Meet the Family of Four Sailing Around the World
WORDS AND PHOTOS BY IULIA GALUSHINA
PHOTOJOURNALIST IULIA GALUSHINA KNOWS HOW TO SNIFF OUT A GREAT STORY—WHETHER IT’S DOCUMENTING THE COMMUNITIES LIVING ON THE DRIED-UP SHORES OF WHAT WAS ONCE THE FOURTH-LARGEST SEA ON EARTH, OR THIS PHOTO STORY, FEATURING AN INTREPID FAMILY OF FOUR WHO LEFT THEIR EVERYDAY LIVES BEHIND, BOUGHT A SAILBOAT, AND HAVE BEEN ON THE HIGH SEAS EVER SINCE. TAKE IT AWAY, IULIA.
MARINA, ANDREY, AND THEIR TWO DAUGHTERS, NASTYA AND LADA, ARE THE FIRST FAMILY TO SET OUT IN SEARCH OF THE LEGENDARY LANDMARKS FEATURED IN JULES VERNE’S BOOKS: THE “PHANTOM ISLANDS,” “POINT NEMO,” AND ANTARCTICA. THE FAMILY DEDICATED THEIR VOYAGE TO ANTARCTICA TO THE 200TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE ICE-COVERED CONTINENT BY RUSSIAN SAILORS F. BELLINGSHAUSEN AND M. LAZAREV.
BEFORE THE JOURNEY, MARINA AND ANDREY’S RELATIONSHIP WAS ON THE VERGE OF COLLAPSE; THEY WERE LIVING SEPARATE LIVES, AND DIVORCE WAS ON THE CARDS. BUT BY DISCOVERING A SHARED PURPOSE—SAILING AROUND THE WORLD TOGETHER—THEY FOUND A HAPPINESS THAT HAS BOUND THEM TOGETHER.
“AT BREAKFAST, WE WATCH DOCUMENTARIES ABOUT HOW THE WORLD WORKS, GREAT PEOPLE, AND DISCOVERIES,” SAYS MARINA. “WE PAUSE AND DISCUSS EVERYTHING FROM SCIENCE TO POLITICS, AND SOMETIMES OUR DISCUSSIONS GET VERY HEATED, SO BREAKFAST CAN STRETCH OVER SEVERAL HOURS. WE REALLY LOVE THIS TIME. AND WE LOVE THE MICROCLIMATE—OUR OWN WORLD—THAT WE HAVE CREATED HERE ON LADY MARY.”
THE CREW’S CONNECTION WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD IS MINIMAL. THE FAMILY READ MESSAGES FROM THEIR RELATIVES, REQUEST WEATHER FORECASTS VIA SATELLITE EMAIL, RECEIVE LETTERS FROM LOVED ONES, AND SEND THEIR OWN. RECENTLY, THE CREW GOT A SATELLITE TRACKER, AND NOW THEY CAN TRANSMIT LADY MARY’S COORDINATES TO SPACE IN REAL TIME.
“IF SOMEDAY I NEED TO FILL IN A QUESTIONNAIRE NAMING A PERSON WHO CHANGED OUR FAMILY’S LIFE, I’LL ANSWER JULES VERNE,” SAYS MARINA. “PERHAPS OUR EXPEDITION WILL ALSO CHANGE SOMEONE ELSE’S LIFE. HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE COMMENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA THAT THIS EXTRAORDINARY JOURNEY, UNDERTAKEN BY AN ORDINARY FAMILY, HELPS THEM BELIEVE IN THEMSELVES AND SPREAD THEIR WINGS.”
“WE’RE NOT A PERFECT FAMILY,” MARINA SAYS. “EACH OF US HAS DIFFERENT INTERESTS AND IDEAS ABOUT COMFORT. WE HAVE SMOOTHED OUT THE ‘SHARP EDGES’ AND WORKED OUT RULES AND DAILY ROUTINES SO THAT EVERYONE FEELS COMFORTABLE ON THE SAME BOAT. WE HAVE LEARNED TO FIND FREEDOM WITHIN THE CONFINES OF THE YACHT AND TO BE CONTENT WITH LIFE AT SEA.”
LADA HAS FRIENDS IN EVERY PART OF THE WORLD. ON EVERY SHORE THE FAMILY LANDS, LADA FINDS FRIENDS WITHIN THE FIRST FIVE MINUTES... AND USUALLY A TEMPORARY GRANDMOTHER TOO.
A SEXTANT DETERMINES THE BOAT’S POSITION BY THE STARS; IT WAS THE MAIN NAVIGATIONAL INSTRUMENT IN THE PRE-ELECTRONIC ERA. ANDREY KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT SETTING SAILS, AS WELL AS CURRENTS, STORMS, CLOUDS, AND THE SUN. HE KNOWS THE DECLINATION OF THE STARS BY HEART. IF THE ELECTRONIC NAVIGATION FAILS, HE CAN BRING HIS CREW SAFELY TO SHORE BY THE STARS.
“WE SPEND OUR TIME STUDYING, WORKING, WRITING ARTICLES AND BOOKS, MAKING AND EDITING FILMS, AND CARING FOR AND EDUCATING OUR CHILDREN,” MARINA SAYS. “IN SEVEN YEARS OF ISOLATION, WE HAVE LEARNED TO SAY ‘I LOVE YOU’ TO EACH OTHER. NOW IT HAS BECOME OUR SPECIAL KEY, RELIEVING TENSION IN ANY SITUATION AND HELPING TO SMOOTH OVER AN UNPLEASANT MOMENT.”
THE WHEELHOUSE IS THE EPICENTRE OF LIFE ABOARD THE YACHT. IT IS THE DINING ROOM, THE LIVING ROOM WITH A CINEMA, AND AN OFFICE. IT CONTAINS NAVIGATIONAL INSTRUMENTS, A HELM, AND A THROTTLE LEVER, ALLOWING THE YACHT TO BE CONTROLLED FROM INSIDE.
LADA IS THE FIRST CHILD IN HISTORY TO HAVE SAILED IN ANTARCTICA AND AROUND CAPE HORN. ROUNDING CAPE HORN IS REGARDED AS A MAJOR CHALLENGE IN YACHTING; THE SURROUNDING WATERS ARE PARTICULARLY HAZARDOUS OWING TO STRONG WINDS, LARGE WAVES, POWERFUL CURRENTS, AND ICEBERGS.
A GREAT MANY SUPPLIES ARE STORED IN LOCKERS AND CABINETS AROUND THE BED, INCLUDING CLOTHES AND FOOD. THERE ARE ALSO NEW ITEMS SUCH AS STATIONERY, FINS, AND T-SHIRTS, WHICH CAN BE EXCHANGED FOR FOOD IF NECESSARY. THERE ARE ENOUGH SUPPLIES TO KEEP THEM ALIVE FOR THE NEXT SIX MONTHS IN ISOLATION.
DURING THE SEVEN YEARS SHE HAS SPENT ABOARD THE YACHT, NASTYA HAS GROWN FROM A YOUNG SAILOR INTO AN ASSISTANT CAPTAIN. SHE HAS ALSO COMPLETED A PRACTICAL COURSE WITH THE UK’S ROYAL YACHTING ASSOCIATION AND GAVE HERSELF A SKIPPER’S CERTIFICATE FOR HER 18TH BIRTHDAY. BECAUSE OF HER INCREDIBLE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE, SHE HAS ALREADY BEEN INVITED TO WORK ON A SAILING EXPEDITION THROUGH THE DRAKE PASSAGE TO ANTARCTICA.
“THE ONLY WAY TO SURVIVE ON THE OCEAN IS TO BECOME PART OF IT, TO INTEGRATE WITH ITS RHYTHM, TO TUNE IN TO IT,” ANDREY SAYS. “DO NOT TRY TO FIGHT THE OCEAN. THE WHOLE BOAT, ALL THE SAILS, THE WIND, AND THE OCEAN ARE PART OF ME; I HAVE LEARNED TO FEEL THEM EVEN WHEN I SLEEP.”
By Monster Children November 26, 2020
https://www.monsterchildren.com/meet-the-family-of-4-sailing-around-the-world/?fbclid=IwAR2vk7ncrdQJBHI3t6pznm-N9WgvD3TLIZxDzJ0gwL6kv_yDUN0fGQatvhM