The Boston van Build

Over the next couple of days we worked our way through Pennsylvania and the state of New York, to make our way to Boston Massachusetts. As we had not yet started to build the beds, we stayed in relatively cheap accommodation ranging from US$50 to $70.

We were lucky enough to have a friend in Boston with a large enough house and yard to park the van. Complete with a variety of tools that we would require for the coming days, this saved us a substantial cost.

There were a variety of small challenges that we needed to overcome. Seeing as America is stuck in their ways, the imperial system is still in use. The impractical nature is evident by the way most other countries use the metric system and in fact most medical practitioners in America use it for greater accuracy. Having found a tape measure in the house, we set out measuring and logging what we believed we would needed.

Now having grown up with the internet, we believed anything you wanted to do had been done previously and if that was the case, someone had filmed it. Which meant our best friend in this restoration was YouTube. We had found some videos that were predominantly helpful for designing the outer supports which would be secured to the inside of the van, eventually holding the bed frames.

Having a rough idea of what we needed, we now needed to know what was available. So we headed to Home Depot. Home Depot is very much the Bunnings of America and has a large range of wooden products. We purchased US$110 worth of timber, screws and nails, before heading back to the house to start the build.

 Much of the first day was filled with measuring, designing, purchasing building materials and starting to remove an aluminium partition left by the previous owners. This poorly constructed partition took a number of hours to dislodge because we had to drill out the welds. However once removed this allowed us to access the sleeping compartment from the front seats.

To secure the structure to the inside of the van we used self tapping screws. In many of the videos we watched ply wood would often line the walls of the van, this is much more aesthetically pleasing. However, we would only own the van for three months, making this an unnecessary expense and timely process.

The second day was much more productive. We started by installing the main horizontal supports for the bed slats, these were screwed to the timber outer supports we installed the previous day. 

Once those were in place we nailed five slats on each bed spanning across the full width of the van, we made these slats out of thicker timber to eliminate any chance of a top bunk collapse which would almost certainly result in serious injury.

We were then offered plywood off some tables in old carriage houses on the property; so we set to work removing, cutting and installing these into the van.

Lastly we installed curtains and carpet to allow for some privacy and comfort for our new life on the road.

In high spirits after what we considered a successful day, the build was complete. 

Purchasing a Van

Whenever looking for a van we had been advised previously from an Australian that it is much easier to acquire one from a car yard or dealer because they can organise 45 day temporary registration plates. So there our search began, mostly looking online and occasionally ringing up to inquire about vehicles of interest. When we eventually found one that seemed to fit our requirements, we had to pay a US$500 deposit. Which secured a 7 day hold on the vehicle until we were able to have a look in-person. Now, placing a deposit always carries a certain amount of risk, if the vehicle turned out to be inadequate, this money was not refundable in our case. Therefore it is important to do your due diligence regarding the reputation of the dealer; google searches and online ratings is a good place to start.

The van we had found was located in Akron, Ohio. We searched for flights and a charter to the town from Cleveland.
On first observations there appeared to be quite a low socioeconomic population, however the real estate along side a train track has never attracted the most desirable residents (so the first opinion didn't last long).

We approached the dealer first thing the following day.

When first looking at any vehicle it is important to check for leaks, visible damage and service history. These may provide slight bargaining leverage, if it wasn't as advertised. In our case, the van had several cosmetic issues including some surface rust, however these weren't major issues and were acknowledged in the listing. Surface rust is common on cars in the northern parts of the USA due to the salt laid on the road to prevent ice build up.

For our requirements we were mainly looking for a van that had the capability to install bunk beds and still have an area for general purpose.

When speaking to the dealer he initially said that we needed a social security number to purchase the van or an identification number that could be applied for at the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
To acquire a social security number as a  traveller you must apply for a VISA. To travel under a VISA you must attend interviews in your country of residence and provide reasoning . As we were already in the US, this was no longer a probable option.

We went to the IRS branch in Akron, to find what specific number we needed for the acquisition of the van. We were informed we needed file for an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), which would take 6 to 8 weeks to be processed. At this stage we thought purchasing a van as foreign unprepared travellers, was not possible.

The next morning we rang the dealer to inform him that we would have to forfeit the deposit as we could not get an ITIN in an appropriate time period. In true used car salesman fashion, he said on the date of the transfer we can own the car without having the number present and when the details are processed he can add it into the sale paperwork. We are still unsure of the legalities of transaction, however the Siberian salesman was certain that we still legally owned the vehicle.

The next complication was insurance. In America you must have insurance for any vehicle. We choose to go with GEICO (a large service provider), from advice received previously. When applying you will be asked to provide a previous driving history from your country/state of residence. In our case, as residents of Queensland, Australia, this can only be obtained by physically going into the Department of Transport or by post. Which is again greatly difficult without being in Australia currently. So unfortunately, we had to opt for a more expensive policy that indicated we had no previous driving experience.

In recap, if we were to ever do this again, we would obtain a proper travelling VISA instead of an ESTA, as well as getting driving history before leaving. This may seem unnecessary seeing as we are only travelling for three months but it will save a lot of heartache if there was an accident or we had a salesman that wasn't happy to sell the van without the documentation.
Luckily for us, it had worked out this time.

American Airlines

For any frequent flyers (such as ourselves) most are aware of the one world benefits. However the lounges provided for American Airline patrons are much nicer and extensively catered, than those of partner airlines. If you are lucky enough to venture in, make sure you do so on an empty stomach.

Upon boarding it is really good to see that military and service personnel are permitted to board after business class and before other passages. This is inline with the country's patriotic nature, showing how very respectful and appreciative they are as a society.

As most are aware in the event of any mechanical failure in high altitudes, body positioning and oxygen masks are going to do little to save you, nevertheless safe information is mandatory. On American Airlines the safety information is very detailed. In Australia this section might go for 30 seconds, whereas here it goes into extensive detail, even describing precisely how to remove the life jacket from the plastic packaging. It is clear to see, common sense has completely evaded the modern American society.

However one big positive, is the American pilots are still about to land the plane with the passenger windows covered. Which is a testimony to their skill.

Further education is still required for both Australians and Americans, when exiting in an orderly fashion. The perception still seems to be, whoever gets up first, exits first. Unfortunately for these overly keen individuals, this has never paid off. I can only presume their misguided logic assures them that persistence will prevail.

Landing in LA

We landed in LA on the 14th of February 2019, more popularly known as Valentine's Day, for us this day meant it was a Thursday. We caught a very convenient bus that dropped us off a short way from the hostel. We had booked in for three nights, hoping to determining our next move before leaving. Our hostel was situated right in the heart of Hollywood. It was full with aspiring actors, comedians and artists.

Later in the trip, an elderly gentleman described LA as the 'fruits and nuts bowl' of America. This description was entirely accurate, to observe some very interesting characters all one had to do was take a short walk down Hollywood Boulevard or jump on the LA metro.
Our first trip on the metro, found us face to face with an obese woman who appeared to have aggressively devoured a bag of chips which resulted in crumbs spread to the adjacent chairs, before promptly passing out. To our shock, she managed to regain consciousness before departing at her stop. On another trip we entered a cart with a disheveled looking man and a smell that could only be caused by human feces. However horrible the smell was, it was impossible to not laugh at the faces of the people that entered after us. Who would enter as most people do with blank unwavering faces, to then screw them up with dismay while glancing around frantically to find the cause. The brave stuck it out, some dashed to different carts when the train came to a holt and we believed some would have left to seek alternative transport. We soon found out from a local that the metro was not a preferred method of transportation, our experience reflected similarly.
While walking Hollywood Boulevard you get offered many "Hollywood star tours", which all claim to take you to the Hollywood sign and through Beverly Hills to sight homes allegedly owned by famous actors. I say allegedly, because it is very difficult to clarify the authenticity of these claims. We shopped around and found one for US$35 however it difficult to know if the value is justified. In saying that it, it was fantastic to see the contrast between the often tattered Hollywood and the glamorous Beverly Hills.

Although LA has many great tourist attractions including Venice beach, Santa Monica pier and Universal studios; we would not recommend LA being your soul destination in the US. While this reflection may seem negative we did thoroughly enjoy our time in LA.

Research

In any factual write up it is important to set the scene.
Having both decided we deserved a quarter life crisis, we booked return tickets to Los Angeles from Brisbane Australia, 8 months prior to departing. We gave ourselves 87 days in the 'land of the free', given that any trip over 90 days required a visa. Now, three days is not a lot of leeway but given that deportation is the punishment for overstaying your welcome, we figured we would get home one way or another.

Before any holiday the advise we got was, "make sure you do your research, to get the optimum experience out of the time." Being the disorganised 25 year olds we are, we immediately neglected this information. The only verbal plans we made were that we intended on buying a van, building two separate sleeping areas and driving.

There were only two items that were imperative to land in the US; a passport and an ESTA. Both relatively easy to acquire without prior criminal conviction.

For those that have not been committed to read the body of this post, the synopsis is, we did you no research and made no plans.