If you think living on a boat is permanently looking at calm blue water and drinking sundowners on deck. Think again!
Why is it when we mention to anyone that we live and travel on our boat their look of surprise is replaced by a vision of eternal sunshine, aquamarine seas, white sand, lazing about and cocktails on deck at sunset?
I am not saying that it does not happen but in a scale of 10 it reaches 2.
Sunset appreciation in Jardines de la Reina, Cuba.
You need to be totally self-sufficient and a master of all trades. Electrics are constantly corroding.
Maintenance is relentless. There is no off season. We live in a very aggressive environment. The salt tarnishes the stainless at an alarming rate. The hull cleaning is constant, depending on which micro organism grows or crustacean takes hold. It also can rest on what antifouling paint we last used; soft or hard. Where we travel must be taken into consideration; New Zealand or Australia for instance can sample the paint and refuse entry if it does not comply with their regulations.
Though going deaf with age, we can detect any noise variation in an instant. It will send us into full alert, searching for the cause. Our life could depend on it! It is always a relief when we find the problem. It can be either a simple or difficult one to locate and sometimes costly.
Boat polishing is like the Severn Bridge when you finish at one end it is time to start again. The array of hull cleaning or polishing material on display in the Chandleries is endless with equally astonishing price tags. Anything Marine spells millionaire to the traders and industry alike. The sleek advertising entices one to try anything that makes life easier with less effort. I reach for Mrs. Beeton’s equivalent and hope the home made recipe works just as well. You have guessed right; we have muscle like Popeye but we are fit and do not need the Gym!
The weather plays a big part. I was never very good at it. On weather charts, cold fronts and warm fronts look like set of bunting blowing in the wind. I could never remember which was which until I read Gwyneth Lewis describing them as frozen nipples for cold and silicone breasts in Sunny St. Tropez for warm. We are watching the forecast daily. The paradise anchorage: Blue sky, mill pond clear water can become untenable in minutes resulting in battening down the hatches and hoping the anchor will hold. Chris has the added consideration of his crew’s welfare, as I am not a good traveller.
We prefer to be at anchor for various reasons; firstly Marinas are generally too hot and very much like Butlin’s Holiday camp, an upgrade on camping I will grant you. At anchor we are always facing the wind and there is always a draft but with it comes the dust: the unwelcome guest.
At all cost one must keep a good sense of humour. It can be testing and challenging but we usually come out on top smiling. We can happily share a bed but not a computer. I look upon the latter as a tool or a means to an end and expect instant gratification. Chris on the other end is much more patient and tolerant. He can spend hours searching for a solution. Endlessly looking at a dialog boxes to see if a tick should be added, trying to solve the problem. He can hit the jackpot but often the problems are back the next time we start up the computer. The ones in the know or experts will tell you there is a reason. I disagree wholeheartedly. I can perform an identical operation twice running but often will not get the same results. But what joy when we talk and see the family via Skype!....
Shopping can be equally fun and frustrating. Earlier on in our nomadic life we said ‘In Rome do as the Romans do’ Markets can be colourful and exciting even if there is little to purchase, compounded by language and funny money. Bread varies widely in taste, size and shape. Chris has taken on the mantle of baking and is excellent at it.... No complaints there and I do not interfere, never change a winning streak.
To make life easier we had mast steps fitted. Wonderful! In his excitement Chris climbed 3 times to check a non working deck light, to no avail as the problem was a faulty switch at the nav. station. That would not have happened prior steps. Before going up everything would have been checked below first!
When we are in the relaxation mode we would not change the life style for anything so far…….
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