The nice Klara A. Žagar is a Slovenian who made a brave decision months ago and moved into a van with her partner Klemno and her furry friend Piknik and set out to explore southern European countries. After wandering around Italy, she was blown to Spain. Where their path will take them in the coming weeks remains unknown.
The idea that on four wheels are exploring Europe, it was born quite spontaneously. Their brick house is unsuitable for living in winter conditions, so already in autumn they were looking for solutions where to spend the coming cold months. They also had Piknik in mind, which required as simple a solution as possible. They clicked on avto.net, where they immersed themselves in the world of vans, as this was an excellent alternative for spending the winter.
At the beginning, they planned to buy a more affordable vehicle, for which they would spend up to 5 thousand euros, but when their eyes saw their Ivec, it was clear that they had found the right one. They named it Piči Miško, which already had everything necessary for traveling inside. Although it is already a respectable 23 years old, it is in excellent condition, having been carefully maintained by the previous owners.
Photo: Personal archivePiči Miška, love at first sight
"When we look back, it's quite funny because we don't even know what we were paying attention to. So far, we have learned so much that we would go on a tour in a completely different way. That's when we arrived, Klemen kicked the tires a little and we just bought it," explains Klara with a laugh and continues: "Basically, we trusted the previous owner, who spent more than an hour explaining all the details about the van, installations, systems... Clean intuition without a real foundation." Their new member Piči Miško has so far proven to be extremely durable, and as the couple explains, similar vans reach a million kilometers all the way there.
Because the "van" is narrower than the motorhome, it is easier to drive, but it is still tall and long enough to allow a comfortable stay. Klara and Klemen spend a large part of their lives traveling, discovering foreign lands, so the news was not too much of a surprise. "Basically no one looked at us from the sidelines. Our families are both used to being around a lot and living a little differently. We experienced the most hatred on the TikTok platform," explains Klara with disappointment.
Adjustments along the way
Life in a van is full of unpredictable situations that require you to roll up your sleeves and arm yourself with ingenuity. Thus, along the way, the need for a more powerful electrical system arose, as a result of which Klemen supplied everything from the battery, converter, mppt to new wiring. When they realized that the pipes in the shower were leaking, they removed the bottom of the shower and sealed them.
It is these little things and small victories that provide additional satisfaction along the way. When I ask them what moment they remember most so far, Klara sums it up: "Klemnu, the moment when he turned the main switch on the new electrical installation and everything started working as it should. But for me, when we slept by the cliffs on the Spanish coast and woke up before sunrise, we made coffee and then drank it at sunrise. We write a diary of our experiences every day, or captain's log.'
Photo: Personal archivePiknik is also satisfied with the decision
Being on four wheels has its pros and cons. "The biggest plus is that you are extremely flexible. You go where you want and stay there as long as you want. You have access to great locations - for example the beach, the mountain. It is a house on wheels, which means that everything is always at hand. If you're hungry, the fridge is close at hand. If you are tired, the bed is very close. It allows you to easily meet new people because you can make contact with other travelers very quickly," Klara, who you can also follow on Instagram, lists some of the advantages of staying in a van. Of course, being far away from loved ones also has its disadvantages, so Klemnu already misses his friends a bit, and Klara occasionally misses authentic, delicious home-cooked food.
But it works without that too. The furry member of the "crew" Piknik is also extremely satisfied with the new way of life. Although he is not too fond of all-day drives, he is impressed by the freedom that living in a van offers. From many opportunities to swim, meet new dogs, to jump and sniff around. They spend most of their time outside, in nature, only when Klara and Klemen are working, they stick to the van. They are discovering mysterious beaches, forests,... During our conversation, they were skiing in Spain, but it is not yet known where their journey will take them in the coming weeks.
