Living in an RV for an extended period has been our dream.  Twenty years ago, before Aliyah, we had an RV; it was a great way to take a vacation with the family without worrying about food or hotel reservations.  Now, with the kids grown, and with kids of their own, it is just the two of us in our travels.  Being retired has the advantage of going where and when we like for any length of time that suits us.

For well over a year I have done my research.  There are many different types and sizes of RVs out there, from trailers to motor homes, sized large, medium, and small, with basic amenities and multiple luxuries.  With all the different manufacturers, the choices are endless.  We chose a Class B motor home built on a van chassis (Class A is built on a bus chassis and Class C is built on a truck chassis).  This is usually the smallest of the options and we chose it for the convenience and ease of getting around in a single, reasonably-sized vehicle.  It is the best on gas mileage and fits into a normal parking spot.

There are many manufacturers making Class B RVs; we chose Winnebago.  We were impressed with the logical way it was designed and the Travato 59K had all the amenities we wanted.  When viewing it, we had the impression that we would be living in a comfortable space that didn’t feel crowded.  There is no shortage of RV dealers and the interviewing of salesmen was an interesting process.  There were those with the hard fast sale: buy now before they are all gone, or the price goes up, or it is discontinued.  More interesting was when we started asking unusual questions related to Shabbat – when you open, or unlock, the door is there a way to make sure no lights turn on; can we get a key that has no electrical device attached (not so easy), etc.…  When asking these kinds of questions, there were salesmen who stopped corresponding, as they had no clue where we were coming from and no desire to accommodate such inquiries.

We finally found a dealer and salesman we felt comfortable with.  Lichtsinn RV in Forest City, Iowa has more, in-depth YouTubes on RVs than anyone out there.  After watching their YouTubes, we felt that we really knew the RV.  Another thing that appealed to us was that since they are one mile from the Winnebago factory; no delivery man lived in the RV during transportation.  We do not need to worry about koshering the kitchen, as everything is brand new.  In addition, the salesman, Reed Burkholder, is a very patient man.  When asked about locks, keys, and lights, he had a service consultant join in the correspondence to make sure we were satisfied.  Reed went out of his way to be accommodating.

When it came down to actually traveling to Forest City to see, test drive, and buy the RV, I was very impressed. The business manager, Brandon Mondt, had sent a copy of the sales agreement before I arrived and any reasonable changes I requested were granted.  Everything we agreed upon during correspondence was there; no pressure to purchase additional items I didn’t want and no games. Brandon was also very helpful in dealing with the issue of our not having a residency in the U.S. and in helping us find the most reasonable RV insurance.  If you get the feeling that we were suitably pleased with our experience dealing with Lichtsinn RV, you are right.  Ron Lichtsinn, the owner, has put together an impressive team.

Next, we take delivery of our new traveling home on June 12^th.  What to call it?

Take care and have fun,

Bill