Confession

I have a confession to make: I really don't like sailing. Well - this is not exactly true. I like sailing for a windy afternoon in flat seas on a nice beam reach out of the harbor and then back in, with good friends and plenty of cold beer. I dislike being out at sea for days on end, sailing under the same rather uncomfortable point of sail, constantly rocking and rolling. It is extremely tedious, and sometimes downright torturous. That being said, I think that cruising is one of the coolest ways to travel the world.

On a passage everything is harder, from sleeping to staying awake to eating or not eating. Does this make sense? I will explain: sleeping is harder because there is constant (and not uniform) motion, but it also makes one very lethargic. I sit for days on end, which inevitably makes me feel lazy. Eating is difficult because cooking is a pain in the ass when your kitchen is rocking from side to side (although Dad did manage to make banana muffins yesterday - we needed a morale boost). Sitting around makes me very hungry, as does being borderline seasick, so I end up eating crackers and chips and other junk all day. I know, its tough.

However, there is a reason I am still on board after 7 months. Traveling by boat is awesome. Here are a few reasons why: I go to new and exotic places but sleep in my own bed at night, I go to places that are either inaccessible or very difficult to get to by other means of transportation, and perhaps best of all, I am always on the water. None of that getting caught inland business - unless I make the effort.

Granted, sailing is slow, but it is also a more sustainable and self-sufficient mode of transportation. And when traveling slow one really gets to know a place - you could compare it to the difference of going someplace by car or by walking. On a boat it is easier to become more intimate with certain aspects of a country. On the other hand, it can also be a bit isolating to live on a boat, so it definitely takes the extra effort to get out and get to know a place. But doable, of course.

When we first left San Diego and I came to realize my feelings about sailing (which I have always somewhat known), I felt guilty or wrong for being out here. The more people I made friends with and talk to about this conflict, the more people I have found that share my sentiment. For many people out here, sailing is a means to an end. Sure I live on a boat and sailing is a huge part of my life, but really it is about the lifestyle that living and traveling by boat lend itself to. It is unique and I am lucky to be out here... even though I am hot and tired and a bit seasick and hungry and bored and want to get to land... but I will soon. Tomorrow we should arrive at Suwarrow atoll, a place only accessible by boat, that very few people in the world ever go to. And so I keep reminding myself that this passage is a means to a very sweet end.
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At 7/17/2011 11:58 PM (utc) Rutea's position was 14°03.32'S 160°24.84'W

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