Moving to France and Embracing Inevitable Delays

As we sat on our flight from San Diego to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, France, the feeling was both excitement and a fair bit of what I can only describe as “reality finally overtaking disbelief.”  After so many years of dreaming and planning, it was happening. We were on our way. This was real.  

From Paris, we took a taxi to the train station where we boarded a high-speed train to La Rochelle, a seaport on the Atlantic coast of France off the Bay of Biscay. It had been so long since we had been to Europe. Driving in the taxi and seeing the city streets, signs, and cafes brought back memories of how much I love exploring foreign cities. Through the mild jet lag, I could only feel a deep, calm appreciation for being here and starting our adventure. The train was comfortable and relaxing, and I gave in to the urge to cat nap as the French countryside sped by at 170 MPH. The next day, we had plans to meet our boat dealer from Lagoon and begin the handover process for Coronado, our new 450S.

Meeting SV Coronado

A grumpy bit of weather had arrived in La Rochelle the next morning. We walked to the marina from town in the middle of a true gale… thirty-five kts of wind and rain. It’s incredible the small umbrella I was carrying didn’t disintegrate in the gusts. We were soaked by the time we reached our dock, but nothing could dampen the feeling of seeing her for the first time. 

Coronado is beautiful. At 45 feet long, she is even bigger than she appears in photos. Climbing on board for the first time was exhilarating and a bit intimidating. Beautiful lines and brand new fiberglass sat floating in the water – and I swear she was happy to see us, too. This boat is meant for sailing. You can feel her aching to be off the dock and out at sea. 

The commissioning crew was off for the weekend, so we spent two days reading manuals and going through all of her systems, one by one. It felt good to begin the process of really getting to know her.  At least a few times each day, one of us would spontaneously say, “We live here now!” By Sunday, the weather had improved and we bought a baguette, brie, and prosciutto for a picnic on her forward cockpit. A nice bottle of local rosè rounded out our meal and had the honor of being the first wine opened on board.

Life on a Boat – Inevitable Delays

One of the things we know well from friends who are long-time cruisers is that there is one constant in the world of living on a sailboat. Expect delays. Weather dictates when you can come and go, things always seem to take longer than planned, and many times in the boating world it seems like the entire industry lives a bit on “Island Time”. Things happen when they happen. If they say it will be done today, it very well may actually be tomorrow… or the day after. It is better to accept that this is just the way it will be and try to let go of schedules and deadlines whenever possible.

It appeared we were getting a chance to practice it right away. We arrived in La Rochelle with three suitcases. Everything else we owned had been sent in January via cargo ship from Fort Lauderdale. At the shipping company’s suggestion, we had sent it early. They said it would probably take 8 weeks to arrive, but we sent everything 12 weeks before we were scheduled to arrive in France, just to be safe. And yet here we were and things were taking even longer than anticipated. Our belongings had made it to Rotterdam, but nobody could give us a firm answer on when they would be processed through customs and finally delivered to the boat. All we could do was wait.

There were delays with the boat as well. We needed to have some customizations done – for example, a transformer project that would let us plug our 120V system into 230V European shore power needed to wait for parts to arrive. But we have some boat artwork we are having added to Coronado’s hull and other things to do while we wait. Time to settle into rolling with the flow of plans and delays!

After one week, I think I can safely say we are transitioning well into our new lifestyle. The city of La Rochelle makes being in one place and having to wait for things a pleasure. Our days and nights are filled with exploring her cobblestone streets, shops, and markets. And every excursion takes you past the striking, medieval towers that guard the entry to the port and outline the city’s downtown harbor like a work of art.