Life aboard V’s life ashore
Emerald Bay, Corfu Sailing August 2018
Life Aboard vs Life Ashore – We wake up naturally vs with an alarm. Jump into the sea for a morning swim vs morning shower. Fruit & yoghurt for breakfast all together vs separate breakfasts. Galley overlooks the sea vs Kitchen over the driveway. Home sails to a new place each day vs our house as a stationary base. Exploring new places and adventures each day vs familiarity and known quantities. Anchor vs park. Dinghy rides to the shops and out for dinner vs. car. Siestas vs coffee break and pushing through. Watching the stars vs watching TV. Made up stories on the bow vs stories from a book in bed. Early eve watersports vs playing in the garden. Wearing swimmers vs clothes. Skin on skin hugs vs clothed hugs. Spending half the day in the sea vs the odd swim. Warm seawater that feels like silk vs cold sea that gives you chills. Bare feet vs shoes. Al Fresco showers vs showers inside. Morning meditations on the bow, sun and breeze on my face vs morning meditations in my room imagining I am on the bow! No WIFI vs WIFI central. Family card games vs computer games. Freedom vs routine and conformity. Perfect sea view and open vista vs garden view and limited vista. Boat time ruled by our natural rhythms vs Home time ruled by our schedules! Relying 100% on us and each other vs relying on others as well ourselves. Close family bond vs frequently disconnected unit. Daily shared ice cream moments vs the odd shared biscuit moment. Long to-do lists vs list-free Being. W.O.N.D.E.R.F.U.L
Life Ashore vs Life Aboard –Our deliciously wide range of friends and family vs constant immediate family. Evenings with my husband vs 24/7 with the kids. Known quantities vs daily adventure. Our nest, haven, bricks and mortar which shelters us from any storm vs our cosy floating home that is very weather dependent. Toilet paper into loos that flush vs toilet paper into bins and pumping loos! Binmen who collect rubbish vs discarding own rubbish in each town. More of your own space & headspace vs constant close proximity. Wide variety of foods vs food of the country you are in. Running vs swimming. Our pets vs stray cats. Electricity and water on demand vs limited electricity and water. Long showers and deep baths vs quick showers. H.E.A.V.E.N
We seek a natural balance of life. Part of the human experience to crave something different to what you have. When we are home we will dream of the boat. When we are on the boat we will dream of home. We will enjoy both and work to be present in both, we will always look forward to moving from one to the other and appreciate each for the benefits they give us. The boat answers our need for escape, freedom, disconnection from the hubbub of life to gain deeper connection with each other and ourselves. Our wonderful home is our family Headquarters, suffused with love and gives us a plethora of opportunities to grow and thrive.
Now, we are busy, packing, planning and manifesting the next stage. It is soon time to leave our nest at home and get aboard again. The Atlantic Ocean Crossing awaits us – we are excited, a little daunted, but absolutely ready for this next adventure! All sailing blogs will be posted here and you will be able to track our progress as we cross the Atlantic. 6 Batts, my lovely Dad and nephew, our lovely BattPack and a whole lot of sea and sky ahead!
