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In the summer of 2018, we gutted out Elad's Acura MDX, built a sleeping platform and some cubbies inside, and packed the travel essentials. Two dogs, hammocks, backpacking gear, many books, and a (very) small cooler. We traveled the U.S. for 2 months and adventured all over the place, having a grand old time.
While rock climbing behind Mt. Rushmore, we met the lovely folks who own the Meadow Mini Bus (Gavin and Alexa). They were living a similar life to us, but they could stand up in their mini bus. They had a full kitchen, a bed they didn't have to unroll every night, a couch for guests, and they could still fit in one parking space. Needless to say, we wanted to trade up our little Acura MDX for a mini school bus.
Since then, we watched endless video tours of tiny homes and short school buses, how-to videos full of conversion tips and ideas, and (almost) every variation of the "pros and cons of tiny living" video. We debated, we talked about it, we set an ideal timeline and began the search for our bus. Our goal: buy the bus and begin the conversion process during the summer of 2020!
We cannot begin to thank our families and friends enough for their support and encouragement throughout this whole process. When we told people what we were planning on doing, we expected more questions or at least more confusion. We expected a lot more jokes about Into the Wild or living in a van down by the river.
We have been so pleasantly surprised and encouraged by the reactions of our families and friends. Their thoughtful questions and ideas, their offers of help, the links to videos or pictures they think we might like to take inspiration from, and their general enthusiasm for jumping right on board.
We searched for many months on auction websites, FB marketplace, Craigslist, used bus dealers, etc. You name it, we searched it. In the end, we ended up going with AAA Bus Sales in Phoenix for various reasons. We wanted a short school bus so we could fit in one parking spot and for ease of maneuverability. We were looking for a bus with little to no rust, that was in good condition, with a diesel engine, and enough headroom so we could still stand up once we added insulation, floors, and ceiling. Only AAA Bus Sales had buses that met our criteria and fit within our budget.
On the long drive home from Phoenix, we were talking about names for the bus. Every cool bus has a name, and we needed a name that fit our bus and us. She's taller than most buses, her little mushroom top is unconventional, and she's a tough bus. We wanted a name to fit her, something to convey her Amazonian warrior woman vibe. Elad suggested we name her Brienne the Bus, after Brienne of Tarth (a character from Game of Thrones), and I could not think of a better name for our bus.
Brienne will definitely look different soon, and we can't wait to embark on this adventure!
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