#9: Tales from the Islands: From Oslo to sailing around the Caribbean
No previous sailing experience did not put this intrepid software developer off
We’ve gathered tales from some of the people who casually said ‘no gracias’ to only living the good life on vacation. Get inspired, as you hear how they made a life of endless adventure
‘Magic Habitat’ is on a mission to inspire people who are curious about relocating. From Barbados to Lisbon and Mexico City to Tbilisi, every other Tuesday we deliver interviews with tastemakers, adventurers and the wild-at-hearts who have chosen to live (and work) in some of the most interesting and colourful places in the world.
The Interview: Hello, world! A lesson in taking the leap
Hailing from Norway, Marte was living the typical metropolitan life with an apartment in the capital, Oslo prior to making a huge lifestyle change in 2019.
“I love to travel and the 5 weeks annual holiday we got in Norway didn’t feel enough. I started my own consulting business selling coding hours so I could have the freedom to take more time off - but I still had the same feeling, is this it?”
“Around the same time myself, my boyfriend and some of our friends had rented a boat in Croatia for 2 weeks and I just loved it. That’s where everything started! I began to think ‘what if I could do this every day’ and when I returned, I started watching videos of couples who were working remotely and living on boats. I got totally hooked and fast forward to less than 12 months later, we had sold our apartment and bought our boat! It’s a 44 ft Hanse from 2007.”
Many people reading this foster ambitions of living their life at sea but lack of experience puts them off. What would you say to them?
We didn’t have any experience - aside from my boyfriend knowing some basics like how to hoist the sails! We didn’t know how to sail and had no clue on what it would mean to own our own boat! We bought her online sight unseen as she was crossing back from the Caribbean to Norway!
Initially, we had her on the hard (on land) for 2 weeks, whilst we moved our belongings into the boat and then we left Stavanger, Norway for the Caribbean, crossing the Atlantic which took about three weeks!
She is a very fast boat and well equipped. And she had crossed the Atlantic twice already when we got her. We raced in a regatta when crossing the Atlantic with 300 other boats. We came first in our class, 10th overall and I became the fastest female skipper!
I realise this sounds crazy! People usually plan and dream about this for years and most people doing this have lots of experience. This was not just some cruising in Croatia - this was crossing oceans and rough seas. The idea of being out on the big sea for about 3 weeks was scary - yet very exciting!
Why Sailing?
First of all it’s something new! I needed some contrast to my urban life and sailing contrasts in every single way. You can go from being freezing cold and feeling the power of nature one minute, then suddenly you get safely into harbour, have a beer and just relax.
Your scenery changes every day and we have seen so many countries, eaten so much good food and got to know so many cultures and people. Every part of the trip has its charm. Sailing also pushes your limits. When you’re out at sea, you have no other option than to just have to deal with what mother nature throws at you. Sometimes it can get very scary but you very quickly learn how capable you are - much more than you think.
How did you make the transition to working remotely?
Initially, the plan was actually not to work at all! We were supposed to do a one year sabbatical and enjoy island hopping in the Caribbean. Sailing and boat maintenance takes up a big chunk of time, so we didn’t want to be tied down by work. We came to the Caribbean (St Lucia) in December 2019 and then we visited all the islands up until St Martin, where we got stuck when Covid hit.
My boyfriend picked up his former role again and I did some smaller projects for clients but I was starting to feel a bit lonely. When the islands started to open again we travelled to a co-working place in Martinique that a Norwegian girl had just opened.
She gave me tips about this awesome company called SafetyWing. So I sent them an email and it was a perfect match. I immediately loved their offering and became a customer - we had another insurance company but they didn’t want to cover any Covid related stuff, so it was an easy switch to make! It’s great being a customer and building products for yourself and other fellow nomads!
Tell us more about Safety Wing!
SafetyWing is your home country on the internet! The company was founded by Norwegians and you will see that DNA through our products. Norway is one of the best countries in the world to live in and the brilliant welfare system is globally recognised.
The only problem is that when you leave the country - you lose all your benefits. Coming from a place like Norway, our founders wanted to bring those benefits with them, wherever they travelled and so SafetyWing was born.
One of the biggest issues I had before leaving Norway was that no insurance company could give me insurance at a decent price, if I was travelling for more than 90 days. We need a better system covering the citizens of the world.
Can you shared one of your favourite places you’ve visited so far?
Maybe the best place would be Barbuda. It has a very unique history and for anybody interested it’s worth listening to "The island no one owns". When you get there there are no resorts or hotels. Only some small huts. The beaches are pink, the water so blue - it is the most beautiful place on earth! And the people are so friendly! We were invited to people's homes, and nobody closed their doors because everyone knows everybody. And the only visitors were sailors like us. There are horses and donkeys running wild in the street and on the beach. It is just an amazing remote place that we were lucky to be able to visit.
What do you miss the most?
I really miss having a bigger space and the freedom of just walking out the door. Our boat is on the water with an anchor and we only have a small dinghy with a 9.8hp engine on (aka our "car") so we always need to plan everything together. I also really miss a dishwasher (luckily I have a manual one aka Håkon my boyfriend :) A life on land is actually pretty easy (in a practical way) so I remind myself to appreciate what I am missing so I can have something to look forward to, as I know this lifestyle isn’t forever.
If you had to pick another place in the world to relocate to, where would you go?
Oh - that’s a hard question. As a sailor the whole point is to never have to choose just one place! Then you have "swallowed the hook" we say - dropped your metaphorical anchor for the last time! The day when I become a landlubber again I don’t think I want just one place. The idea of selecting "one place" scares me!
If you could give any advice to somebody reading this now who might be considering relocating to a boat, what would it be?
It might look and sound idyllic to live on a boat and go wherever you want but that is not all true. Living on a boat is a lot of stress and a lot of work! But it is all so worth it. In general - I would just say "just do it!". For me boat life gave me the missing anchor in life and I have grown as a person with everything I have learned and all the people I have met.
