Robin and Miet

Name and age
Robin Blondeel - 27
Miet Lassuyt - 22

Hometown
Ghent - Belgium

When did you start your travels?
August 28th 2011

Reason for taking this trip
We were already dreaming of a big trip for a long time, hesitating to do the Silk route or drive down to Africa. Then half a year ago we got an invitation from a friend who was getting married in Cincinnati, Ohio. So the plan arouse to drive the Americas. We both love the Latin American spirit and already traveled to Nicaragua and Brasil so we knew it'd be a killer trip.

Why did you decide to drive?
We bought this awesome van a while ago, dreaming of driving it around unknown corners. And then we found out that shipping it to the States was not that expensive. We're not real city trippers so we rather travel between beaches, forests, mountains and deserts in stead of big towns and hotels. So it's great to be able to reach of the beaten track places and bring our own place to sleep.

Are you also taking along pets? If so, names.
We glued figurines of Yoda, Kalimero and Buddha on our dashboard, they's talismans given to us by friends. They're the closest thing to pets in our car next to the ants and mosquitoes...

What type of car are you driving?
A 1999 Mitsubishi L300 4WD (also known as Delica in some countries), we call her Monster or Mitsoemoesjie.

Did you make any modifications to your car for this trip?
We painted it ourselves since it had the worst graffiti on it when we bought it.
Installed 2 extra headlights (a blessing to see potholes, animals, ... in the dark).
Brought 2 spare wheels. We had to replace the suspension shocks along the way (killer speed bumps).
We have a thick matrass on top of 2 long flightcases which we stuff with food and tools.

How did you save up or finance your trip?
Worked a couple of months while living cheap with friends.
Sold drinks on our goodbye party.
Got a little sponsorship from Robin's company if we visit some of the offices along the way.

How long do you plan on traveling?
10 months, we have a return ticket from Rio De Janeiro, Brasil in June 2012

Where do you plan on driving?
USA - Mexico - Guatemala - El Salvador - Honduras - Nicaragua - Costa Rica - Panama - Colombia - Ecuador - Bolivia - Peru - Chili - Paraguay - Brasil
There's a map on the bottom of our blog to see where we got so far.

What were your family’s and friends’ reactions when you told them about your trip before you left?
Mexico, are you crazy!?
Do it! (now, before you have kids and a mortgage, haha)

Did you speak Spanish before you left your home country? How much Spanish? Are you taking more Spanish lessons as you travel? If so, where and for how long?
Miet knew some words and Robin spoke basic Portuguese. We brought some Spanish lessons on cd to play in the car but never listened more than 5 minutes to it since we prefer music. We're just picking it up along the way, gets better slowly but we manage to engage in conversations. We hope to give our Spanish a boost by working for a month in Costa Rica.

Do you have a favorite place or country that you have visited during your trip?
The national parks in the US were amazing, especially Zion and Yosemite. We had great fun in Mexico, meeting up with lots of drivers in Puerto Escondido. El Salvador was the most pleasant surprise of the trip so far, the people are just the sweetest. We just arrived in Nicaragua as we are typing this and we can tell we're gonna have the best time.
Favorite place? Behind the wheel on a winding, unpaved mountain road with a distant view on the ocean and monkeys in the treetops....

What was the weirdest thing you experienced on your trip?
Our diary is a novel of weirdities! First night in Guatemala we parked in a church (not more than a shed with a cross) on a hilltop. After dark people started praying and crying, going around the car on their knees. When we witnessed a devil exorcism the next day, we got the hell out of there!

What was the worst border crossing?
US-Mexico, but just because our credit cards did not work and we didn't bring enough cash for the vehicle permit deposit. So we had to drive back to an American ATM. By the time we got in Mexico it was dark, so we broke one of the most important rules on our very first day. After 15 minutes in Mexico we got into a speed trap and had to pay a hell of a bribe.

Do you have any advice for others who may be considering driving the Americas?
Don't listen to anyone who tries to discourage you!

Would you do it again?
There's so much other places in this world we want to see, but hell yes, one day it'll be on 2 wheels!

Do you have a blog or a website describing your trip? If so, what is its address?
http://miero-amerika.blogspot.com/