Research into living aboard

[sailaboutvic]

Think you will find that is an equally tortuous path, which is perhaps why virtually nobody does it these days. Gone are the days when you could build from a hull and deck for less than the cost of a new boat. Killed by the excessive time it takes to do it, lack of "cheap" places to do it, lack of bare hulls to start with (killed off by the RCD). A boat of the size of the Clipper will take a well organised experienced yard 6000+ man hours to complete and an amateur could double that easily.

There are no short cuts and taking on anything this substantial, even if you find something suitable will absorb years of your time and every penny you have or can earn. That is why the small ads are full of uncompleted boats and abandoned dreams.

While it is a romantic idea to start almost from scratch, complete functioning boats are available for a fraction of what it would cost to build and better off starting with an 80% there boat and spending what will still be a fair sum on bringing it up to 100%. The trick is identifying boats where the 80% is all good and the extra is within your competence to complete.

Are you saying Wayan dream is a non starter ? or a starter but a non finisher ?
Don't listen to them Wayan already a few have already arrived with hopes that any thing possible, keep this thread going and soon you have a following .
Mark my words .

 

[ashtead]

I believe there are a few cheap livabord boats down on the Thames near Hampton court ? I wonder where the proprietor of that enterprises sources all his vessels as might be a source of useful info for the OP?

 

[Tranona]

Are you saying Wayan dream is a non starter ? or a starter but a non finisher ?
Don't listen to them Wayan already a few have already arrived with hopes that any thing possible, keep this thread going and soon you have a following .
Mark my words .

The problem with these dreams is that it is easy to start, but the probability of finishing is close to zero (at least by the person who starts).

I am risk averse, but accept that not everybody is. However, boats were never intended to be homes so need to be "modified" to a greater or lesser extent to turn them into practical homes. What this means to an extent depends on your expectations. Many people like you and in part myself is that we can live comfortably in a barely modified production boat of a certain size, but if we want to take advantage of one of its biggest characteristics, that is to be mobile enough to move when and wherever we want it needs a lot of money spent on the non living bits (as well as the domestic bits that break from constant use).

On the other hand if you are just looking at a boat as a shell to fill with the domestic gear equivalent to a 2 bedroom apartment then there are different priorities, the major one (after finding somewhere to permanently park it) is stopping water from getting in both from under and above. This is not easy on an old hull that is past its sell by date as a functioning boat. Then you have to rip out most of the internal structure and gear that gets in the way of your domestic layout. Next build a new internal structure to hold all your domestic bits, attaching it to a mostly unsound (long term) structure then filling it with a lot of gear that was never designed for going in a leaky old boat.

On the size of boat the OP is looking at this is probably a DIY 5-10 year project and if trying to live on the boat at the same time an almost certain killer of any relationships never mind using up a huge amount of physical and mental energy.

Of course some people can live with it and an even smaller number actually end up with a decent home - even if it is worth substantially less than they spent on it. However seems most who start don't finish.

Reminds me of sage words from my careers master when I was considering signing up for 5 years articles for accounting (largely prompted by the number of very attractive young ladies in the office). Think about what happens if you fail to qualify - can you live with never being more than head clerk? or start again on another tack?

 

[waynes world]

Tranona, it sounds like words of failure you speak of much and regrets from it ?

I think of things as, at least i tried, life is short an full of regrets on not at least attempting things you want to.

Glutten for punishment some folk call it, as you may call it insanity. I call it balls to give it a go and die happy saying i tried it , not sat on my back side wishing...dreaming of it.

As said from the start i am researching so lets see what happens. If i do go for it which i will with either as talked about here or a smaller boat i will keep all updated as i have with the other project i am doing now.

 

[Tranona]

Tranona, it sounds like words of failure you speak of much and regrets from it ?

I think of things as, at least i tried, life is short an full of regrets on not at least attempting things you want to.

Glutten for punishment some folk call it, as you may call it insanity. I call it balls to give it a go and die happy saying i tried it , not sat on my back side wishing...dreaming of it.

As said from the start i am researching so lets see what happens. If i do go for it which i will with either as talked about here or a smaller boat i will keep all updated as i have with the other project i am doing now.

No, no failure at all. Lived (weeknights) on a cramped 26' for a year, built 2 boats, have owned a wooden boat since 1980. Sailed it continuously for most of that time except when doing 2 major refists, the first of which involved a redesign of the keel and rudder extending the coachroof, fitting a new engine. Semi liveaboard for a couple of years on a 37' modern boat (a bit like Vic's last boat) in the Med.

To me the two ends of the continuum are adapting a boat to live on while sailing around and living in a fixed location on the water. Both have attractions, but of a very different sort. If you are toward the latter end of the spectrum then don't start with a boat. They are just a poor basis for a house substitute. Limited space for their footprint and what space there is tends to be small and of an awkward shape. Add to that the difficulties of keeping water out. of course some of these issues go away with size, but costs and work increases at the cube of the length as a general rule.

So start with something that is nearer house shape. Good boats are canal barges, either ex commercial as found in Europe, although these are often too large, modern wide beam steel barges or narrowboats. Newly built, usually in steel they make excellent floating homes for less cost than trying to convert a boat shaped hull. 45' of widebeam makes a very comfortable home for 2 people. you could go more extreme if you are prepared to sacrifice mobility by building something house shaped that floats. There are many excellent examples of this, many shown on a number of recent TV programmes on the subject.

Neither of these approaches are "cheap" in that they require money spent up front, probably in the order of £150-200k, but you could get a complete DIY home in typically 2 years of intensive part time effort.

Very different from starting with a boat (particularly a MOBO) that is designed for weekend fun and the odd week holiday where as I suggested in my reply to Vic, you tend to spend most of your time, particularly with older boats keeping the bits linked to mobility working properly.

Anyway, hope that gives you something to think about, drawn from my experience and "living and working" in the boating business just about all my life.

 

[waynes world]

No, no failure at all. Lived (weeknights) on a cramped 26' for a year, built 2 boats, have owned a wooden boat since 1980. Sailed it continuously for most of that time except when doing 2 major refists, the first of which involved a redesign of the keel and rudder extending the coachroof, fitting a new engine. Semi liveaboard for a couple of years on a 37' modern boat (a bit like Vic's last boat) in the Med.

To me the two ends of the continuum are adapting a boat to live on while sailing around and living in a fixed location on the water. Both have attractions, but of a very different sort. If you are toward the latter end of the spectrum then don't start with a boat. They are just a poor basis for a house substitute. Limited space for their footprint and what space there is tends to be small and of an awkward shape. Add to that the difficulties of keeping water out. of course some of these issues go away with size, but costs and work increases at the cube of the length as a general rule.

So start with something that is nearer house shape. Good boats are canal barges, either ex commercial as found in Europe, although these are often too large, modern wide beam steel barges or narrowboats. Newly built, usually in steel they make excellent floating homes for less cost than trying to convert a boat shaped hull. 45' of widebeam makes a very comfortable home for 2 people. you could go more extreme if you are prepared to sacrifice mobility by building something house shaped that floats. There are many excellent examples of this, many shown on a number of recent TV programmes on the subject.

Neither of these approaches are "cheap" in that they require money spent up front, probably in the order of £150-200k, but you could get a complete DIY home in typically 2 years of intensive part time effort.

Very different from starting with a boat (particularly a MOBO) that is designed for weekend fun and the odd week holiday where as I suggested in my reply to Vic, you tend to spend most of your time, particularly with older boats keeping the bits linked to mobility working properly.

Anyway, hope that gives you something to think about, drawn from my experience and "living and working" in the boating business just about all my life.

Strange then as i would of thought you would help with ideas and encourage more. You seem to be more negative. Or is that how i read it.

Still thanks for your words of wisdom and all is taken on board ( no pun intended, hey but it fits )

You would cringe at some smaller wooden boats i have looked at. a few cracking 35 footers for around £3k.

 

[xyachtdave]

I know a couple of a couple of people that have got 'lucky' buying 36-40 ft AWB's for under £15 grand. They were obviously a bit tired but with the right skills and positive mental attitude have been renovated quite cheaply.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC64BFQulaAIl1xWG4DJlQ8A

The link to Sailing Britaly above is a good example, the guy is obviously a very competent sailor and engineer. I was lifted out after their launch which is how I discovered their channel.

You've only mentioned £12k as starting budget and apologies if I missed your previous boating history and experience but anything much bigger than this (and especially anything wooden) is going to eat up a huge amount of cash very quickly.

When I moved aboard for a while I thinned my life down to 3 sailing bags full of clothes and a laptop. Even with this little stuff, when added to your tools and sailing gear etc doing any maintenance/work aboard is a nightmare. If you're planning on living full time on a boat and doing it up while having a day job it's going to be very hard work. If you end up living aboard in a marina in a bad UK winter, looking after the boat and yourself is a full time job, which obviously gets difficult if you've got a full time job to do too....and then you need to find the time to do the boat up in the pissing rain/snow/dark.

I wish you well and encourage you to follow your dreams, there are easier routes to living afloat than those you mentioned.

You did ask for opinions from the forum and that's mine, I wish you well and good luck!

 

[clyst]

Wayne , as a liveaboard I can vouch that Tranona is telling how it is . It sounds an idilic way of life but in the uk it can be anything but ....... living on a boat is a lot different than spending a few weeks or months onboard . A few things that have not been mentioned is nobody likes a NFA person in the finance world ..... Banks ,Building societies etc . Other things to take into account is a decent water and leccy supply . Not many marinas openly welcome liveaboards especially boats that have a distinct liveaboard look about it . There are many other problems of living aboard which the gung Ho! Male can live with and enjoy but most wives are a little reserved to accept . Try sending your wife out on deck when it's windy and chucking it down at eleven o clock at night to change a gas bottle ..... I expect you will regard these comment as being a bit negative but that's the way it is .......having said that if you're both prepared to accept the downside it is very rewarding way of life .

 

[jdc]

You have to realise that this is a salt-water group, as talk of marinas and expensive kit testifies.

In fact I know of quite a few young or young-at-heart professionals who live aboard on canal boats quite contentedly, 365 days a year, and in the UK too! Those I know are in Cambridge, but that's only because I live there and I'd have thought that in a triangle with Manchester, Goole and Nottingham, say, at the vertices there must be hundreds of miles of canals and many places where there is an equally strong live-aboard community. Expect to pay council tax, but for that you'll get bins and pump-outs and aren't a gypsy. Banks etc will not have too much of a problem, and even mortgages are commonplace.

Purchase price of a really quite decent narrow-beam with adequate space for two can be £80k however, but it's much cheaper than a sea-going craft of the same comfort . You might get something for considerably less but it will take work. If the engine is an ancient Lister or Gardiner so much the better and I'd not worry over much about running gear. No salt water makes all the difference and most things can be fixed or resurrected, even a 40 year old Bukh.

I can't say if it would suit you and 'T,' but I know one couple who did up their pre-war narrow-beam, replacing nearly everything, and not only did their relationship work out but they got married last year (I suspect once the bedroom was habitable;-). And another friend got a £60k mortgage with only a £12k deposit so if there are two of you working/earning that might work out for you. The point at which all my friends do bail out of the live-aboard life is when children start arriving...

As for tools etc, yes you need them of course but all the live-aboards I know live very much in a community and share a great deal of help and advice as well as specialist / power tools and generally trade favours. The chance of one of your neighbours being a carpenter and another an electrician is quite high (both are to be found in a 300m stretch on the common here in Cambridge).

So don't give up but I second Tranona's advice to consider a canal boat.

 

[SlowlyButSurely]

There's a good deal of negativity in this thread. I suggest having a look at the Liveaboard Steel Boats facebook group for inspiration.

 

[sailaboutvic]

There's a good deal of negativity in this thread. I suggest having a look at the Liveaboard Steel Boats facebook group for inspiration.

I don't call it negativity at all , but good and wise advise from people who done it and are doing it ,
We not trying to put anyone off their dream ,
All any of us are doing is trying to get these people to face the reality of what they are dreaming about , and just maybe saving them wasting a lot of money and the odd relationship.
In the end it's up to them what they do .
Lets get one thing right from the start , all the encouragement in the world isn't what's going to be what make people dream come true ,
it going to be money and lots of it when it comes to boats ,hard work and determination and if you happen to be in a relationship it's got to be a two way thing .
There been a few of these thread popping up , I guess it's the warm weather back home that the base of it , you don't get these thread when there six ins of snow on the ground .

yes people do live on canel boats Tony ( won't give his full uses name ) here does six month in the Med and the other six months on his Canel boat in , as it happen in Cambridgeshire , but his boat was build by his son who a boat builder ,
build many years ago at a cost of Much more then talked about here and they enjoy it , but they not at a age where they need to get up each morning and go to work , there can live very simple and he had a permitting mooring for that boat for many years .
Out sided wouldnt see that , what they see is , hey there a older generation couple living happily on a Canel boat if they can do so can we .

even the once that do buy good sound boats to live their dream many many don't last ,
I know a few here that given it a good go , and only after just a few years have given up and some have already sold and returned to living on turf .
If you read their blog just a few months before these people give up you would had through there living in paradise ,
So don't believe everything you read and YouTube videos , unless the blog are interesting people won't read them and that's the point after all , we have a blog , I don't advertise it , it's just for our family to keep up with what we doing and for our own record , if you read the last few months Christine wrote you would go near a boat it's been a very expensive few months with breakages finding new problems and fighting with things like keeping the fridge working and finding why every so offen we have lts of water inside , that little job took weeks to find and put right while we on the move .
Lucky for me Christine is use to boat and been on them from a very young age and it not unsally to see her in the engine compartment opposite me working , other wise I thing I be back as I was for many years as a solo sailor .
I accept you do see young people living on run down boats , I have seen many , we see one day but how do any of us know what the same people are doing next week or next months , what we do know is we have seen the same boats some time later left with sail still hang over the boom and tops of hatches missing in a lot of cases .

This is what we know for a fact and I not making this up .
Has we sail around Europe and the Med there hundreds of abandon / dump boat some half sunk that have had people trying out the liveaboard life and for one reason or another it's not worked out ,
We met no end of couple who stuck in that life , their have been encouraged to grasp life and follow their dream ,sold there house only to find just a few years on there dreams a night mare , there cant sell there boat , they can't return home Couse there got no where to live and no money .
Others are young people who now realise they cant live in a shoe box for any length of time or make a enough money while on the move to keep their shoe box , there the lucky ones they still got time go back to their parents for a roof over their heads and a bit of money to help them while to sort their live out .
Well know places like Vliho in Greece , many here will know this , the whole quay is littered with run down mostly British boats , most never to be moved again ,
one a while ago had a wheel chair rump ,
The once that are still lived on are single guys. Who can be seen almost most night in the same bar on the same seat with a beer in there hand telling the same story's , in the day time they sleep the heat away or try and find away to make a bob or two for there next beer .
There place just like Vliho all over the med , these people aren't living there dream , they are surviving in a night mare .
I have not yet met any one living in a small rundown boat that when asked have said he or she has lived in it more then a few summer month,
The OP might just be one of the lucky once but let be clear for every lucky one there any many more unlucky ones .

 

[nortada]

Interesting thread.

I have a mate who is a true liveaboard.

Single, hehas 2 boats, one in the UK the other in Southern Europe, which he plans to sail to the Caribbean this winter (he has already done this circuit 4 times before) so summers in the UK and winters in warmer climes. He runs a nice little motor.

Oh yes, his only income is his UK state pension.

So it is possible.

Ps Although not a total liveaboard, we do winter afloat in Southern Europe and have a boat in the UK.

We have done this for the past 18 years.

We do not exist solely on the OAP.

 

[nortada]

I don't call it negativity at all , but good and wise advise from people who done it and are doing it ,
We not trying to put anyone off their dream ,
All any of us are doing is trying to get these people to face the reality of what they are dreaming about , and just maybe saving them wasting a lot of money and the odd relationship.
In the end it's up to them what they do .
Lets get one thing right from the start , all the encouragement in the world isn't what's going to be what make people dream come true ,
it going to be money and lots of it when it comes to boats ,hard work and determination and if you happen to be in a relationship it's got to be a two way thing .
There been a few of these thread popping up , I guess it's the warm weather back home that the base of it , you don't get these thread when there six ins of snow on the ground .

yes people do live on canel boats Tony ( won't give his full uses name ) here does six month in the Med and the other six months on his Canel boat in , as it happen in Cambridgeshire , but his boat was build by his son who a boat builder ,
build many years ago at a cost of Much more then talked about here and they enjoy it , but they not at a age where they need to get up each morning and go to work , there can live very simple and he had a permitting mooring for that boat for many years .
Out sided wouldnt see that , what they see is , hey there a older generation couple living happily on a Canel boat if they can do so can we .

even the once that do buy good sound boats to live their dream many many don't last ,
I know a few here that given it a good go , and only after just a few years have given up and some have already sold and returned to living on turf .
If you read their blog just a few months before these people give up you would had through there living in paradise ,
So don't believe everything you read and YouTube videos , unless the blog are interesting people won't read them and that's the point after all , we have a blog , I don't advertise it , it's just for our family to keep up with what we doing and for our own record , if you read the last few months Christine wrote you would go near a boat it's been a very expensive few months with breakages finding new problems and fighting with things like keeping the fridge working and finding why every so offen we have lts of water inside , that little job took weeks to find and put right while we on the move .
Lucky for me Christine is use to boat and been on them from a very young age and it not unsally to see her in the engine compartment opposite me working , other wise I thing I be back as I was for many years as a solo sailor .
I accept you do see young people living on run down boats , I have seen many , we see one day but how do any of us know what the same people are doing next week or next months , what we do know is we have seen the same boats some time later left with sail still hang over the boom and tops of hatches missing in a lot of cases .

This is what we know for a fact and I not making this up .
Has we sail around Europe and the Med there hundreds of abandon / dump boat some half sunk that have had people trying out the liveaboard life and for one reason or another it's not worked out ,
We met no end of couple who stuck in that life , their have been encouraged to grasp life and follow their dream ,sold there house only to find just a few years on there dreams a night mare , there cant sell there boat , they can't return home Couse there got no where to live and no money .
Others are young people who now realise they cant live in a shoe box for any length of time or make a enough money while on the move to keep their shoe box , there the lucky ones they still got time go back to their parents for a roof over their heads and a bit of money to help them while to sort their live out .
Well know places like Vliho in Greece , many here will know this , the whole quay is littered with run down mostly British boats , most never to be moved again ,
one a while ago had a wheel chair rump ,
The once that are still lived on are single guys. Who can be seen almost most night in the same bar on the same seat with a beer in there hand telling the same story's , in the day time they sleep the heat away or try and find away to make a bob or two for there next beer .
There place just like Vliho all over the med , these people aren't living there dream , they are surviving in a night mare .
I have not yet met any one living in a small rundown boat that when asked have said he or she has lived in it more then a few summer month,
The OP might just be one of the lucky once but let be clear for every lucky one there any many more unlucky ones .

‘Ello, ‘Ello. Pigeon is alive and well:encouragement:

Not the easiest message to follow!

Clearly you typed this up in a hurry.

 

[sailaboutvic]

Interesting thread.

I have a mate who is a true liveaboard.

Single, hehas 2 boats, one in the UK the other in Southern Europe, which he plans to sail to the Caribbean this winter (he has already done this circuit 4 times before) so summers in the UK and winters in warmer climes. He runs a nice little motor.

Oh yes, his only income is his UK state pension.

So it is possible.

Ps Although not a total liveaboard, we do winter afloat in Southern Europe and have a boat in the UK.

We have done this for the past 18 years.

We do not exist solely on the OAP.

I read a lot of your posting and I sure if your stilling on board in and around Portugal in a few years times when we head back that way , it be great to sit and talk this tho face to face and have a few beers .
In the mean time , this isn't about living full time on a boat on a OAP , off cause you can No problem living on a sound well maintainable boat , by what I read your is ,
well can all do that plus because its looked after the on going cost of keeping it that way unless like us who had a few unseeable problems lately isn't much .
What we talk here and on the other posting is people buying boat which need thousands to put right have no or very little experience what any of it involves and living on these boats at the same time .
With very little money if any at all to start with .
Now the question to you is , starting from the begin , your on as you say a OAP and only that no other income , can you honesty say you would take on what the OP suggest .
For god sake be honest rather then just to prove some of us wrong or there no point in this .

Apologies, I see you don't live solely on a OAP . It's your mate, Now I understand .

 

[Tranona]

Strange then as i would of thought you would help with ideas and encourage more. You seem to be more negative. Or is that how i read it.

Still thanks for your words of wisdom and all is taken on board ( no pun intended, hey but it fits )

You would cringe at some smaller wooden boats i have looked at. a few cracking 35 footers for around £3k.

Well, you are reading it wrong, particularly as I have given you a number of good ideas about how to make it work. However the advice is still the same. An old worn out fishing boat hull as in your original post is not a good basis for creating a viable liveaboard. This is the reason they are so cheap and so many are for sale. pity the cost of disposal is so high as the best thing to do is scrap them - as many have already done.

The problem with old wooden boats including the "cheap" yachts is that once neglect takes hold they quickly become just boat shaped collections of firewood.

It is unclear what your objective is in this project so most of the advice is generic based on what the advisers have experienced or observed over the years. As I said earlier the difference between having a cruising boat of a decent size that you can live on while sailing and building a house substitute that floats is enormous. Both can be achieved but you need to start from a different point. Either can consume huge amounts of money and time if you want to live in a way that is close to "normal" life ashore.

 

[vyv_cox]

It's the 'buy a cheap wooden boat' idea that grates with me. My 1972 motorsailer is grp but with wooden decorative boards bolted to the sides, quite common at the time. These were all attached with galvanized steel coach bolts and nuts, hundreds of them. The majority have corroded badly. Replacing them has taken months, not cost a lot but took some ingenuity at times.

 

[PlanB]

To go back to your original post, you want to give Tracy an idea of what she might be letting herself in for.
Time and again we come across boaters (motor and sail) where the bloke is living the dream and the female half is in a recurring nightmare.
As a sweeping generality, men are more prepared to rough it than women. You need to be really sure that Tracy is up for the challenge and aware of the pitfalls, or you'll end up as one of the single blokes Vic writes about.
And remember that roughing it for one two-week holiday is a completely different thing from living like that.

 

[waynes world]

To go back to your original post, you want to give Tracy an idea of what she might be letting herself in for.
Time and again we come across boaters (motor and sail) where the bloke is living the dream and the female half is in a recurring nightmare.
As a sweeping generality, men are more prepared to rough it than women. You need to be really sure that Tracy is up for the challenge and aware of the pitfalls, or you'll end up as one of the single blokes Vic writes about.
And remember that roughing it for one two-week holiday is a completely different thing from living like that.

First reply got the idea. Yes that is what i want to do for a start so the reason to look around few boats so T can get an idea on space for a start, we have had a fair fe boats but nothing on this scale, biggest being 28 foot RP cruiser.

If T is not happy then i am not and it will not be a goer and get another weekend/holiday project . Reason i started to ask on blogs and boats to look at.

I have read all other replies so not wasted time replying, so thanks. I know what it all consists of and whats ahead. I have lived `rough` as some will call it for a some time in the past. Although T hasnt.

Oh and this is not a summertime dream by any means. It has been a `dream` since i was about 20 and now 44 so i can say i have been waiting and looking into this for some time now. I have the energy and go in me to do it and i can do what needs to be done to a boat, i am sure.

 

[nortada]

I read a lot of your posting and I sure if your stilling on board in and around Portugal in a few years times when we head back that way , it be great to sit and talk this tho face to face and have a few beers .
In the mean time , this isn't about living full time on a boat on a OAP , off cause you can No problem living on a sound well maintainable boat , by what I read your is ,
well can all do that plus because its looked after the on going cost of keeping it that way unless like us who had a few unseeable problems lately isn't much .
What we talk here and on the other posting is people buying boat which need thousands to put right have no or very little experience what any of it involves and living on these boats at the same time .
With very little money if any at all to start with .
Now the question to you is , starting from the begin , your on as you say a OAP and only that no other income , can you honesty say you would take on what the OP suggest .
For god sake be honest rather then just to prove some of us wrong or there no point in this .

Apologies, I see you don't live solely on a OAP . It's your mate, Now I understand .

Your last line says it all, my message was not about us so the rest of your post is not relevant.

Not trying to prove anything, just providing a bit of balance - Oh yes, my mate has refurbished both of his boats. His one asset is time and a capacity for hard work.

Why not delete your post and oh yes, why challenge my integtity

Although we have been there, major boat refurbishment is not on of my favourite topics so don’t think we have much more to discuss.

 

[mariadz]

We moved aboard three years ago on the size of boat you mention, but it costs a lot more than 12k. It’s our home and costs like it.

For a sixteen year old boat, we have had to do a lot to get her to a state where we are happier, and still have some to do. But we have fun at the same time. If you can get something seaworthy that is a good size for you and affordable then you can have a great time together. It doesn’t have to be punishment for the other half.

Anyway, our journey is documented on our blog: Mariadz.com.

Hope that helps