Yellow.

That is the best way to describe our van/bus/house that will be taking us around the country on our way to Melbourne.

Around the hostel it has become a thing of legend, reffered to as "The Bumper Yellow Fun Bus" by most, and "Lola" by us. Many backpackers have their own form of transport, from camper vans to Volvos, but nobody could dream of having something as beautiful as Lola.

Lola is a Ford Econovan, and if you're anything like me that name conjures up images of sleek, stylish lines and performance where you need it the most.

She has six wheels - four at the back. This is because Lola is a performance machine and wants other road users to know all about it.

Lola will top 100km/h on a good day, preferably going downhill with a good wind behind you. I don't need to tell you that at these kind of speeds the simple forces that can be visited on the human body can be pretty extreme, but Lola herself doesn't so much as complain. Besides, the three pilots are all well-trained men at the peak of their physical fitness. They've been prepared for the dynamic ride Lola can offer, and have the reflexes and the sheer balls to handle her.

Although a lot of Lola's space is taken up by her high-performance engine, she still finds the room for all the possessions of three people, the people themselves, and three beds. She has a unique temporal-distortion device that creates a 'Tardis Effect', allowing an awful lot of room inside, but still nothing but sleek curves outside.

Truly, Lola is young by vehicle standards - a mere 24 years old. But already she is showing dedication to the road and her fellow travellers.

In short, Lola is a thing of beauty. If she was a woman, I'd marry her. As it is, I think we'll just hold hands for now and see what happens.