While travelling through Europe in a motorhome, Mike and Alison Verran would frequently stop at roadside truck stops to do a bit of truck spotting.

On their way to Aachen, in Germany, they saw Stoia Alin preparing vegetables for his dinner on a makeshift table made with pallets. They stopped to say hello and discovered Stoia is from Romania. His English is limited but he was more than willing to have a chat about his driving life. Alongside his pallet table, he had a portable gas cooker inside his pallet rack, with his dinner simmering away on the cooker. He was definitely well set up for life on the road.

Stoia drives for HZ Logistics, which is based in Maasdijk, The Netherlands. He drives a 2023 DAF XF, carting mainly flowers, but also fruit and vegetables at times. Stoia was proud to list the countries he covers … Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Switzerland. He was sure there were more, but he couldn’t recall!

Stoia originally trained as a chef but became a truck driver in an unusual way. “I worked in Germany, for a travelling carnival,” tells Stoia, “My boss had a truck. I sat inside it one day and I loved it. I decided to go back to Romania and got a job as a truck driver.”

Stoia has now been driving for six years. When Mike and Alison chatted with him, he was heading to Hamburg, Germany, then on to Austria. His load was half flowers and half mozzarella cheese.

Stoia says he loves driving because he can be among nature. “I like to see the mountains, the sea and the different things in each country,” he says. There is certainly a lot to see with the number of countries he travels.

Being on the road for a month at a time comes with issues. “The biggest problem is the thieves. They mainly take our diesel,” he says. “After a month of travelling, I have two weeks off. Someone else drives my truck for those two weeks, but the truck stays in Romania.

“When I’m on the road, I like to cook my meals. I don’t like fast food! I make myself soup or something else. I am a chef; I know how to cook!” he says.

While chatting about food, it seemed appropriate to ask the vexing question: “White chocolate, milk chocolate or dark chocolate?” Stoia didn’t hesitate: “Dark chocolate. It’s not so sweet. I know it’s good for my brain. I like it with nuts in it.”