When 26-year-old systems engineer Mike Hudson got tired of living a less-than-exciting life in the United Kingdom, he decided to seriously mix things up. Sure, when most young people are dissatisfied with the way their lives are going, they take a vacation or go out for a night of debauchery to reset. They might even switch careers. But Hudson did things differently.
He bought a van, converted it into an apartment, began traveling around Europe, and started a website, Van Dog Traveller, to document his journeys. The site details where he visits and shows how he has been able to live comfortably inside his van/apartment. Hudson refurbished the whole thing to make it any road tripper’s dream. So far, he’s traveled from England to France, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and Greece. Seems like the van is working out quite nicely.
Here’s the van in original condition.
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He had to gut the inside to build the mobile apartment he’d designed.
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After four months of work, this is what the van became!
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He built a collapsible desk area where he could do some work.
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His van even has a kitchen, complete with a sink, stove, and refrigerator.
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He thought of everything, including how things might roll around while in transit. The silverware stays in place with magnetic strips!
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Of course, as is necessary in any apartment, he built a bathroom.
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…With a shower!
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Here’s the view of the back of the van where the bathroom vestibule is located.
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And if you’re wondering how he’s got running water inside a van, he installed this water pump.
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Besides having a small couch that folds out into a bed, he also has a hammock. As you can see, it’s quite spacious.
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There’s plenty of space for a couple friends (Matt and Ross traveled around with Hudson for the first month) to hang out and relax when no one’s driving.
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The van also uses solar energy in order to power any devices inside that need electricity – that way, they don’t rely too heavily on the van’s battery.
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Here’s Hudson, keeping the world up to date on his adventures across Europe.
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(via Mirror)
This is a pretty incredible project. It sounds like he’s having a pretty amazing time. This guy is proof that if you’ve got a goal in mind and you’re willing to pursue it, pretty awesome things can be accomplished.
