A sea axe, A Sunseeker, and some very angry yoga.

It is easy now to forget the astonishingly large effort required to be placed as an inexperienced couple aboard a yacht. By the turn of the new year the world's superyacht fraternity had deserted southern Florida for the azure waters of the Caribbean. Now, financially treading water, we were presented with a temporary opportunity aboard a 164ft Damon built Sea Axe. Jess made a compelling argument, when sighting the need for nourishment superior to noodle based cuisine from the Dollar Tree, we were to accept any positions offered. So despite hearing fantastical stories of charter guests turning to gold and faraway islands with rivers of rum and ginger beer, we spent the next three months in a shipyard in Ft Lauderdale...

...With some of the finest and friendliest misfits we've had the pleasure of meeting. Accepting from our first day, every crew member willingly shared their knowledge, advice and beer - for all of which we are eternally grateful. In hindsight, the list of tasks we set about on 50 metres of perpetually deteriorating steel could be considered cumbersome by those already accustomed to the intricacies of doodlebug rust removal and lead based paint. With a noteworthy amount of pluck, Jess personally spent a month resurfacing the bilge - toiling in places tighter and dimmer than a Chilean mine. Undoubtedly, it was valuable experience that helped us secure permanent employment. 

Our apartment in Toronto was small. Though instant in it's appeal as a well lit, well priced abode in a fantastic neighbourhood, we quickly came to appreciate extended living areas, notably, the rooftop patio and the pub, the Rose and Crown. Frequent visitors were asked to excuse the fact the bathroom was also an entertaining area and that the floor was an accepted place for a dinner party. Even on the rare occasions where I had deemed Jess's hours at the pub to be excessive, we made do; Jess asleep on the couch whilst I enjoyed a peaceful sleep, without her snoring seven metres away at the other end of the house.

Having failed in our attempt to look after a pet responsibly (it involved latex, an emergency vet trip and laxatives) we accepted we needn't have the room to swing a cat anyway.

Now enduring the affliction of an ever present swaying and rolling 120ft Sunseeker, living space is fiercely contested. At first, riding high on the opportunity to make a real start in the industry, the novelty of two square metres of actual cabin floor was a challenge we'd embraced with good humour. In total; a cosy two bunks and a shower/toilet/sink combined (time saving if you've slept in, and indispensable if you've been poisoned by the chef.) Jess admirably continues her fitness routine whilst we are underway, (I've learnt during which positions I can exit the cabin lest she turn yoga into an angry game of twister.)

Cruising the eastern seaboard of the US and the Caribbean we have been aboard now for near 8 months. Having spent winter in Miami, we embarked on an eventful trip north for the summer season in Newport, Rhode Island.