December 2024
The first few kilometers
In the previous post we’ll tell you all about the process of buying our little house on wheels. After months of searching, comparing, dealing with paperwork, and a lot of anxiety, the day finally arrived: the motorhome was ours. And then a new question arose:
HOW TO START DRIVING A MOTORHOME?
📍 Our first destination was still a long way from Argentina. We had to travel back from Florida to Washington, D.C., where a few more months of work awaited us before we could begin our big trip.
🛣️ That trip would be our trial period. The first few kilometers to get to know the motorhome, get used to its size, learn how to maneuver it, and really start to experience what it’s like to have a home on wheels.
🚐 We put the gearshift in DRIVE, took a deep breath… and set off on an adventure we’ll never forget.
Heading home with two vehicles, a restless cat, and mechanical and weather-related problems
On December 26, 2025, we set out from Florida and headed north, on our way back home. We were happy to have our motorhome, as we mentioned in the previous post. The funny thing was that Emi was riding with Batman in the rental car we had to return in Washington, D.C., and Fer was in Etalis (our motorhome). Yes, we kept the rental car all the way to Washington, D.C., since, if we hadn’t bought our own vehicle, the three of us getting back home from Florida would have been sooo expensive! (whether by renting another car or flying). Plus, Emi still couldn’t drive our new purchase until she was officially listed on the registration papers—\, a formality we had to take care of once we arrived in D.C. We were dying to all three of us go together in our new little house on wheels, but that’s just how things are.
That separation seemed to affect Batman, our traveling cat, right away as well. When we set out on our trip, he didn’t seem very happy in the rental car with Emi: he was meowing, getting restless, and it was clear he wasn’t having a good time. So, at our first rest stop, we decided he should ride with Fer, and sure enough, he calmed down again. Apparently, he also wanted to enjoy Etalis using their seats, their favorite spots when the sun is out.
It took us three days to cover 1,300 km to get home, and as usual, a few things happened along the way. The trip was intense, but we stayed motivated the whole time, despite a few mishaps. We knew we had our motorhome, with all the paperwork in order, and that filled us with peace of mind and happiness.
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The three-day trip
We spent our first night in the motorhome at a small RV park without electricity, so we had to improvise a mobile office and charge our computers from the car to send some important work emails. Meanwhile, Fer was checking to make sure the motorhome was working properly, and Batman was exploring every nook and cranny of what would become his new home, even though he didn’t know it yet.
The second day was the hardest. Halfway there, right after filling up at an old and somewhat run-down gas station, a light came on on the motorhome’s dashboard: CHECK ENGINE. That kind of thing always makes your heart race. As usual, we called Kiko, who recommended adding an injector cleaner and seeing how the engine responded. Although the light never went off, everything seemed to be fine, so we continued our trip, never driving faster than 55 mph just to be safe.
But… shortly afterward, the sky darkened and a terrible storm broke out. Heavy rain, very heavy rain, strong winds, and even a tornado warning for the area; alerts warning of the danger in the area were coming in on both our cell phones and the radio. We pulled over as soon as we could at a rest area, waited for the worst to pass, and continued on with great caution. That way, we were able to continue the trip without any major scares, though our bodies were tense and our minds were filled with thoughts like, “What if buying this was a mistake?”
The second night was just like what most travelers experience: spending it at a hypermarket, the one that starts with W. It’s not the most glamorous option, but it’s practical, safe, and comfortable for a one-night stopover. That allowed us to rest and complete the final leg of our journey without any major setbacks. The light on the dashboard was still on, but we’ll tell you more about that in the next post.
After a delicious family breakfast at our new home, we hit the road again. We covered a lot of kilometers, but the drive was smoother than it had been recently. American roads are really well-suited for large vehicles, and despite the dim lights, Etalis handled the trip very well, driven by Fer and accompanied by Batman. Emi continued in the rental car, despite our growing desire to all three of us be traveling together.
We finally arrived in Washington, D.C. It was really crazy to drive into the city in our new motorhome, passing by the Capitol and the Washington Monument, that iconic obelisk.
So where do we put it now?
Parking a vehicle with these dimensions is no easy task in a city like the U.S. capital. Street parking is prohibited, and our building didn’t allow vehicles of this size (21 feet long / 7 meters, 8 feet wide / 2.5 meters). We had to turn to so-called “storage facilities”, places where people usually rent space to store their belongings, and where many also allow vehicles of various sizes to be stored.
First, we went to “Extra Space Storage,” but since the vehicle wasn’t registered in the city yet, they wouldn’t let us store it there. Then we went to another place called “Self Storage,” and they did allow us to store it there; the only requirements were that the vehicle be registered in the name of the person who would be the point of contact with the storage facility and that it be insured. That way, Etalis found a new home for the next 8 months, and we had the peace of mind that it would be stored in a safe place. The cost of this storage service was approximately 110 USD per month. Oh, and one thing this company allowed, which was essential for us, was that we could work on improving and maintaining the vehicle, as long as we didn’t make a mess or leave any trash behind.
But don't think that just by finding a place for Etalis to sleep everything was already taken care of. There was still one crucial step left: officially registering her in Washington, D.C. And, as we’d come to expect from this adventure, that process wasn’t going to be so simple either. Between requirements, back-and-forth paperwork, an expensive repair shop, and a few unexpected setbacks, the process ended up being quite a story in itself. But we’ll tell you all about that in the next post.
If you want to know everything aboutSi querés saber todo sobre la inscripción (registration en inglés) de Etalis registration in Washington, D.C., we'll cover it in the following post.
Thinking about buying a vehicle in the US❓
Questions about the process❓
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