We wake up in some beautiful spots and don’t need to change our background to some exotic location when on Zoom meetings. But whats it like living in a space smaller then many peoples living room?
Washing up at home was stacking the dishwasher. On the boat we have been experimenting with water conservation to see how long we can last without going into port. Washing up is one of the biggest uses of water so we have been washing in salt water (we have lots of that) and rinsing in fresh water. Much less water but its also slow even for two people.
Showering every day…I remember that. To save water, most days we basin wash with a towel and have the occasional camp shower on deck. Bernie gets most of the showers as he has been doing most of the swimming.
Toilets that flush? We have a composting toilet that is really just a box with a fan and some compost. Its surprisingly odourless and just requires a quick turn of the handle after each use. Emptying the wee bucket is a more smelly task! Overall we think its much better than the smells of many (especially sea water) toilets on boats and has freed up lots of storage space (we use that for Bernie’s food so he appreciates it too!).
Living in a small space means everything takes longer as it needs to be set up and put away. Before we set sail we fold up the dinghy, stow the outboard, put everything away inside, fold up the sun shelter, tie down the freezer…you get the idea. The boat converts from a house to sail boat but it all takes time. The biggest adjustment we have found living in a smaller space is making peace with the extra time everything seems to take.
Life would be much easier in this 55ft $2m world cruising boat that pulled up beside us, but for now we are enjoying the challenge of making a small space work for us.
