Hey guys,
I’ve been wanting to write something for so many weeks… but you know what happened? A JOB happened. Once you unplug, “work” sucks hahaa it really does though. Since the day I met Alex almost two years ago now, I kept a record of what we did every single day on pieces of paper with a drawn calendar that I taped to the wall next to the settee. I stopped writing the week we took over the guesthouse. And I haven’t written anything since (neither here nor there). There was just no time, or no energy left.
The guesthouse we managed for the past four months was absolutely beautiful, the owners are so lovely you wouldn’t believe, so warm in every email they sent to us responding questions or talking about reservations, and the staff working for us (Alba, the maid, and Villo, the driver) are amazing, fun, loving human beings. So were most of the guests we dealt with. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience. And yet, it was so draining (physically and emotionally) for the both of us I can’t begin to tell you.
First thing was that Alex cannot even sleep on land anymore, every noise wakes him up and he worries about the boat all night if the wind picks up, changes direction or if it rains. So, every morning we would go to shore in the dinghy, and we would come back late every afternoon (computer, dog, phones, food from the hotel’s fridge/freezer, back and forth). And dealing with strict timetables, bills, things that need to be repaired all the time, bugs, organizing what the employees need to do and paying them, dealing with customers by email and phone all the time. It might sound like we are a pair of cry babies but it was hard! And that is because once you unplug and move onto a boat, time just slows down. It is you and nature. You and your free time. You fixing your boat pretty constantly if you bought one that needed restoring, but at your own pace, in silence, in the sun, and jumping in the ocean every hour or so. Sunrise and sunset, squall and calm breeze, snorkeling, surfing, swimming and fishing. Writing, reading, music, cooking and baking. A friend comes with their dinghy and knocks on your hull. And you talk for a while, usually they stay on their dinghy and you sit on your deck and catch up for half an hour or so. Sometimes they come up for tea and biscuits, or a pineapple smoothie, depending on the time of day. Or we swim or paddle to their boat. And days go by, and your existence is so freaking pleasant. Then you need money for materials or a big supermarket list, and then you work for a couple of weeks: you invite people to visit you on the boat or bring them somewhere (chartering) or you take people snorkeling for the day or you fix or build something on their boat in exchange for money. It’s a week or two, or a month. And then back to sunrise, an orange and diving into the ocean with your soul mate even before breakfast. Honestly, how can you beat that? Is even a mountain of money you can make by giving away the best days of your life better than that? I don’t think so!!
The other day Alex and I were talking about the locals here in Panama and we were surprised at how little they know about world history or “general” culture and it’s just that a lot of them don’t watch much TV other than the soap opera at night. There are no cinemas in the area. They only listen to their local dance music on the radio. There is no industry for entertainment, information (news) or product placement of any kind. These people only buy a little food locally. That’s about it. And they have amazing nature all around them. Little kids spend all day in the ocean by themselves (the older ones look after the younger ones). They play at the beach or in shallow areas with no waves with buckets, old plastic containers, sticks, little pieces of rope and homemade fishing gear. Any time of day we see them. Older kids drive their families’ lanchas (speedboats), they hang out at the local dock blasting music, they work when someone needs a ride or if some gringo needs their garden trimmed and the rest of the day they line fish, catch shrimp, lobster or octopus, talk to each other, go to the islands, drink beer, go banana, coconut or mango hunting in the jungle. They are not in a couch watching TV and they are certainly not inside posting things on Facebook or playing video games. Homes have their doors and windows open at all times and you just see the people sitting in the shade in their porches talking to their neighbors or at the park or at the dock or at church if it’s Sunday. There is no going to work everyday really, and the weather is nice, your existence can be quite peaceful, nature offers most of what you need and when you have some extra cash you go to the store to get rice, beans, pasta, some eggs, milk, sausage and you’re basically done. I’m not saying it’s better than playing in the snow, having a chai latte with almond milk and going to a Japanese film festival or to see some ballet, of course. We grow up where we grow up and we are who we are. But I certainly think they are fortunate in the sense that nature and other people are the center of their existence. Life is simpler in some latitudes. Now are they not missing out on raspberries with vanilla cream, jasmine tea wearing a soft furry hoodie, an afternoon of surfing and hot chocolate, a movie with Bill Murray, a book by Haruki Murakami? I think so, too. Now you know what the great huge amazing difference between them and you is? They do not really have a choice. YOU DO.
Most of these people make so little in a hour’s work that they cannot afford to even try most of the things we do. Now most of our people (the middle classes from Western societies) can make so much in an hour’s work that we can live in the amazing places they live, enjoying nature like they do, living at a very slow pace, spending time with our partners and children snorkeling and playing in the water AND THEN, read a great Indian book or listen to Beethoven, have a glass of Chardonnay on the foredeck and watch the sunset eating a piece of home made french bread with blue cheese and prosciutto and warm nutty brownies for dessert.
Still, most people seem don’t slow down until they are 65. It’s OK of course if you feel healthy and you don’t go to bed writing lists of what you need to do the next day. It’s totally fine if you don’t feel stressed or scared, if the TV does not make you want to crawl into a hole and hide for three or four years. If you are honestly happy everyday when you wake up and sing in the car to work and bring your friends flowers when you visit then I’m so not talking about you. I don’t think the Western world is evil. I really don’t. I just know how difficult it was for me.
Most people are just basically “afraid”. “Afraid” they couldn’t possible live without all the comforts they need to work so hard for. It’s your choice of course. But make sure you see if you’re happy at the end of the day.
For me it was hard, I never had time for the things I loved (my family and friends, writing, making music, dancing) and I often felt the weight of the world on my shoulders and how asphyxiating it was to see bills kept piling up, forever. So I needed to have an income, always and forever or my whole world would collapse. I loved my job but I was tied to so many things I could really only take time off one month of the year when I went on holidays and then holidays were so expensive! That’s why at 24 I thought it made no sense to me and started traveling with very little money searching for a better alternative. I have to say, I’m no sailor, I don’t particularly love boats better than bicycles, especially not better than surfboards or guitars. But I found my freedom here on a boat.
No more bills. No taxes. Not a single forced expense. No forced commitments to anyone or anything. We need only work for some food and we have so much free time. And we are also now working because we want to have a boat that is safe and that can take us ANYWHERE even where there is not a single store, where it’s dry and it never rains or where it’s so cold that nothing grows. If we wanted to just stay here, we wouldn’t need to fix Splendid any more. But since we are looking forward to being able to really not touch base for maybe two years and be completely independent, go to colder latitudes and bigger seas and more remote areas then we need a couple more things, insulation, heating, a freezer for fish, fruit and veggies, a water maker, things like that which we are building ourselves. We just need to go over this one last hill and we are so ready to start the biggest adventure with the least amount of income.
You know the drill, you’ve heard it a million times from Alex, if you’re still quite young, buy a beauty in bad repair, give it love for a couple of years and then be free to just take it slow and enjoy nature. It really is that simple. And while you repair your boat, you learn how to do it, and then that will become your source of income. After two years here I’ve learned how to do canvas by practicing on Splendid, I know how to work with wood, a spray gun and fiberglass now. It’s lovely work, it’s creative, it’s simple. And other people on other boats pay good money for repairs. You can go anywhere and if you don’t like chartering or if it’s not allowed then you can always help a fellow sailor out with the things you’ve learned and get paid. And if you’re already close to retirement or if you have a car you can sell and a house you can rent out, then you can live this life with a lot of comfort.
Anyway, just a thought. Look what four months of a very relaxed job did to us! I could not write a word. We were often tired and irritable. We did not have so much time to cook and our diet was not so healthy. Now we need some holidays and we’re taking them.
It’s so good to be back now on Splendid. And so so lovely to be going to my beautiful Argentina with my soul mate for him to see it and meet everyone and then celebrate our union. A little strange for the two of us left-wing, punk anarchists to get legally married but hey, why not? What do we have to lose but the possibility of a great adventure? I tell you, it’s great not to own anything but love, knowledge and art! Nobody can take these things from you, not even the law. Traveling light is true freedom.
Love you guys! Thanks for being there even when nothing much is going on. We promise great adventures are coming soon : )
Carla.