It is with a little sadness, but great excitement that we bring you our very last blog from Singapore. After many months of wondering what we want to do with our lives in such crazy times we have made a somewhat bold, but well thought out decision to leave the world behind for a while and go sailing.
Yes, that’s right, we’re leaving terra firma for adventure on the high seas, albeit still SE Asian seas, for a while.
It all started when G found a sailing school website by accident and has grown from a dream into a reality. The school is based in Pattaya, Thailand and offers a “zero to hero” 3 week, action packed course that eventuates in an internationally recognised certification in bareboat captaincy (if you pass all the exams), and the confidence and know how to plot your course, read the weather conditions and head for places that can only be accessed by sea
We took a trip to Pattaya a while back to visit the school and meet the team who run it and were very impressed by what we saw. We also made acquaintance with a number of pinkies that have set up home there and have their own yachts. They seem like a very social lot who enjoy G n T’s on deck whilst still in the marina as much as actually taking their boats out, so we’ve kindly offered to take them sailing in their prized possessions once we are certified!! An offer that has been met with a favourable response much to our delight. Although having said that, we are also keen to become proud owners of our own 35ft French designed yacht. In Phuket, there is a major boat charter company with a number of yachts coming out of service about now. The beauty of these lovely vessels is that being charter yachts they come with all the whistles and bells, have regular service records and safety equipment galore. We went to Phuket a few weeks ago to have a look and got taken for quick sail on one too. If we’d ever needed convincing that we were doing the right thing, this was it!! Although there was very little wind, just pulling out of the marina with a slight breeze on a sunny morning was enough to tell us that this is definitely the life! We’ve done lots of research, read loads of articles/books and talked to many people who are experienced sailors and are under no illusion that will be all “plain sailing”, but we are looking for a new challenge and believe that with the right training and know how we can do it!
So, when does all this happen? Well, we leave Singapore permanently on 29th May and start the course on 12th June. G is looking at doing his Dive Master certification during that time too. On completion of the course we will be much more knowledgeable on this boat buying lark, so can go back to Phuket and start the purchasing process. If we’re not comfortable with that, we can look at other options such as crewing for a while, or boat deliveries. The guys at the school have been fantastic to us so far helping us out with our arrangements and have offered to assist us in these areas if we need it. Plus the yachting community as a whole seems to be great. Everyone we have met so far has been friendly and kind; willing to offer help and advice where at all possible. They seem to like to party and have a good time, and not a blue blazer in sight!!!!
Now we have our dates and travel plans finalised we’re starting the big clear out and wondering how the hell we’ve ended up with more stuff than we brought with us! The Salvation Army are going think it’s Christmas all over again when they see all the stuff we’re getting rid of. Part of what we love about the idea of sailing is its simplicity. The need for very little by way of possessions (including shoes and handbags!), and being happy with what we have rather than being constantly bombarded by marketeers telling us we need even more of the stuff we already have, only with even more apps and extras!! If it’s not waterproof and isn’t a life saving device at sea, chart plotter or fish finder then we don’t need it!
With only a few weeks left here the time for reflection has come, and the first thing that struck us is how amazingly quickly the last couple of years have gone. It seems like only a blink of an eye since we first arrived and we have had a great time here. Singapore is a very easy and pleasing place to live. But our favourite moments have come from the travelling we’ve been able to do – Gareth with his wreck diving in the fantastic Philippines, and seeing the orangutans in their natural habitat in Borneo are standouts. And I will never forget the children of Acodo Orphanage in Siem Reap. I couldn’t have captured such precious moments without the help of travel photography guru Mr Hui at the Photographic Society who had never met a student who answered back till I joined!!!
What we will miss:
The simplicity and efficiency that is Singapore
Pure Yoga – the wonderful staff and fantastic teachers who have helped us achieve greater flexibility and strength to do this, both physically and mentally, and who never met a student who answered back till I joined!!!
Our friends – both old and new
Space - I’m sure there will be times when we’re squeezed into our little cabin, or trying to cook in our small galley that we wish we back in our spacious apartment with room to do more than swing a cat!
Mango shakes and pancakes - the little stall in the MRT station by Pure Yoga where we get our regular order to keep us going through class.
What we’re looking forward to:
Well, apart from all the obvious things I think our first night under sail when there’s a full moon and clear sky full of stars will be pretty special!!
There are things that could go horribly wrong, we are aware of them and won’t take them lightly, but we won’t let them spoil our dream. We’re looking forward to our simpler way of like where the fish is always fresh and every day is a new day, not a groundhog day!!
And finally:
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading about our lives over the last 2 and a bit years and we’ve been able to give you a good insight into living in Singapore. It has its frustrations (where hasn’t??), but I could think of lots of worse places to be right now – Athens or Louisiana anyone??!
For those of you who missed out on the chance of a shopping trip to Singapore, then maybe a sailing cruise around some pretty nice islands might be your cup of tea instead! You have our hotmail address, plus we’re both on Facebook now too, so stay in touch and do come and share our adventure with us if you can. It will be a lot of fun!!
Cheers then
Capt. Gazza and first mate Julie
