Articles from this Category
March 22, 2016
The pace of life aboard Convivia has shifted. The hectic days of boatyard stress are behind us, as are the days in the Marina, fixing those last few (critical) systems. We’ve found a sleepy beachfront to anchor in front of and, with no transportation, have settled into leisurely days of kids floating beside the boat, […]
February 26, 2016
Thailand feels like cruising again. Our pace through Australia was breakneck, and Indonesia was challenging. Most of Malaysia felt like a race to the boat yard, and then there was that two month job. I thought Langkawi would feel like cruising again, but it ended up feeling a bit more like a boozy purgatory. The […]
December 21, 2015
We have been in the boat yard for two weeks now. Things are moving along at the expected pace (slower than I would hope, but reasonable for this oppressive climate). The boat is covered, and has its first coat of primer. The propeller shaft is off, the old swim ladder (which has been held captive by […]
November 13, 2015
Continued from here Trying our luck, in this case meant speaking entirely in Indonesian, asking around for someone who might have a surplus, and then negotiating the purchase or trade without the benefit of local currency (which we had divested ourselves of in Belitung, as we were intending to leave the country). While we were attempting […]
November 12, 2015
The last 72 hours have been some of the most surreal, exhausting, and exciting of my life. I wrote about some of the first two days’ highs and lows here. The following night and day were just as full on. Things started out calm enough that I thought I might just watch a movie on my first […]
October 31, 2015
In every other place that we’ve spent an October 31st, it has seemed like the holiday would at least have been heard of. Port Villa, maybe less so, but they get enough expats and tourists, that maybe someone spilled the beans. And indeed, when Ruby traipsed through the markets with her fairy gown and Vanuatan […]
October 27, 2015
For the past four years Vick has not driven a motor vehicle of any sort. Today that streak ended. We picked up scooters and hit the roads of Karimunjawa to explore. No ID or paperwork was required, just a little cash and we were good for the day. We didn’t have gas, helmets, or even […]
October 8, 2015
We take birthday wishes seriously in Convivia. We keep presents small and homemade, as the real celebration is in the cake. Cakes are dreamed up layer by layer, often years in advance. Miles wishes for his eighth birthday were a stuffed mouse, a watch, pizza for dinner, and a caramel, chocolate, marshmallow and chocolate ganache […]
September 12, 2015
“Where are you from?” they ask us. “Where is your home in America?” “How long was your flight?” It is difficult to answer and it is hard to explain in our few basic phrases. Our home has been only the boat for more than five years and San Francisco, California is written on the transom, […]