Boat Life...

Before the sun had even risen this morning, I was at the marina laundry, I only have two wash loads, but if I am any later than 5:45 the machines are all taken.  There are several hundred boats here, many of them lived on.  The marina has 4 washing machines (2 of them out of action) and 4 dryers (1 out of action) so doing laundry is a bit of a challenge.  I am one of the lucky ones, I have a washing machine on board, but I don't like to put the soapy water out into the marina so I don't use it here.

So I'm sitting here waiting for my laundry and wondering what I can write about today.  I see the other women come running into the laundry with their bags full of washing, hoping they have arrived early enough, only to discover the machines already in use.

They are very nice, the ladies I meet here, many are like me reluctant sailors, living the life because its the husbands dream.   A few women, although I have only met 1 or 2 are doing it because it's their dream.

We're a funny bunch, I guess living the way we do is bound to make us a little odd.  It's funny how easily you can tell the yachties (my name for people who live on sailboats) from the people on the motorboats.  The yachties are usually stick thin (sadly I'm the exception here) with either long hair tied back (both men and women) or hair cut boyishly short, or shaved, usually its only the men that have shaved heads, but who knows out here anything goes.

The motorboat lot are far smarter (visually) the women have nice hair cuts, and their clothes are usually pressed, they wear jewelry, and are seen ashore in shoes, where as yachties are almost always barefoot, and generally can't afford jewelry.

Fashion is something that definitely takes a back seat for us, there's no room on a sail boat for couture; our clothes are usually crumpled, or so tight fitting it doesn't matter, mine tend to be a mix of both, crumpled from being stuffed and crushed in a drawer, or tight fitting because I have been overindulging in the local culinary delights. Also we sweat, which means we usually look as though we have just stepped out of the shower fully clothed, there is absolutely no use here for fine clothes. I spend most of my days in a sarong.

Yachties are easy going, free spirits, who have thrown caution and conventional life styles out the window in order to embrace freedom, adventure and exploration.  It's nice, the freedom with which we live our lives.  Our plans are never set in stone, the weather changes everything, it dictates where we go and when, how long we stay in one place, or move on, we are like water gipsy's.

Most of us live on our boats all the time, and work very hard to maintain them, the environment in which we live is very harsh, between the smoldering hot sun, salt air and sea water, it takes everything we have to keep our boats sea worthy, and looking good.  We are a friendly, helpful, interesting collection of people, everyone has endless interesting, funny, frightening, jaw-droping tales to tell.

Then we have the cat people; (people who have moved to the dark side!)  A catamaran provides much more space, more creature comforts, it doesn't heel like a sail boat (which must be lovely),  you can have crystal glasses to drink from, more room inside, more light, bigger beds, they are much more comfortable in every way, and OH so nice, but they are (so I'm told) not real sail boat's!
I think if you want to travel the Caribbean or anywhere else, a catamaran will do it for you in the most luxuriously comfortable style, but if you are one of the die hard sailors, who just loves to sail (ie Bob) a catamaran just doesn't cut it. :-(

Although I long to have a house again, I realize that once I do I will not have anything very interesting to write about.  Through my blog I have over 3000 readers now (thank you), so everyone obviously enjoys reading what I write.  However, once I'm back on dry land I doubt that I will have anything to tell that will interest anyone.

I love it here in Shelter Bay, despite the bloody mosquitoes, that I have yet to see (they are invisible)! I'm eating copious amounts of garlic now to hopefully fend them off, I think that perhaps when Bob returns next week he too will keep his distance from me.