Text: Hugo Rocha Pereira | Photography: We Follow the Sun
Simone Topolski (english) and Carlos Quero (spanish) are an inspiring couple. In September they left the safety of their jobs and started a challenging odissey: a european road trip driving a vintage van is an adventure by itself, but this journey is self-knowledge driven. We spoke with Simone to know more about the We Follow the Sun project as they pit stopped in Ericeira, where they previously shared some special moments on their honeymoon.
The project
“Carlos and I met in London and lived there together for a year and a half before we got married. I love the city and many of my friends and family are there but I’ve been wanting to make a change in my life for some time, and live somewhere more connected with nature. As a surfer from Southern Spain Carlos never liked the weather or absence of waves so he also wanted to live somewhere close to the sea. We both wanted to start fresh but weren’t sure where or how, so we decided to travel for a while to discover places we like and think about how we want to live our life together and how we want to make our living. It’s a journey of discovery in every sense and a celebration of freedom and being together making our own destiny.”
Inspiration
“We love other bloggers like ‘Our Open Road’ and ‘Where’s my office now?’, both from the US, but travelling quite differently. We love the group VanLife on Facebook, which celebrates people living and travelling in some really creative vehicles. We’re inspired also by the many creative people we’ve met along the way who have started inspiring businesses from scratch, from clothing to cafés, as long term we plan to do the same once we establish our base.”
Background
“Carlos background is 18 years in the surf industry, he previously run his own retail company in Spain and has worked for brands like Rusty travelling the world. I have worked as a freelance travel journalist, interior designer and more recently creating restaurant and bar concepts for international hotels. We’re both enjoying having some time and space to breathe before we pour our collective creativity into our next project.”
It’s a journey of discovery in every sense.
Road trip
“We started in London in September and headed for France via the Eurotunnel. We stopped in Paris, and then headed through the Loire Valley to the Atlantic Coast and since then we’ve been hugging the coastline through south west France, the Basque Country, Northern Spain and now the Atlantic Coast of Portugal. Carlos is a long boarder and his favourite spots so far have been Hossegor, Biarritz, Bidart, Zarautz, Sopelana, Rodiles, Mundaka, Salinas, Malpica, Peniche and Ericeira of course! “
Setbacks
“We had problems with the van for weeks through Northern Spain and it got very frustrating and expensive. The last setback was a broken steering box and we had to find a part online, and ship it from the US. Our van is a 46-year-old Ford Falcon who we call Sam. He needs lots of love and care, and has been a bit troublesome but we love him and wouldn’t change him for anything. People love him too and we get lots of smiles, waves and thumbs up from people wherever we go.”
Simone and Carlos
Ericeira
“We had an amazing trip though Portugal for our honeymoon and we loved it here. The food is fantastic, the weather is amazing, people are super friendly and we love the laid back yet sophisticated style of the Portuguese people, it’s right up our street!”
Where do a designer/writer (with a love of nature and travel) from London and a designer/surfer (who needs the sea like most people need oxygen) from Andalucia make their home?
“We’re still looking! Who knows maybe Ericeira? We want to continue the journey for a while longer before we decide.”
Manifesto
“We had some great feedback initially, and we hope it will define all we do from now on. We have big plans and we hope we can inspire others to take a risk and follow their dreams no matter how crazy it might seem! We’ve had an incredible adventure and it’s not over yet!”
Simone and Carlos seven commandments.
Esta publicação também está disponível em | This article is also available in: Portuguese (Portugal)
