Making yourself at home

This week we are in Mexico City, and we were extremely fortunate enough to find a CouchSurfing host who is A) dog-friendly (he has five!), B) has a parking spot for our van, C) offered to host us for the entire week, and D) is awesome. Even though I’ve got years of experience both hosting and being hosted, I’m only just now beginning to realize that being a (good) guest takes just as much energy as being a (good) host.

Juan and I came through Mexico City two years ago about this time, but having been here once before does not make it any less overwhelming. Having a peaceful haven for the week has been a great gift. We’ve now been on the road for 11 weeks, so you can imagine how it feels every time we are welcomed into someone’s brick-and-mortar abode.

I don’t think I was a born traveller and I definitely did not grow up camping. But I have learned over the years how to travel without being either completely miserable or trying to be exactly as comfortable as I am at home. The weird thing is that instead of just doing without while travelling, I find that travelling has largely shown me that whatever I don’t need while travelling, I probably don’t need at all.

When you’re living out of a van and space is extremely limited, this makes even more sense. At the same time, you have to know how to take care of yourself so that you’re not feeling uncomfortable and unable to enjoy your trip. I was raised to be a stoic kind of tourist, but fortunately Juan really knows how to enjoy himself. This means that if it’s too hot or if we’re extremely in need of a shower with water pressure, we don’t feel bad about checking into a hotel. It also means that you have to carry some items that can make all the difference when travelling.

I’ve never been a fancy beauty products kind of girl, but my sister-in-law has gotten me spoiled on nice soap with the handmade stuff she makes at Shieh Design Studio in San Jose. Her soaps are one of the few comforts taking up precious cargo space in the van.

On the road, a touch of soap can make you feel a little more…maintained. These soaps are soft enough–sort of a waxy consistency–to be able to carve off slivers for a one- or two-night stay in a hotel or campsite, which means not having to stow an entire wet, slimy bar of soap. You can’t really do that with a bar of Dove or Dial. Like my brother (her husband) says–all soap feels inferior after using hers. This is a photo of her Coconut Shea soap, one of the few bars we’ve got stashed. We’re also carrying a pump bottle of this mint-eucalyptus liquid soap she custom-made for Juan (lucky boy!) that is even easier when camping. I’d never heard of mint soap before, but it really wakes you up and refreshes you in a way that sweet or floral scents don’t.

It’s funny that the time I use nice soap is while living out of a van. But there you have it.

And in closing, I thought I was extremely smart for improvising this way to heat tortillas in the van while also cooking chicken and nopales. But they didn’t really heat at all.