On the afternoon of March 10th 2011 I hopped on a train in Reading, heading west to Yate and Danbury to collect a new member of our family. The return journey along the M4 was uneventful, apart from being my first experience of driving a kombi on a motorway with a strong crosswind. It was dark and cold when I parked Tallulah in our drive for the first time and it took several hours for the adrenaline to subside and for my knuckles to regain some colour.
First night on the driveLittle did we know that this relatively short (and exhilarating!) journey was just the start of an amazing, life changing adventure.
Over the following 10 years, Tallulah has travelled to the farthest reaches of the U.K., as well as stretches along the West Coast of France and Northern Spain, just over 100,000 km in total. Between 2011 and 2016 Tallulah paid all her own bills being hired out, and since being on site at Alpine Grove she has helped out moving caravans and other equipment, with occasional cameos as a glamping unit. She has provided transport and/or accommodation for over 60 different families besides ourselves, including Mr & Mrs Kenneth Branagh and 5 or 6 brides to be.
A selection of event picsShe has helped with house clearances, countless tip runs, furniture collections and deliveries. She has been a support vehicle for several sporting events, London to Brighton and Man vs Horse to name just two. She has attended 50+ music festivals and VW events over the years, including all 8 Kombi Sleepovers and 9 Camperjams. She has attended Glastonbury and Fairport Cropredy Convention 3 times each, although none of them with us. She has been on display or in the show and shine on several occasions and has occasionally been the only BraziBay in attendance, she always draws a crowd.
A selection of VW eventsThe very first VW event she went to was at Stoner Park near Henley and has to be the most notable since this is where she introduced us to a group of similarly minded BraziBay owners whereupon, we became members of BrazilianVWBay. Our first visit to CamperJam was a few weeks later, quickly followed by the first ever Kombi Sleepover at Anita's. From that point on we would meet more and more BraziBay owners and become close friends with lots of them. Our kombis were the reasons we met, but ownership has long since become secondary to the friendships we have made.
One of many adventures with Brazibay friendsWe have stayed in a large number of campsites in Tallulah over the years, some good, some not so good, and often found ourselves playing the “if we owned this site, what would we do different” game. This ultimately resulted in us making a fundamental decision in 2015 and a monumental leap of faith in 2017, to sell up, move West and invest everything we had and more, into buying our own campsite.
We sold our house in July 2017 and loaded Tallulah with all our possessions that weren’t already in storage. We went to France with the BraziBay gang for 2 weeks then travelled West to East and back across the South of England for a further 4 weeks visiting friends. We stayed in temporary accommodation on campsites, including the one we would eventually buy, with occasional sofa surfing for further 5 months before finally signing on the dotted line and moving into our new house. Tallulah was our only real home during this time and she didn’t let us down once.
New homeFor the last 3 years, Tallulah has been taking it easy at Alpine Grove. Venturing out just a few times to events, meets or to the beach, but otherwise content to stay on site and enjoy a well earned rest. She had her friend Max stay for a year to keep her company but we don’t use her much now and we all know our kombis enjoy being used as much as possible.
Fun a friends at Alpine GroveAfter much discussion and debate and as she approaches her 10th birthday, we have decided that Tallulah deserves a new family and a new family deserves Tallulah.
She has brought so much joy to our lives and taken us on a most incredible journey that she will always be part of us - as will all the amazing people we have met along the way. We have 10 years of unforgettable memories and it is now time for her to help another family make some new ones. Tallulah has served us well and has a heart of gold. She has many more adventures in her for years to come. Her new family will love her as much as we do.
As I type this, her next adventure has already started. She is on her way to meet up with her friend Max for some minor refurb work and a tidy up at VW Kampers. Once done she will be available to view on the VW Kampers forecourt and any prospective new owners are welcome to get in contact if they would like more info.
The start of a new adventure, bye Tallulah!Brazibays will always be welcome at Alpine Grove and you will still see us at various events as they happen, albeit not in Tallulah.
So, farewell Tallulah, take care and thank you for everything you have done for us and enabled us to do, we couldn't have got here without you or met all of these wonderful people.
We can't wait to hear about your next adventure, enjoy spending time with your new family
