A retired school bus is not an obvious starting point for a home, but for Tanya Nestoruk and Arya Touserkani it offered something their previous house and first van could not.
uncertain
house → offer → something
The Canadian couple wanted to travel while keeping their living space with them, and a second-hand bus gave them enough room to build a more permanent setup.
asserted
bus → want → setup
They removed its original fittings, added a bedroom, kitchen and bathroom, installed solar panels and created storage throughout the interior.
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They → remove → interior
The project took far longer than the six months they had initially planned, but by the time they left for Mexico, the former school vehicle had become a compact home capable of supporting life on the road.
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vehicle → take → road
Couple turns an old school bus into a home built for travelling
Nestoruk and Touserkani had been living in a four-bedroom house in Canada when they decided in 2021 to change direction.
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they → turn → direction
They sold the property and moved into a van, hoping that a smaller home would make it easier to travel and spend more time outdoors.
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it → sell → time
In an interview with CNBC Make It, Nestoruk said, “I love the simplicity and versatility of being able to live and travel wherever you want, have minimal impact, and explore new places.”
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you → make → places
The arrangement worked for a while.
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arrangement → work → while
After several months, though, they realised that they wanted more space.
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they → realise → space
A school bus seemed to offer a middle ground: it could still move from place to place, but its larger interior allowed them to create something closer to a conventional home.
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them → seem → home
For Nestoruk, who works as an environmental educator, there was also an appeal in giving an old vehicle another purpose.
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who → work → purpose
Touserkani is a photographer, and the couple were interested in a lifestyle that allowed them to keep travelling without giving up the basic comforts of a home.
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them → allow → home
They eventually found a retired school bus through Facebook Marketplace.
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They → find → Marketplace
PC: CNBC
A $7,200 bus becomes a demanding DIY project
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bus → become → ?
The seller was a school bus contractor, which turned out to be useful.
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which → turn → ?
The vehicle came with maintenance records and, according to the couple, had been reasonably well looked after.
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vehicle → come → couple
Its final school run was followed almost immediately by a very different journey.
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run → follow → journey
Nestoruk and Touserkani bought the bus for $7,200, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It, then took it home and began planning the conversion.
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Nestoruk → buy → conversion
They had originally hoped to complete the renovation in six months.
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They → hop → months
The couple wanted to do much of the work themselves, so their days were spent constructing parts of the interior and their evenings researching how to tackle whatever came next.
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whatever → want → interior
Touserkani described becoming deeply absorbed in the project, with YouTube videos and online searches becoming part of the daily routine.
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videos → describe → routine
Inside the bus, a full-sized home takes shape
The renovation was not simply a matter of stripping the vehicle and replacing everything with new materials.
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renovation → take → materials
The couple looked for ways to give some of the bus's original components another use.
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couple → look → use
The old seats were donated to a local children's camp, while the luggage racks were sold to someone who planned to repurpose them in a garage.
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who → donate → garage
It was one way of reducing what would otherwise have been discarded during the conversion.
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what → reduce → conversion
Inside, the layout gradually took shape around the couple's needs.
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layout → take → needs
The kitchen includes a three-burner hob and oven.
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kitchen → include → hob
They also found an RV washer and dryer through Facebook Marketplace, adding another domestic feature that would have been difficult to fit into their earlier van.
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that → find → van
The couple spent about $30,000 on the renovation and around a year turning the bus into a functioning home.
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couple → spend → home
The couple redesigned the bus around everyday practicality
Some of the bus's most distinctive features were added for practical reasons rather than appearance.
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Some → redesign → appearance
Touserkani is 6ft 1in, which made the original interior height particularly awkward.
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height → make → ?
Two skylights helped solve that problem.
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skylights → help → problem
They allowed the couple to raise the roof in specific areas rather than undertaking a much larger and more expensive roof modification across the whole vehicle.
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couple → allow → vehicle
The openings also brought considerably more daylight into the interior.
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openings → bring → interior
Storage was built into different parts of the bus, including concealed spaces for food and belongings.
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Storage → build → food
An on-demand water heater was installed as part of the system.
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heater → instal → system
The result is less like the inside of a conventional coach and more like a compact flat that happens to have wheels.
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that → happen → wheels
The couple added outdoor features for travel and everyday living
Solar panels were installed so the couple could live without relying entirely on conventional electrical connections.
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couple → add → connections
That fitted with their broader aim of keeping their environmental footprint as low as they could while travelling.
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they → fit → footprint
Their approach also extended to the outside of the bus.
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approach → extend → bus
…and 10 more, not listed.
The Aporia
