Life On Sail

  July  2025 overview After the major standing rigging overhaul—the biggest renovation yet—our spending has settled back to a "normal" range of around €3,000. Well, not exactly "normal," since our friends and son arrived in early July, inflating costs a bit. Hoping we can keep things steady in August. Total spending reached  €2891  for the month. July 2025 details This month's highlights: - Friends arrived in Sardinia—great to have them aboard!   - Our son joined us for just under a month.   - Celebrated our son’s birthday in style!   - X5 new camera potentially lost (not counted in the budget). I’ll cover this from a separate personal account, possibly using referral gains from earlier this year. Still TBD.   July 2025 vs Budget With six months into our sabbatical,  we’ve spent a bit more than 81% of our total budget,  leaving  €19830  for the remaining six to seven months.   Repairs and Maintenance Bu...

  We visited Talamone, a 13th century village in Tuscany.   After the visit, we were off for a good-wind-day, roaring at 4,6 knots speeding cruise for 4h. Then the wind stopped abruptly when we arrived... We did 20 nautical miles today!

  2h navigation in the morning and we were at Castiglione della Pescaia. We just had a short stop over in this beautiful Tuscany medieval town. Too bad the castle is private so you cant visit. We went back to the boat and continued the journey. Here is the vlog of the Castiglione stop And here is the vlog of the Talamone stop the next morning.

 After 32 nm and 7 hours, we hit the Italian coastline. Took the easy route—North Corsica instead of the long haul from Sardinia to Sicily—to keep things chill. As we near bigger cities, our son’s departure looms. Gonna miss him on this boat. I miss my 360 camera, but I have my usually streak of bad luck.  The UPS parcel seems to be lost somewhere... the tracking number doesnt seem to work...  Not sure if the parcel will ever reach destination.   

  Not much wind, a lot of engine but only 2h+ navigation. We hope to get a berth tomorrow at the port but they haven't replied us. There is going to be a lot of wind, so we'd better find a shelter. In the meantime we are mooring in front of the city. I'm disappointed that Napoleon's house is closed for renovation... We came all this way and cannot visit it! The next day the port called and we got a spot, just right when we could hear thunder and the rain pouring.  However it's not the old port within the old city, but the new port 2 km away.  But it's still nice to get a shelter, although it's not the cheapest one. It was 95 euros for the night.  More expensive than Porto Vecchio. It's the most expensive port we have been to.  But it allowed us to visiti the city, surrounded by fortresses and home to Napoleon's exile house between 1814 and 1815.  Not sure if it's the absence of the 360 camera or else, but I am getting less views on my shorts on...

  This trip marks the beginning of our "international" sailing adventures.  My happy because it finally means a bit of discovery, although we have been to Italy before, it will still be a bit of discovery as we have done a tiny part of it. Especially for Nico who hasnt been to many Italian trips with me and my son.  I m also sad and stressed because of my Insta360 camera situation.  I can't properly record my daily vlogs and I have to deal with the follow-up of the return...  I'm trying to put that in the back of my mind and enjoy our first day at Marciana Marina.  We are mooring at the port! Tomorrow we'll visit the village then be on our way to Portoferraio, the main city of Elba. 

 We don't get to spend time with our son very often since he studies in Paris' vicinity while we are either in Hong Kong or traveling.  So getting to spend weeks with him this summer is really something meaningful for us.  Unfortunately he sees it differently as he would have preferred staying at his own apartment.  Far away for the traveling tornado. He doesnt like traveling although we got him traveling since his youngest age.  Anyway, today was a day dedicated to him.  BUT, we got busy... and kind of neglected him a big part of the day after lunch time.  We still went for Mexican food, one of his favorite, although the Corsican was far from authentic.  We ate so much that he went for a nap right after. Nico was into his DIY activities.  And I was deep into the after sales frustration, having to deal with my long-awaited 360 cam that didnt work at all.  Now that I have received my camera, there is nothing keeping us in France... The on...

  We came back to Bastia to get my new X5 360 camera...

  Just a one-hour navigation to Borgo, full steam ahead with the wind howling!  Nobody dared leave the port today—boats were practically dancing with each other at the marina. Once we got out to open water, though, the gusts calmed down a bit, surprisingly.  We're sticking around here until my new Insta360 cam arrives, but shipping to Corsica? Let’s just say it’s proving to be quite the adventure!

We finally arrived at Bastia Port! Nico was busy changing the oil today while we tackled laundry duty.  This afternoon, we found a cinema showing subtitled movies—score! Sadly, it was Superman, not exactly my top pick, but it felt so good to sit in a theater with a bag of popcorn, just like old times in Hong Kong. A little dose of normalcy goes a long way!

 We will be staying in Bastia until I receive my new Insta360 X5 camera.  The first night mooring nearby the marina was horrific because of the swell.  I couldn't sleep.  But it was just a little glimpse onto what was to come the next day.  With a little sleep but a lot of excitement getting to the shore, we thoroughly enjoyed our little excursion into Bastia.  It is really a charming city. Colorful streets, total quietness despite us visiting on a Saturday.  It's high up secluded in its citadel towering the port.  It's definitely in my top 3 cities now along with Hyeres and Bonifacio.  You can visit it all within a day.  It is now our 3rd day here and I guess we might stick around until Tuesday... Hopefully I receive my camera by then.  It is highly time for us to move forward to Italy! Here is a glimpse of Bastia

 Another long navigation today, cruising at a steady 4.4 knots—not too bad, covering 28NM in 6h30. Unfortunately, the marina in Bastia is fully booked this weekend, so we might need to head out tomorrow to avoid the heavy swell expected tonight in the area. Good news is, we’ve secured a berth for Monday, so we’ll be back then!

 We’re thrilled to share Vogue, our Bénéteau Oceanis 40 CC Clipper, center cockpit, on YouTube! Our goal was to drop one video a month, but June threw us a curveball—parents visiting, then friends and our son joining for the Sardinian leg of our journey. It was a whirlwind!  Still, we managed to hustle and release Part 1 of our boat presentation, showcasing *Vogue*’s sleek exterior with pride. Check it out, and stay tuned for more as we sail toward Bastia! Watch the video here below:   Part 2 of Vogue’s YouTube showcase is coming … whenever we can make it happen! Don’t expect our usual polished structure—this time, it’ll be a bit raw.  With the boat constantly in a state of organized chaos, finding the perfect moment to film clean clips is tricky. But that’s life on board! Stay tuned for more of our Bénéteau Oceanis 40 CC Clipper adventures as we sail toward Bastia.

We rose early today, spurred by the wind kicking up sooner than expected. With 6 knots of breeze, we covered 22 nautical miles in just over 7 hours, cruising at an average of 3 knots until the wind faded.  Arriving earlier than yesterday, we hit the shops in Bastia and scored some delicious Myrte sausages—authentic Corsican goodness! Can’t wait to savor these local treats. I have order another new insta X5 camera. It will be a bit different from my dual lense ONERs but since I never change the lenses anyways, I decided to change to a full 360 cam. 

We set sail with just 4 knots of wind but still covered 19 nautical miles in nearly 7 hours, bringing us closer to Bastia. Fingers crossed for better winds tomorrow, but we’ll see what the sea has in store! On board, we keep things fun with a daily card game to decide who’s stuck with dish duty. It’s a blast, and with a one-in-three chance to dodge washing dishes twice a day, I’m loving the odds!

 Today, we sailed 19.6 nautical miles in 6 hours, riding the breeze until the wind completely died down. Our day kicked off with a grocery run before we explored the charming village of Porto Vecchio.  Our goal is to reach the North of Corsica in order to cross to the Italian sea without having a 24h navigation. We wrapped up at a stunning beach, but disaster struck—I accidentally dunked my Insta360 camera in the water with the lid open, and it’s officially toast. Ouch! No more capturing our sailing adventures the way I love to.  Stay tuned for what’s next, even if it’s without my trusty camera!

  We were to rush to Porto Vecchio for the National Day's firework... We planned to leave our mooring spot at 1 p.m., just as the wind was expected to pick up. But, as fate would have it, things didn’t go as planned. At lunchtime, our mooring neighbor’s boat drifted behind us. Nico dove into the water to secure it to our boat, with help from nearby neighbors. Another dinghy even joined in, searching for the boat’s owners. After tracking down their phone number, I tried calling, but got no response.  Frustrated, we decided to anchor their boat ourselves so we could leave. Just as we started, the owners finally returned.  When we finally set sail, more problems arose: the mainsail wouldn’t unfurl, the autopilot failed, and Porto Vecchio Port informed us they had no berth available. It felt like the day couldn’t get any worse.  But it did. Arriving at 6 p.m., we rowed our dinghy to the port, only to be denied docking because we lacked an engine—too risky for their narro...