From seeing the world on $65/day to vanlife in Europe, the adventures continue.

by Madie Gee-Montgomery

I’m a firm believer that when you push yourself outside your comfort zone, that’s when you experience the most internal growth.

For some people, hopping on a plane and having no idea what you’re doing or where you’re going when you get there is out of their comfort zone. For others, it’s completely building out a van from scratch in only seven weeks and shipping this pride and joy across the Atlantic Ocean to start vanlife on a completely different continent.

We just so happen to fall into both situations.

My fiancé, Kyle Lilley, and I left Michigan in August 2022 to travel the world for a year. We each packed a carry-on suitcase and were off to fill our lives with excitement and the unknown. In seven months of full-time international travel, we were definitely pushed out of our comfort zone more times than we can count.

We drove a three-wheeled vehicle around Sri Lanka during an economic crisis, hiked to Everest Base Camp without ever trekking before, and broke a fast with Muslims—who spoke very little English—during Ramadan in a tiny village in rural Indonesia. Visiting 13 different countries and averaging only $65 a day as a couple, we were able to experience some of the most amazing and most miserable moments of our lives.

After traveling intensely for seven months, we came home to start our new adventure: building out a van from scratch and shipping it over to Europe.

A built-out van is giving us the opportunity to travel in a similar manner to our previous trip, but this time, we are able to bring our home and all of our belongings along with us. We finished our van in June after seven weeks of actual blood sweat and tears were spent building it out. Equipped with a queen-sized bed, a fully functioning kitchen, a toilet, shower, and power provided completely from solar, our tiny home on wheels has everything we need to take on our adventure.

Just one week after finishing our build, it was time to drive Creep, our van, to Baltimore, Maryland, where it would be put on a cargo ship and, in two weeks, would be picked up in Southampton, England.

Our choice to ship Creep across the pond was an easy one. We knew we wanted to pursue vanlife but also knew we loved and craved experiencing new cultures and ways of life, so vanlife Europe it was!

We have now had our little home in the United Kingdom for nearly three weeks, visiting England, Wales, and Scotland. Traveling this way feels much like our previous travels, but we now have to pay $7.50 a gallon for gas, and we get to see the expressions on people’s faces when they see an American license plate parked in the parking lot.

From here, we are driving Creep into Europe and plan to spend the next month driving through Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Italy.

With all of our travels, we have documented nearly every moment along the way on our Youtube channel: Kyle and Madie. If you’re interested to see our travels and what we get up to, follow us on Youtube and Instagram to see our up-to-date adventures (@kyleandmadie).

We continue to grow as we pursue experiences outside our comfort zones. Our travels have changed us into more adventurous, spontaneous, mindful people, who have been able to meet some of the best humans and who are living some incredible experiences. The only question is, where are we going next?

All photos provided by Madie Gee-Montgomery and Kyle Lilley.

Madie and Kyle purchased a 2008 Chevy Express 1500 cargo van for $5800.

The couple spent seven weeks customizing the van for their purpose of experiencing vanlife in Europe.

Maddie and Kyle beginning their day with yogurt and strawberries for breakfast.

A vanlife dinner is prepared with the help of the couple’s portable propane stove.

Kyle negotiating the Scottish highlands behind the wheel of “Creep,” with Madie taking advantage of the view.

Kyle’s drone provides a birds-eye-view over Scotland.

Kyle, Madie, and “Creep” pull into a free camping area in Wales to spend the night.

Kyle and Madie share drone footage of the beautiful landscape in Wales.

Madie and Kyle relaxing after a day on the road in Wales.