Clayton and I decided that Big-City life was not for us. As a matter of fact, we realized the whole rat-race thing that everyone seems to be stuck in, was not for us at this stage in our lives. Consequently on May 1st, 2017 we handed in our resignations – we are going to travel!
To be honest, we were contemplating this unconventional step for quite some time and in March 2017 the penny dropped. We realized that drastic action was needed sooner rather than later. Our sanity was in jeopardy and with the immortal words of The Animals stuck in our heads we realized that we’ve gotta get out of this place!
Some will argue that this is such a typical millennial thing to do. This I took this as a slight insult at first but I eventually got over it and decided to own this label that was bestowed upon us.
Little did we know that less than a month after resigning from adulthood, South Africa will officially be downgraded to junk status by more than one international rating agency and not too long after that, a ‘technical recession’ was announced. I must admit I am not too sure what the difference is between a technical and an actual recession – for me it has the same effect: companies are locking down on appointing new people with some preparing their sh!t-list for retrenchment. NOT the best time to be giving up a job…
The deed however, was done. We were no longer adults and adult-related things should not bother us. We are committed to travelling up the African continent, as high up as our parents feel comfortable with and our budget will allow, starting from our hometown in South Africa: Cape Town. Honestly, what is the worst that could happen…?
Our vehicle of choice raise many an eyebrow but at the time we decided, it just made sense (I’m pretty sure alcohol was involved whilst watching the Botswana special of Top Gear). What better vehicle to tackle Africa with than a 1972 Volkswagen Beetle?
- It is rear-wheel drive (Clayton assured me this will make the world’s difference), everything is mechanical meaning, duct-tape, cable ties and Q20 will make up the majority of our emergency spares.
- As an added bonus we will not be a hi-jack threat and we are hoping corrupt law enforcement officers will pity us rather than solicit a bribe.
(If you were expecting more bullet points, sorry! We decided early on not to overthink this!)
We bought Bertus, the red Beetle in December 2016 from a very nice man in Vereeniging who questioned our sanity but, nevertheless handed over the keys to our new overlander.
It is now 90 days after the penny dropped, we are on the brink of this new adventure – not sure if this will be the biggest mistake of our lives or the most amazing adventure. Only time will tell…
Wandering Off Track 