Life on the water

John and I have been cruising since 1984 and I can't say I have loved every minute of it. In fact, when we bought our first yacht I can only say that I did it because I loved my husband and he really wanted to try it. I loved the lifestyle from the word go but wasn't too rapt in the sailing part. It was the A's and B's that intrigued me not the bit in between. But in the intervening years I have fallen totally in love with the life. It's not just the sailing, of course. That can be fantastic on a good day, and hell on a rough day. But we have made so many wonderful friends over the years - friends who have stuck with us through the good times and the bad. Cruising yachties are a different breed. But of course even those things change a little over the years. Today's cruiser is more affluent and life is a lot easier for them. They tend to travel more in groups which is something that we old-time cruisers can't always understand. That's not to say there's anything wrong with the new yachties. Not at all. We have met and made friends with a lot of fantastic people who have only recently joined our little family out here on the water. It's just that when we started, we were all looked upon as floating gypsies by the general public and authorities. Few of us had much money, we scraped by to live this life, but we always (still do) felt it was worth it. Our wealth came in our experiences. Now that so many people are wanting a lifestyle change and the words "sea change" have become popular, our lifestyle has become a little more glamorous. As I said in one of my recent magazine articles "This isn't a holiday, it's the way we live".

We've also seen some great places, learned about other countries and cultures, and made good friends out there too. So, while it's not the life for everyone it's the best one for us.