, oh sunscreen. Hard to say. Under gunpoint I’d probably say champagne.
You not only lived and traveled in a small airstream but you now live in a small home. What would be your words of wisdom for living small?
Regarding life and what you put out vs. what you get back, I would say that it pays you back one hundred fold. Living small means simplifying and simplifying is extremely freeing. Paring down what you possess to the minimum means less cleaning, caring for, worrying over, organizing, and curbs spending because where to put it? In turn you have more time to go and do, for fun & frivolity, it’s a good tradeoff. Although we didn’t manage this one, separate closets can be a real luxury.
A big *southern* thank you for having us on your amazing blog! xo, Tiffany (& Sean)
