Big Emma Diaries
Stories told from Big Emma's perspective - the bus herself shares her adventures and thoughts.
#164 Home
I made it back to my very own garage in Illinois. It was actually very nice to turn my engine off and just be in the garage. If I have...
#163 I Made it to the USA
I am finally done teleporting! And I was so happy to be out of the container and back with Emma that I just had to give her a really big...
#162 Little Big Emma is on an Island
Emma and Sven had to wait for me to teleport, so they went to an island in Belize while they waited and then they would take an aeroplane to pick...
#161 This is How You Teleport
Look, now I’m teleporting! This is me getting into the container before I started teleporting.
#160 I am Going to Teleport!
Sven, my engine is running, but I don’t know if I can make it all the way back to Illinois on my own. It doesn’t feel like it did before...
#159 We Talked About Argentina and Decided to Go to Illinois Instead
Sven said we should sit with Emma and talk about going to Argentina and I said, I think that idea is really good Sven.
#158 Sven Got my Engine Running!
I’m just so excited because SVEN GOT MY ENGINE RUNNING! Ha! Take that, you stupid river! You can’t destroy my engine!
#157 I Think Caro and Konsti are My Best Human Friends
I was feeling really bad. Not just because my engine doesn’t run and all of me is still too wet. Those don’t feel good either but I was actually feeling...
#156 What am I Going to Do Now Emma?
After the tractor got me out of the river, they took me to this place. Emma said they would clean all of the mud out of me and try to...
#155 Thank You, Tractor
Sven and Emma came back to get me and they brought Caro and Konsti with them and a lot of other people.
#154 This Is What Forever Feels Like
I hope Emma and Sven come back soon. I hope they got to the road. I wish I was on the road. I think I’m at the bottom of this...
#152 I Learned All About Thunder
Caro and Konsti are here! It has been so fun, we already did a lot of camping and driving and hanging out and it was so nice to say, Hello again...
#151 Caro and Konsti are Coming to Visit Me!
I am so excited because Caro and Konsti are going to come visit me! I am especially excited this time because they came to visit me in Alaska, too, but...
#150 I Talked to Sven and Watched the Sun Set
You know we’ll always take care of you, Big Emma, right? Sven told me yesterday while we were parked. Yeah, I said.
#149 Of course I'm the Best Because I'm Beautiful!
Emma and Sven decided to stay in this hostel for a few days. I was like, Well why do you guys want to stay in a stupid hostel? And Emma...
#148 I Wonder if I can See Argentina from Here
I wonder if I look really really really hard I can see Argentina from here? I mean, we are already in Belize and we’ve come so far, it has to...
#147 This Lizard isn't as Good as Me But He is Good Too
I’ve decided recently that I like taking pictures of animals. I learn a lot and can meet them all, and there are so many in Belize! Sven said that Belize...
#146 You're so Small, Belize!
So we were driving through Belize and you know what? It is so small that Emma said I could drive through all of it in just a few hours! She...
#144 What are Balloons For?
See Sven, I didn’t get eaten by a crocodile! Or a dinosaur! But it was a nice place to stay, I got to watch the river flow by all day!
#143 Sven Said I Could Get Eaten by Crocodiles
I like Belize because we are in the jungle a lot, and I’ve been excited to go to the jungle since almost forever because it’s not the ocean and there...
#141 They Made Me Get Insurance in Belize!
So I am finally done telling you all about my adventures in Mexico! I said goodbye to Sven’s family and then we went to a new country called Belize.
#140 This is Little Big Emma
This is Little Big Emma. I wanted to introduce you because I don’t think you’ve never ever met her.
#139 Oh No All the Dinosaurs are Dead!
I learned the most horrible thing! We went with Sven’s family to see this rock and I asked, Emma, what is that rock for? And she said It’s to remember...
#138 Hello Sven's Family and Thank you For Breakfast!
We had to say goodbye to Big Mama again. I told Sven I don’t want to say goodbye to Big Mama! But then he said, But Big Emma, you get...
#137 I Do Not Look Like That!
Emma and Sven wanted to high five Big Mama too, so I told them to high five her for me because they wouldn’t let us high five with our doors....
#136 High Five Big Mama!
Big Mama, you have so many handprints on yourself! I told Big Mama while we were camping together. She said that was because all of the humans they had met...
#135 Hey Big Mama, I Get to Blog Again!
I finally get to write my diary again! Emma said I had to take a break because we went to a new country called Belize. I said But I don’t...
#134 Oh No That Bus is On Fire!
Oh my god guys that bus is on fire! And then I stepped on the gas pedal and was ready to zoom through the city.
#133 Can We Go Away From the Ocean?
The 4Runner left the other day, but that’s okay, because we’ll see each other again!
#132 Look at How Much I Have Adventured!
I have been to Nevada, where we went with my friend Phil to Las Vegas. And I’ve been to Washington, where we camped with Klim and Alex and their Prius....
#131 Humans Spend a Lot of Time Cooking
Why do you spend so much time cooking? I asked Sven. Well, because it’s cheaper than eating at restaurants, and I can do it here at home with you, he...
#130 I Don't Have to Say Goodbye!
I do get to keep parking with the 4Runner! We were driving to this beach here and when we were arriving we saw that he had just got here too!...
#129 Let's Go Guys!
My new alternator is buzzing like it’s supposed to and makes me just really want to drive! It’s like I could go anywhere! Guy’s let’s go to Argentina now! I...
#128 That's Supposed to be in My Engine Sven!
Sven, put that back! I told him the other day. That’s my alternator and I can’t go anywhere at all with you just holding it like that.
#127 Emma Says I Look Like a Zombie
Emma said I look like a Zombie. So I asked her Why do I look like a Zombie? And she said that was because my light was hanging out the...
#126 Look I'm Surfing!
Look I’m surfing! They made this wave here on the street so Buses like me could surf without getting rusty!
#125 How about a Fun Fact!
I learned all about Fun Facts the other day! So Fun Facts have to be both fun and a fact. Fun means it has to be interesting and a fact...
#124 These are My Other Human Friends Klim and Alex
So I wanted you to meet my human friends Klim and Alex. They are traveling with the 4Runner. I have mentioned them in my diary before but I don’t think...
#123 Emma and Sven Hang out With me Here Too!
I told Emma and Sven that if we were going to park again and not adventure that I didn’t want to park in a city, and that they had to...
#120 I'm Kind of Sad but Kind of Happy
So I know I said last time that I was happy I didn’t have to park on the beach and that Emma and Sven would sometimes leave me behind because...
#119 Look Emma's Parents Came to See Me!
I am so happy! Emma’s parents decided to come to Mexico to visit me. They are so nice! I used to live with them before Emma and Sven lived with...
#118 Mexican Buses Have to be Fish
This is my new friend! She is a Mexican bus! Except that buses in Mexico are not called buses, they are called Kombi’s. She said I have to call her a...
#117 I told Sven I Don't Want to Camp Here
Emma said I should say the joke Holy smokes! but I don’t know what that means or why it is a joke.
#116 I Should Meep at Them!
I really like this cactus garden. Not only is it pretty, Sven and Emma really like it here. They like it because there is a lot of nature and because...
#115 Mexico is Kind of Like Alaska
Sven and Emma went up this very tall mountain. I wanted to go but they said there was no road. I thought this was stupid but I told them to...
#114 Where is Big Emma?
So Emma told me about a game called “Where is Waldo” and it’s about a person named Waldo who gets lost all of the time so other people have to...
#113 This Cactus Garden is Pretty Like Me
Now that we know that I’m not going to go to the Amazon alone we can keep adventuring. Sven said I should always look at the bright side of things....
#112 It's Important to Stick Together but Not Literally
All of this arguing and wanting to go to the Amazon and then not going to the Amazon made me think a lot about Emma and Sven. When she was...
#111 Emma isn't Angry at Me Anymore
Okay, I won’t really sneak away to go to the Amazon while Emma and Sven are sleeping.
#109 We Adventured to the Human's History Pyramid
We keep adventuring around Mexico because we want to go to the coast to see Emma’s parents. So we are driving around learning all sorts of things about Mexico.
#108 Sven says I'm Bad Ass
So this is my new nose ring! At first I didn’t like it because I thought it would make me look really silly in pictures and nobody would think I...
#107 He's Like Buddy but he's Not
I got really excited the other day when we pulled into a parking lot and I thought Oh my look Buddy came to Mexico! But then we pulled up next...
#106 We should Always do What I Say
So here’s another picture of beautiful Guanahato, because I just look so beautiful here!
#105 Guanahato
This is a city called Guanahato. It is beautiful! I told you it would be great to be back on the road!
#103 Yay we Went Driving Together Again!
Things are looking up! Emma said we are leaving Guadalahara really really soon! And then we will get to do adventures and camp and everything will be back to normal!...
#102 They Took my Pennies
So I was so annoyed that all of my tools were gone that I didn’t even see when they took my pennies and pesos too! It was like I blinked...
#101 Look, I'm Eating Breakfast!
Haha look, I’m a human! I’m going to eat breakfast just like they do!
#100 Yay I Have 100 Diaries!
Look, I’ve written 100 diaries! That’s so much writing! It’s like I’m a writer too.
#99 LOOK I CAN STAY IN THE HOUSE TOO!
I’M SO HAPPY I COULD JUST MEEP ALL NIGHT LONG (except that Emma said that was rude so I can’t do that so I won’t!)
#98 I Hate Guadalahara!
Somebody broke into my triangle window! They opened it and bent the latch and took my toolbox! I told them NO THAT HAS EVERYTHING I NEED IN IT! YOU CAN’T HAVE...
#97 I Dont Even Like Baby Cats, Emma!
I don’t like houses or stupid Guadalahara or the stupid bug down the street or anything at all.
#96 Now we Moved but Here is Stupid Too
Now we moved, but it’s no better than before! Sven and Emma are just staying in this other house now, and I can’t keep watch over them again. They said...
#95 See, Guadalahara Made me Break!
See, I’m just parked out here alone all day every day and being bored and I can’t go exercise my wheels at all!! No wonder my engine is having problems!!...
#94 Gudalahara is Stupid Too
This is Guadalahara. Look, it’s really boring with just this big white wall. White is boring, not like me, because I’m red and yellow.
#93 Houses are Stupid
Look, this is another volcano! Except that this one is very different. It has a lake in it, and we had to drive really far down to get to it,...
#92 Volcanos are Supposed to Explode
Look! I’m on top of a volcano! Volcanos are like mountains, except they are supposed to explode! We drove all the way up here on a really long and bumpy...
#90 But What about the Prius?!?
I really like traveling with my friends Alex and Klim again. But there was one thing I really didn’t understand! I asked What happened to your Prius?
#89 I Have a Present for Annika
Look, I have a present for Annika. Emma said that even if she was far away, I could still give her a present, because friends do that.
#88 Don't Worry we Made it Across the Ocean Everybody
See, we made it across the ocean! I knew we would, I wasn’t scared for a minute!
#87 We have to Cross the Ocean! But I get to Ride on a Boat
Oh no. We have to go across the ocean. I hope we make it.
#86 These are My Favorite Palm Trees
These are my favorite palm trees! Look how pretty I am under them!
#84 Now I will know What Pennies are for Forever!
I got so many new pennies for my penny collection! Look how many I have now!
#83 I Miss Annika and I Found a Flying Dragon
Annika had to leave today. I really liked having her camp with us all of the time. We had a lot of good conversations about all kinds of things.
#82 This Picture is Stupid
I love having Annika here and everything, but there sure has been a lot of stupid stuff in the last few days. First the laundry, then getting stuck (that was...
#80 It's Laundry Day
Okay guys, I said I would help with the laundry (I don’t want you to think I’m lazy and just sit around all day on the beach!), but that’s NOT...
#79 That Is a Good Place to Sit I Guess
So, the ocean is really great and everything. Annika and Sven keep sitting over there and watching the people surfing.
#78 Annika Takes Such Pretty Pictures of Me
I really like Annika! She takes such good pictures of me! Like this one, of me on a cliff!
#77 My New Friend Annika is Like an Old Friend Too
We have a new friend traveling with us! Her name is Annika!
#76 My Penny Collection
Let me show you my penny collection! This is where I keep all my spare pennies that Sven and Emma find for me.
#75 This is My Favorite Wall
We left my new friends, they wanted to go back north and we are going south. They were a lot of fun to park with, and it was really good...
#74 I Have Decided that the Ocean is Not Scary!
I have terrible news! I asked Emma if we could stop parking by the ocean, and she said No, because all of Baja (that’s the part of Mexico we are...
#73 Truck Campers are Like Snails, But Different
My new friends are so awesome! We parked together for almost forever!
#72 There Are Little Humans Everywhere
It is very strange, because my new friends have a lot of little humans with them. They are humans that aren’t big humans yet. Sven said it is important that little...
#71 My Old Friend Red Beard
This is my friend Red Beard, he travels with Bodes.well. We go way back! All the way back to even before Emma and Sven (which is obviously really, really far!)....
#70 You're Supposed to Find Momo, But I Found Him Already
This is Momo, he’s a dog. And a cute one at that (not as cute as me, of course, but he’s also not a Bus, so he can’t be). Dogs...
#69 Look, I Have so Many New Friends in Mexico!
So I finally got the cows to move and we made it to where Mellow was. He has so many friends. And the best part was that he said he...
#68 Go Away Stupid Cows!
Go away stupid cows!! Don’t just stand there being a cow! I need to get to meet my new friends, so move!
#67 There ARE Other Buses in Mexico!
Look! We finally found another bus! There are other buses in Mexico, not just bugs like I was afraid of.
#66 Cactus Hugs
These things are everywhere! They are called cactus. There were a lot of them back up in California too, but here they are everywhere! Except when you’re parked right next...
#65 Okay, I Don't Actually Hate Mexico
Okay, I shouldn’t have said that I hate Mexico. I don’t actually hate Mexico. I’m sorry Mexico.
#64 I Hate Mexico
Why did we have to go here anyways? What makes Mexico so special? I want to be back in Oceanside with Buddy instead.
#62 I Can't Wait to go to Mexico
Man, we have been doing so much work! They adjusted my solar panels, gave me new calipers, extra headlights, and even a new floor! That’s because we want to go...
#61 Now I know what Itchy is
I’m sorry I am so late, but it’s not my fault! I usually write my diaries on Mondays, but I couldn’t this Monday. Emma usually does the typing for me...
#60 My Family
I like camping out here. It’s not very far from the city. We go there in the daytime so Sven and Emma can do all the things they need to...
#59 A Day or Two of Camping
We got to go camping, just like I wanted! Emma said it was only for a few days, because we still have a lot to do in the city. She...
#58 Itchy Wheels
Sven said we could go get a new battery today. He said he didn’t want me to feel embarrassed if I couldn’t start again.
#57 Don't Worry, They Put my Engine Back in Just Fine
Buddy was right, they put my engine back in just fine! And, I guess it’s true, somehow it does feel better than before. They made a lot of things nicer,...
#54 They Took my Engine Out!
They said it would be good for me, but still, it was really scary! Emma and Sven came back from Florida (Buddy and his human Robbie went and got them...
#53 Buddy Likes Me Because he Gave me Hearts!
Look what I got! Buddy gave me hearts and that means he really likes me! I’m so happy!
#52 I Get to See Buddy and his Human Again and that's Better than Florida!
I have so much awesome stuff to tell you! I got to see Buddy again! He was also really happy to see me, I think. I got to park next...
#51 This is the Prettiest I have Ever Been!
I have never been this pretty! Emma said we were going to visit a friend of hers, but she never said that her friend has a really good camera! It...
#50 Everyone Hangs Around Inside on Rainy Days
We keep driving through the hills in the middle of California. And it hasn’t stopped raining. I would really like it to stop raining, because it just keeps getting in...
#49 Emma Loves the Hills
Look, these are a lot of hills. Emma calls them rolling hills, which is weird because they don’t move at all. We keep seeing a lot of them because we...
#48 I Want to Go to the Stars
I have so much to tell you! Emma told me all about the stars and they seem so fascinating! She said they are like the sun, but really far away,...
#47 Meet the Sweedlers!
We left the desert and took my new human Phil to the airport. But we are always meeting other new humans, so maybe another one will come along to live...
#46 What Night Time is Like
This is me in the night time. Night time comes every day. Emma says the sun goes to the place where Phil came from, across the ocean, during the night...
#45 Give Me some more Gas, Sven!
So remember how gas is like chocolate? I really like having gas, and I’m always really disappointed when I run out in the middle of nowhere. I’m just like Really...
#44 This Place Feels much Bigger than Me
This place is big, this desert. I guess the forests back before were also very big, but you didn’t notice as much because you usually can’t see through the trees....
#43 You're not Coming in Here, Sven!
Look at his feet! They are so muddy. That’s disgusting, Sven is going to get mud everywhere in my interior! When I told him he couldn’t come in he said...
#42 I like the Desert, and Birds
I’ve decided I like the desert. It is dry here, there is no condensation in my insides in the morning! It feels great!
#41 I Look so Pretty in the Desert Sunset
I just look so pretty, don’t you think? But this time I’m in the desert. I think I’ve decided that the desert is beautiful, because it makes me look beautiful....
#40 We Went with my New Human Phil to the Desert
This is my new human named Phil! We went to go pick him up so he can live with all of us for two weeks. Sven said he came here...
#39 I've Decided I Sometimes Like the Rain
We went camping some more, and it was raining! Sven and Emma said we went to California to get away from all the stupid rain in the Oregon place. And...
#38 The Baja Bug
So we met a friend of Buddy’s today. And he is just so strange, I just don’t understand him.
#37 Surfing is Stupid and We Found Rita!
Oh my, there is just so much to say! So we were riding along next to the ocean (but on the street, not the water!) and then Rita just zoomed...
#36 That's Me and Buddy Again, Camping
So after we did so much cruising around and getting washed, we went to the airport! A friend of Emma and Sven’s came to visit from really far away. I...
#35 That's Me and Buddy
I didn’t need to know what to do next! That’s me and Buddy, just cruising like VWs should! I was just like “What’s next guys? Where are we going to...
#34 Trusty Humans
So, this was not my fault! They took my distributor apart and put a new one in yesterday. And now I started this morning before I got about 20 feet...
#33 More New Friends
All of that annoying traffic was so worth it! This city does have old cars, and I just made two new VW friends! Look, right over there are the PattyWagon...
#32 I Hate this City
Sven and Emma said that California was going to be sunny, but they forgot to mention all this traffic! It’s horrible.
Flashback: Snowball Fighting
So this is what Emma said is called a flashback. It’s when you talk about things that happened in the past although they are already finished now. But I asked...
#31 This is How we Should Always Camp
That’s me, over there! I am kind of small, but I am full of the most beautiful sunshine on top of that mountain.
#30 This Bridge is Beautiful, Like Me!
This is one beautiful bridge! It is red, just like me! I have gone over a lot of bridges before, but they are never red. And this one is really...
#29 Tasting Things is Weird
We have been just going along this pretty coastline for a few days, and we stopped in this little tiny town that I liked. It’s called Men-Doh-Cino or something. It’s...
#28 Sunshine is the Best Thing besides Adventure
Look at all that sunshine! It is just wonderful and makes me want to drive everywhere and camp everywhere and get my picture taken over and over and over!
#27 Don't we look Fabulous in the Snow?
We look amazing! Like, just look at us. We are gorgeous. I could just look at us all pretty and covered in snow all day long. I haven’t seen snow...
#26 Bus Friends are Bus Friends, no Matter How Far You've Gone
So, remember how we went camping with Irie from Irie To Aurora and Rita from The Bus And Us a while ago? So now we got to park together again!...
#25 OMG a Spider-Bug!
That is a HUGE spider-bug! Spider-bugs have been on the list of animals that I have met for a long time, but they were always really small. This one is...
#24 I Will Add Them to My List
So, I have a list of all of the animals that I’ve met. Like these ones, the elk. I’ve kept this list for years and I always keep adding it...
#23 The Reason We Came Here in the First Place
Look, that’s me, and Emma, and our friends!!! We met them back up in Alaska and they had a nice comfy driveway (and Emma and Sven stayed in me, because...
#22 I Wonder What it's Like Up There
I just love being in this forest. Looking at all of the very tall trees. I wish I knew what it looked like at the top of them. It must...
#21 No, THIS is my Favorite Forest
Okay, so remember how I said a few pages back that that fairy-tales forest was my favorite one? Well, it was still my favorite greenest one, but this one is...
#20 Emma, Get Away From There, Right Now!
I couldn’t believe it! We were traveling along the coast and you could see the ocean, but then Emma and Sven decided to go really close! And I was like,...
#19 This is my Favorite Forest
We finally left Portland, now we finally stopped being boring are are driving and camping again! Just as it should be. Emma and Sven said they really liked the stupid...
#18 Good Mood Me
I am in a good mood! Emma just told me that they miss me. She said houses are nice, but there is nothing like living in me. She said that...
#17 Portland is Boring, Even if they Do Have Cool Waterfalls
We went back to the Portland city. Sven and Emma have a friend there named Shameem, and I parked in front of her house for a few days. She has...
#16 Humans and Hygiene Sticks
We left the Olympic National place and went south. I told them to head south, away from all the rain. I am definitely the smartest one of us. I mean...
#15 It Stopped Raining!
What a beautiful day! Now I can really see it! For some weird reason, it stopped raining today! We woke up to blue skies, just in time for a great...
#14 Okay, So Maybe Rain is Beautiful Too...
Okay, so maybe rain can be beautiful too. We were driving around this forest (it’s actually not a forest, it is a _rain_forest, where it just always rains) and we...
#13 Now There's Always Water on the Inside, Too! Ugh.
See that? Yap, that’s the upper part of my sliding door. My closed sliding door interior. And you see that? That’s a bunch of condensation, all over it.
#12 All it does Here is Rain!
So we got off the ferry and drove to the Olympic place (‘Olympic National Park’ they keep telling me, why should I care what some place is called by humans?)....
#11 Look at me, I'm on a Boat!
That’s me, on a boat! On a ferry, I guess, but a ferry is also a boat. I love going on boats. I can’t swim, and I’d sure like to...
#10 Somebody Turned out the Lights!
Okay, so while we were working on my window the other day, I said, “You know, Sven, you really could take a look at my headlights. My vision has been...
#9 This Stuff Called Clover
Emma and Sven told me the other day that they were looking at this stuff called clover. It’s a plant, a really tiny one, that grows all over the ground....
#8 Sven Fixed my Window!
Sven fixed my leaky window! He used a thing called a silicone gun and at first I was a little scared because I thought he was shooting a gun at...
#7 What do Trains Feel Like?
We spent a few days in Seattle, where Emma and Sven visited friends. And the best thing: these friends even had buses that I could hang out with!
#6 Mount Rainier is even Bigger than Me!
We really wanted to keep hanging out with all of our new bus friends, but we had a few people we wanted to see in some big cities around here,...
#5: Look at my New Bus Friends
I did make friends (I mean, who cares about a stupid leaky window? Of course they like me!)!! A lot of them! There’s Irie from Irie To Aurora over there in...
#4: This Stupid Bandaid is so Embarrassing!
Man, what was I worried about before? I started just fine! We chilled for two full days, and it was great! I got to trade all of our travel and...
#3: The Best Weekend EVER!!
We made it! Holy exhaust, we made to to Descend on Bend! We got there and immediately I saw a yellow Bus and a blue Vanagon and a brown Vanagon...
