Q&A with Concordia
From the week ending March 28, 1997
Was it hard to adapt to the small living spaces?
...Kim J., Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 3/7
by Kendra Schmidt, 3/23
Living aboard the Concordia is quite a change from living in a house. Not only are the rooms small, but you also have to share them with 2-3 other people. There is space under the bunks to place your belongings, and one cupboard per person. I was overwhelmed when I walked into our closet size cabin, but I have gotten used to it. Living on a boat is a lot like being at camp. You do everything with other people your age, therefore, make life long friends. Once you realize that the living space is not getting any larger, you learn to adapt to and cherish any extra space you have. The cabins and bathrooms are quite small, but easily usable and livable. Living on the Concordia is a change of lifestyle, but its such a fascinating experience, that the small living space is not a problem.
...Ms. Pascay's Class, Abbot School, Westford, MA, 3/7
We get the majority of our power from two generators. Generators are machines powered by diesel fuel that create electric power. At each port, we get more fuel so the generators can run all the time. The electricity produced powers everything onboard that requires electricity (examples include: power tools, cabin lights).We also have about twelve marine batteries that power our deck lights. While sailing, the deck lights have to be on all night.
......Cameron F., Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 3/17
Actually we sometimes do see butterflies. On several occasions, when I least expected it a butterfly has greeted me. When we were in the middle of the Indian Ocean, hundreds of miles from anywhere, a butterfly showed up and flew around for a few minutes before mysteriously disappearing. I don't know how a butterfly arrived at the ship and I don't know where it went but it was a very uplifting experience in the middle of a long stretch at sea. I haven't seen any other land-dwelling animals out here. When we get near land an occasional bird will pay us a visit but other than that I haven't seen any other land animals..