I am having a low liveaboard day, seems like no one understands why I liveaboard

[Goosebumps]

When you liveaboard on the hook on the land, small vessels passing, all seem to think you are doing something out if
the confirmist ordinary. In extreme case I had islander community suggest that I was after eating their children.

[haiqu]

Maybe the small islander community has legends and traditions of men who came in boats and ate children. It's not difficult for people to be afraid of things they don't understand.

When visiting a small isolated community for the first time, it's traditional to visit the elders or chief of that area and show that you mean no harm. In some Pacific islands small gifts are also expected.

And, of course, try not to eat their children. :-)

[Skip JayR]

Maybe you should start on Youtube a cooking channel show.... "How to make cooked, grilled and baken children" as headline of the series.... you get many million followers worldwide and will be soon seen as a superstar in this community the major will come along with press/medias to shake hands with you.

Then the parents might send you their children the kritters become "little grilled, cooked and baken stars" in your YT shows.... :-) and all parents are happy with their aunties, grandmas and uncles being very proud of you to have a "children eater" in their community.

I know a receipe, which is called "wrong rabbit". Means... the look of the baken meat let you assume to eat rabbit, but its not. Same you could present "wrong children" receives.... just as "marketing trick" ! ;-)

Why not living in a place where other "living boaters" are ???? Here is a very good "self motivation video" for all boaters....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5DwDL8zgSI

But seriously... learn to communicate... being lonley on a boat doent mean you put out your head from the saloon every morning to proof with your nose the wind like a druid living lonley in a cave.

You know the Accidental Sailor Girl ?? She is doing great videos... that way "newbees" learn to understand what living on a boat means.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkk4yvHdVlg

You could go into school classes and kindergarden and teach kidds... seriously spoken. Show them what it means to live on a boat. There are many videos on Youtube which explain it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBGD4okHOr8

Its up to you to explain what you are doing, and not thinking that people "land based" understand what is going on board of a boat.... regularly it needs 5-10 years time minimum to handle a boat well... "normal land rats" never got this education so they never can understand.

I live in a maritime city (2nd biggest harbour in Europe)... and we have more than 1 million guests every year in the town... I suppose 90% of them book tours on river boats cruising for some hours around being explained the harbour (historically same the container terminals for modern cargo business).
Watching these people the smallest wave coming along the boat is moving little bit shaky up and down people start screaming... becaue they are not used to. For them in their minds boats are strange non-stable platforms where one gets seasick.

So dont expect that they understand who you are, what you do, and how you do. As everywhere !

[barnakiel]

Whatever we do, we get something out of it. And so the hole communities are about right.

They get something out of their landbased lifestyle too.

I say disregard morons and keep on getting out of it whatever you are after.

b.

[atoll]

Originally Posted by Goosebumps

When you liveaboard on the hook on the land, small vessels passing, all seem to think you are doing something out if
the confirmist ordinary. In extreme case I had islander community suggest that I was after eating their children.

black Africans have an inherent mistrust of people on boats.........

last time someone asked them to go sailing...............

they ended up as slaves in the Americas,or the middle east

[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by atoll

black Africans have an inherent mistrust of people on boats.........

last time someone asked them to go sailing...............

they ended up as slaves in the Americas,or the middle east

Priceless !

Like...

"hey... we're all headed out for a day trip... You wanna join us?"

[Lepke]

Back to the original post: "I am having a low liveaboard day, seems like no one understands why I liveaboard"
Why would you care if no one understands? Why would that cause a low liveaboard day?

[Goosebumps]

Actually Strange thing is that many East African dhow sailors liveaboard their open dhow, cook on charcoal stove, climb down stern and hold on precariously to do their toilet. They sleep covering themselves with sail when anchored. Not many sail at night as they rely on coastal landmarks for navigating. They sail to put bread on the table, no no table on dhow, so they probably why anyone would want to live on the water when not for financial gain or fishing.

[exMaggieDrum]

In the South Pacific islands, white man sailors were called "long pig". The other white meat. Just hope they don't start bringing out fattening foods to you every day.

[Goosebumps]

I am really interested to hear about other liveaboards ups and downs. This might help us see things in right perspective! Atol knows better than most about Africa but I hope he isn't a slavetrader reincarnation! JOKE

[Goosebumps]

The final balance of liveaboard life for me is very positive, I enjoy it greatly, I felt like I had to make this clear. Contact with communities I encounter on my cruises is actually amazing. I have grown much, understand so much better other cultural habits.
I think many liveaboards underestimate the importance of learning to move amongst other cultures than their own! I think that many cruising liveaboards who circumnavigate or cruise long distances, passages don't give themselves enough time to really enjoy contact with other cultures by liveaboard longer in those cultures. As liveaboard it is actually easier to enter those cultures.

[valhalla360]

It's living in the forest instead of living on a boat...but where do you think the story of hansel and grettle came from? Wierdos have always been looked upon suspiciously.

Having to explain yourself is just part of living a non-conformist lifestyle. If it bothers you, the non-conformist lifestyle is probably a poor choice.

[exMaggieDrum]

Originally Posted by Goosebumps

The final balance of liveaboard life for me is very positive, I enjoy it greatly, I felt like I had to make this clear. Contact with communities I encounter on my cruises is actually amazing. I have grown much, understand so much better other cultural habits.
I think many liveaboards underestimate the importance of learning to move amongst other cultures than their own! I think that many cruising liveaboards who circumnavigate or cruise long distances, passages don't give themselves enough time to really enjoy contact with other cultures by liveaboard longer in those cultures. As liveaboard it is actually easier to enter those cultures.

You see all types of full time cruisers. For some it is only a temporary thing, planned as such, with a checklist of places to go and tourist places to visit. Sometimes with only minimal interaction with the locals. Sort of like getting off a cruise ship. Others go very slow with indeterminate plans who will go somewhere and plant the hook (in one or various anchorages) and really interact and become a semi-part of the culture - usually 1 or 2 miles deep with some longer trips to do special stuff.

And most are in between. But we did meet several cruisers who actually had a checklist of the "things to do and see" at every country and every port and rushed through the list as fast as possible so they could go to another anchorage to do the same there. Some had the goal of a one year circumnavigation (and made it), some two year, with the plan to check that box and then go do some other adventure, with or without a boat. Others we have known took 6-7 years and will be going back (or not).

Our preference was to go to a few places in each country and stay longer then just to see the sights, get to know some of the locals, and experience the culture. Some places we thought we would spend longer but found little that interested us, or the locals were a bit hostile to travelers (yes it does happen), so we would move on and take that time on our visa somewhere we liked more.

So, I appreciate your thoughts and how you do the liveaboard thing. Our current goal is to get our new boat ready so when the Admiral can retire, we can sell the house, cars, etc. and push off and do it again and longer than the short 4 years we did before. But everyone has different ideas and we made good friends of all the various cruisers we met, with a few exceptions of course. But full time cruisers are the most friendly and community oriented folks we have ever known.

[JPA Cate]

Really, it's just as well that land bound people (sometimes referred to here as dirt dwellers) don't "get it." That means there's more room in anchorages for those of us who do "get it."

As suggested above, phooey on them, and the horse they rode in on, too! (Joke)

Also as suggested above, the people you meet don't have to approve of what we do, just do us no harm.

Ann

[Goosebumps]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Really, it's just as well that land bound people (sometimes referred to here as dirt dwellers) don't "get it." That means there's more room in anchorages for those of us who do "get it."

As suggested above, phooey on them, and the horse they rode in on, too! (Joke)

Also as suggested above, the people you meet don't have to approve of what we do, just do us no harm.

Ann

Agreed do us no harm, w don't need to seek approval, however it is great to be accepted for who you are and with me I have
enjoyed anazing hospitality. I still haven't collected all the goats, chickens, fush I was promused on my next visit!