When Mark and Nicola Baker set out for a long drive through Europe in their Carado motorhome, they agreed that no matter where they were, some things would never change, Peta Stavelli writes.
Most of us would agree that two and half years in a confined space with another person would be difficult. Yet this is exactly what Auckland couple Mark and Nicola Baker set out to do – and they succeeded gloriously, with their relationship emerging even stronger for the experience.
Like most success stories, this one was built on a strong foundation.
“We are both pretty patient and tolerant people, and we don’t argue, we discuss,” Mark explains.
And one of the first things they discussed was how to incorporate their different personalities and travel styles so that each person had their needs met.
Recognising that Nicola liked routine, while Mark was just as happy to fly by the seat of his pants, they agreed on a few things to set each day up for the best outcome. Mark says (politely) that Nicola’s day only starts when she has her morning coffee. So, each morning he would make her a Moka pot of coffee to start the day. While Nicola was enjoying her coffee, they’d discuss the day ahead and Mark would always joke that they had “another day with no adults!”
At the other end of the day, no matter where they were, they’d enjoy a cheese platter and some local wine while playing a game of backgammon.
These simple daily routines underpinned each day as they essentially completed two figure-of-eight tours of Europe through Germany, France, Spain, Portugal and Italy (to name but a few of the countries visited).
The couple had previously enjoyed successful corporate careers. Nicola was a diamond specialist with more than 20 years’ experience. Mark, meanwhile, had been seeking a change of pace when leaving his role at an international company to sell motorhomes for Wilderness Motorhomes. There, he loved being part of the New Zealand family business and thrived in the new role, eventually rising to head of sales.
It was during this time that Mark met and formed a friendship with the managing director of Carado in Germany and fell in love with the brand.
“I’d been to the Carado factory and seen how they were built,” Mark says. “And now from personal experience I am happy to say that ours didn’t miss a beat in two and a half years.”
In October 2020, with the European borders slowly reopening to international travellers from selected countries like New Zealand, Mark and Nicola flew to Germany to meet their friend, Julian Manz at Carado HQ. Julian had prepared the vehicle, which they named Matilda (Tilly for short), and after a few days they hit the road.
“We had on the world’s thickest rose-coloured glasses,” Mark says of the beginning of their epic journey, as they drove out of Germany to Portugal through France and along the east coast of Spain.
The couple loved Portugal and here they continued with their now established daily routines, which included shopping for fresh food at the markets and eating local delicacies that they prepared themselves. Nicola quickly became an expert at cooking in the Carado’s kitchen and found eating in saved them an enormous amount of money so they could travel for longer.
When not travelling, they hiked or – in Mark’s case – surfed or jogged. These two activities were new to Mark, and he was able to indulge his desire to improve his skills because they had so much time on their hands. Like anywhere, the weather was changeable but if they made one mistake it was to be in Southern Italy during the summer.
“We had a heatwave while we were in Puglia and it was around 44°C every day for a fortnight.”
After returning to Germany to finalise details of the vehicle purchase, the couple travelled through Italy, to Greece by ferry, into Albania, Montenegro, Croatia and eventually back to Spain.
They bought a postcard in every major town or city and gave each place a rating, which helped jog their memory and also served as a travel-log, along with their travel diary and Instagram, where they also share travel tips for others (@midlife_crafted).
“Some places just blew us away,” Mark says. “We gave these 9 or 10/10. These were places like Matera, San Sebastian & La Rochelle. We ended up with about a dozen cities or towns at the “excellent” range that we look forward to returning to.”
The couple both love history and it had been suggested they would enjoy a route designed by an American travel agent especially for motorhomers: The Romantic Road. This takes in approximately 25 mediaeval towns and villages, many offering freedom camping, all with camping grounds.
“It was right up there in terms of experiences; we’d love to go back.”
Check it out here: motorhomecouch.co.uk/en/travel/routes/romantic-road
Mark and Nicola made a point of learning some basics of language for every country they visited, even though it was also easy to converse in English in most countries. Acceptance of motorhomers varied and they say generally speaking it was a bit more of a struggle in Portugal and Spain. Meanwhile, in Germany, France and Albania, they were welcomed with open arms to stay at some stunning vineyards and châteaux.
“The planning was down to me, and we used an app called Park 4 Night that has a traffic light system – red for don’t park there; orange for not very good or safe; and green for good. We only drove during the daytime and if, when we arrived, one of us did not feel safe, we moved on. We had no trouble at all in two and a half years.”
Nor did the couple endure any opportunistic theft, and they have some tips for other travellers they would be happy to share through their Instagram account.
But all things must end. Eventually, it was time to return to New Zealand and Nicola and Mark advertised Matilda for sale. They advertised on the German version of TradeMe and – by complete chance – it sold to a Kiwi who had met her German partner when he was signed to the Wellington Phoenix football team.
The two couples happily swapped accommodation, and while the new owners came to terms with “Tilly”, Mark and Nicola lived in their apartment on Lake Constance before leaving Europe via Zurich.
And then, it was back to reality – albeit the long way around – as they opted to spend two months in Bali on the way home to New Zealand.
“We met some beautiful, beautiful people and seeing all of the castles and ruins was amazing. We know we were blessed. But the real gold for me was spending every day with Nicola,” Mark says.
Now back in Auckland, and recently having moved to back into their home, Mark and Nicola quickly purchased an ex-rental Carado T449 from Wilderness (this time called Gertrude or Gerty) to continue their explorations, and more importantly, getting away together.
