ow beautiful we were, on a warm 1stSeptember 2003 (17°C – a heat wave inQuimper), on the deck of our prettyketch. The boat – 38 feet of solid maho-gany, 38 years old, and us – a young cou-ple, under 30, finding it hard to believethat we had succeeded in making ourdream come true, so early in our lives,which had hardly begun.From this to believing that 12 years later,we would still be on the deck of a boat,a few thousand miles further on, see-med to us to be not even conceivable.And yet here we are.It took the start of 2 fairly successfulcareers, to make us realize severalthings: that life flies by very quickly, andif we merely followed the straight andnarrow, it would soon be over, and thatit’s best to empty your bank accountbefore Alzheimer’s makes you forgetyour PIN number. After just 5 years ofprofessional life, we dispensed with theservices of our employers, emptied ouraccounts and bought Hildi, a little gemfrom 1965, all varnished wood and teakdecks, which was dozing in the Medi-terranean, awaiting the arrival of twointrepid Bretons to set off on an adven-ture.It took 8 months’ work to turn this gentlecoastal cruiser from the peacefulCalanques into a mile-eating ocean crui-ser. 8 months which allowed us to get toknow each corner, bolt, cable or pipe,which is very useful once you are on the

other side of the world.The program was quite classic: roundthe world in 3 years, and we had promi-sed our families that afterwards wewould get safe jobs again, with pensionplans, health insurance, the works... That

didn’t stop the tears flowing freely, oncethe gap appeared between the quay andthe stern, for the crew as well as themothers remaining ashore, who sawtheir well-loved, barely pubescent kidssailing away from them.

Having left as a couple in 2003 fora trip in a monohull, Matthieu

and Soizic have had 3 boats, 3 children,and are currently still sailing around

the world. The story of a happy and adventurous life!

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OUR READERS AROUND THE WORLD

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Text and photos: Matthieu Fleury

AND A FEWTENS OFTHOUSANDSOF MILES

12 YEARS,3 BOATS,

3 CHILDREN

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But a program only exists to be modified, revi-sed, corrected...and we quickly realized thatwe were going too fast. Too many stageshardly skimmed over, encounters shortened,anchorages hardly glimpsed, countries we hadhardly visited... It took our good old Mercedesengine giving up the ghost with a terrible rat-tle between Panama and the Galapagos for usto finally decide to slow down, drop anchor,take our time, and start a family. Yes, because strange as it may seem, thisextreme freedom seemed too simple to us,the 3.16m beam of our cockleshell too wide,the oceans too empty, so we decided to repo-pulate our little world. Our initial project, at 20years old, was to leave at 40, with numerouskids, on a good big boat purchased after relen-tless years of hard labor. We hadn’t lost thiswish, and now that we had no money, and noprecise program, it seemed to us to be thebest time to enlarge the family.A few months in Panama, to give Hildi a newengine, and then in the Baie des Vierges(named the Baie des Verges (penises) by wha-lers in past centuries, because of the basaltpillars surrounding it, but chastely re-named‘des Vierges’ (virgins) by the religious orderswho came to mess up this little paradise), onthe island of Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas, wewent beyond the point of no return, with theconception of our first child, Lola, who wasborn in Papeete, Tahiti, 9 months later.We were now in 2006. The 3 years of our ori-ginal program had passed, and here we were,on the pontoon, in Taina Marina, Punaauia,Tahiti, not even half way round the world –everything was going well. Hildi and its tinysalon/berth/galley also became the office for

the family business, Iaoranet, a network of wi-fiareas to give internet access to passing boats.This company, which we created from start tofinish, was to be a superb adventure and a greatsuccess. In the end, 23 areas spread out over aterritory as big as Europe, from Tahiti to theMarquesas, from the Gambiers to the Tuamotus,and hundreds of client boats, delighted thatthanks to our initiative, they could keep in touchwith the world from some of the most beautifulanchorages on the planet. For us, it was the wayof continuing to mix with the round the world crui-sing crowd, and not lose the wish to set off again,and the thirst to see farther west.But Tahiti encourages pleasure, not to mentionlust. And the Breton, (and his partner!) althoughmade of granite when it comes to confronting astorm, weakened when faced with the tempta-tion of a voluptuous night. And what had to hap-pen, happened – Timéo, our second child, clim-bed aboard in 2008.The situation was becoming critical: aboard Hildi,there was just one cabin. Slip some tired parentsinto it, as well as 2 bawling cherubs and the head-quarters of an almost multinational company, stireverything on the waves of a Polynesian lagoon,and the result is an incredibly strong desire to setoff again aboard a boat measuring up to this wishto repopulate the blue planet.But which boat? At the origin of the project, wedreamt of a 50-foot monohull, with a wide stern,numerous cabins and elegant lines. For usBretons, the only boat worthy of this name had,however you look at it, to resemble the familyVaurien sailing dinghy. The idea of attaching twoboats with the help of beams seemed to us to be

1 : Katali is our third

boat and second

catamaran. Here it is

anchored at Tioman

Island.

2 : Despite its age, our

monohull Hildi sails in

a breath of wind.

3 : Hildi’s small saloon

converted into a

nursery / business

headquarters...

2

KATALI GUEST BOAT

In 12 years’ cruising, we have realized that beyond thepleasure of discovering distant horizons, it is even morerewarding for us to share this pleasure with others, tointroduce them to a holiday rhythm which is relaxed,sporty and contemplative. We designed the boat andits equipment so we could offer a complete family anexceptional holiday. Today we welcome visitors on the‘guest house’ principle.

Discover it on: www.atoursdumonde.com

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OUR READERS AROUND THE WORLD

a strange heresy, except forbuilding a bridge over theRhine to get tanks across it,or for a pretty postcard of aproa with a background ofcoconut trees. But betweena sporty sail with boozyfriends one weekend inFebruary in the eddies of theFromveur Passage, backhome, to a blue-water cruisefor several years with thefamily, there is a world of dif-ference – half way round theworld, to be exact. Andduring this trip half wayround the world, we had metthem, the lucky multihullowners, whether aboardtheir production family cara-van, a mile-eating Lerougedesign in carbon, or a bod-ged-up Wharram with bam-boo crossbeams. And des-pite their differences, theywere all certain of one thing- that they would never againsail in a monohull. Becausethey all told us that if you trya cat you will be hooked!During a stopover in theMarquesas, we came acrossa superb Looping 54, des-igned by Patrick Lüscher.This boat, anchored next toour modest 38-footer, see-med to us like a monster;out-of-reach luxury, the idealsynthesis between a light-weight boat and a familyplatform. It remained in acorner of our minds, beco-ming seriously fixed whenwe saw other Loopings passin Tahiti, all equipped with asmiling crew.And then we had been in

contact for over 10 yearswith this Indian boatyard,created by a couple ofFrench cruisers, which builtone-offs – as they wrote tous in what proved to be anice commercial slogan‘boats we like, for people welike’.We were then in 2010. After4 years on a dock, it washigh time to set off again.We sold Hildi and Iaoranet.The bank account was res-tocked, the Indian builderwas still in existence, andour desire to set off againwas still present. After a visitto the architect and the boa-tyard in India, we signed thecontract for the constructionof our Looping 50, for alaunch planned for the begin-ning of 2012. We planned toarrive there 6 months beforethe launch, to be presentand finalize the choice ofinterior accommodation, andthe fitting of the importedequipment that we wouldhave to order.But what could we do withthis year and a half, beforemoving over there? The solu-tion was obvious - go crui-sing of course! Simple - let’sbuy a catamaran in the WestIndies, and sell it inAustralia! And that’s exactlywhat we did at the end of2010, after a short stay inFrance, during which wetook advantage of the oppor-tunity to get married (theonly way, apart from ourfunerals, to get all ourfriends and family together)

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and, the flesh being weak, toconceive a third child. Bought in a week, equipped in2, we left Saint Martin inNovember 2010, headingdirectly for Panama, aboardBarbarin, a Lagoon 440.Everything went well duringthis year or so spent cruising;we rediscovered Polynesia withimmense pleasure, and aboveall, we discovered cruising in acatamaran. Pure pleasure. Thechildren could play with theirLego in 25 knots of wind, amother could breast feed in themiddle of the Pacific (ah, yes,Mael, our third child, joined usin Panama, and crossed thePacific when just 3 monthsold), we could welcome lots ofpeople aboard without trippingover each other...Moreover we sold it easily inAustralia, to a heart surgeonwho will probably only take itout of the marina for 7 days ayear, but that’s his problem.It was the beginning of 2012, and for us then itwas like a cold shower in this flawless scenario:a visit to India with the architect, half waythrough the construction, revealed that the buildwas a long way behind schedule, and that its fol-low-up by the French bosses had become veryapproximate. The welcome we received was

dreadful, the boss revealing his real nature, thatof a gruff, aggressive moaner, who wouldn’taccept any remarks (even coming from an expe-rienced builder of this type of boat), any advice,any criticism. Now, as the boat was 90% paid for(such was the total confidence we had in thisbuilder), we were bound hand and foot. The buil-

der was overwhelmed by thesize of the project (the biggestboat they had ever built), itscomplexity and its demands.This was why, when we arrivedin India as a family in May2010, we knew in advance thatthe months to come would notbe serene. Because even inthe opinion of the boss's wife:"Matthieu – it’s a real pain wor-king with you! Customersusually arrive on the last day,and anyway, they don’t knowanything!” That said every-thing, and our presence wasseen by the yard as an incon-venience, which they made usfeel on a daily basis. And this went on not for 6months, but for 2 years. Adelay due partly to the orderingby us of the imported equip-ment (650 references from 52suppliers) taking longer thanplanned, as our containerfinally only arrived in May 2011.But a delay above all due to thebuilder’s blind optimism, thin-

king that they would only need 3 months afterthe arrival of the container, whilst it actually took1 year to finish the boat.Katali was therefore finally launched in April 2014,after 43 months’ work (compared with the 15planned in the contract). The incredible journey ofan Indian-style launch was quite obviously filledwith incredible emotions, celebrated as much

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6

7

8

4 : On our boats or those of

our friends, we have pas-

sed through the Panama

Canal 5 times. The most

moving: the first, aboard

Hildi.

5 : In the Galapagos, the

sea lions occupy the sugar

scoops, the cockpits, the

decks... One night, one of

them almost fell through a

hatch.

6 : At 3 years old, Timéo

started to drive the dinghy.

Today at 7, he is completely

independent, and sensible.

7 : In the San Blas Islands,

Timéo and his cousin Milo

embark in the Ulu (the

pirogue) of a Kuna friend.

8 : Barbarin at anchor in the

San Blas...

But what couldwe do with thisyear and a half?

The solutionwas obvious

- go cruising ofcourse! Simple -

let’s buya catamaranin the West

Indies,and sell it in

Australia!

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OUR READERS AROUND THE WORLD

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with tears as with (Indian) champagne.But once the boat was launched in theport of Pondichery, we fell into thehands of the local fishermen’s mafia,which demanded a weekly sum to ‘pro-tect’ the boat. Despite payment of thisconsiderable sum, they had nothing bet-ter to do than remove the mooring linesfrom the boat, to apply pressure andincrease the price of their racket. Thisvery tense situation reached its heightthe day before our departure, when thefishermen began proceedings againstus for 'non-payment' (we thought wewere dreaming), the head of thePondichery customs openly demandedan nth 'bakchich’ to allow us to leave,and the immigration services, who hadcome down to the quay specially for us,packed up and left when they saw thatthe situation with the mafia was not‘normalized’.

We finally left Pondichery in a mentalstate situated somewhere between ela-tion, madness and depression on 18thJuly 2014, heading for Thailand, whichwe hoped to reach in 6 days’ sailing.But that was without taking intoaccount the numerous problems a newboat suffers during its first few miles,which for us, were sailed in 25/30 knotsof wind, during the first 4 days... We hadto shelter in the Nicobar Islands, on ourroute, for a few repairs. Indian islands,of course, and prohibited, of course!Confined aboard for 4 days, not allowedto set foot ashore (or very little), andseeing a procession of everything thatIndia called administrative servicesaboard (including the secret service!) –this at least left us the time to repair ourbreakdowns and let the heavy weatherpass.No need to tell you that our arrival in Thai-

land was not only a relief, but also arelease. A release from the tension ofthis Indian adventure and its maliciousplayers; finally free, at sea, with no oneto block our bows. Today, Katali has been in the water for 1year. 1 year of happiness on our boat,which for us is ideal, as we put so mucheffort into making sure that the accom-modation would suit us perfectly. Bothlightweight (we have reached 18 knots),very comfortable at sea, and suitable foraccommodating large families, it hasallowed us to discover Thailand and itswonderful scenery, to sail down toSingapore, and today to be amblingalong the east coast of Malaysia, theSeribuat Islands, the Perhentians...beforesoon heading off towards Borneo, thePhilippines, Indonesia, the Raja Ampat...Katali has also proved to be perfect forour activity as a ‘guest boat’, welcoming

9 : In India, we tasted the pleasures of riding a motorbike without too many constraints – it reminded us of the ocean.

10 : In India: rickshaw or boatyard – they are both open to all the winds.

11 : At Katali’s launch, the truck broke down after 50 meters... India didn’t want to let us go!

12 : On Tioman Island, in Malaysia, underwater it’s an aquatic fairyland. We are finally enjoying our new boat!

13 : Mael ‘I’m scared of nothing’ jumps continuously from Katali’s forward crossbeam.

14 : At anchor at Phuket and the first tests of the kayaks.

15 : The youngsters are regularly involved, as here for revarnishing Barbarin’s teak cockpit.

16 : This new cat – we dreamt about it for a long time, and today we are enjoying it!

17 : Katali is well-protected: the super-heroes are keeping watch aboard...

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families in need of a different kind of holi-day, where deserted anchorages alternatewith diving, good meals, and the children’sjoy when they find friends of their own ageaboard. We are very happy to have theopportunity to share our experience of lifeaboard as a family.We have also become primary school tea-chers, following daily (when we have novisitors aboard) the very full French home-schooling program. Because our 3 children(Lola, 9; Timéo, 7: Mael, 4) have grown upfast. Life aboard a boat as a family allowsthem to blossom far from the mirages ofthe consumer society, to open up to theworld and to others, and unites the familyrather than having each person growing upin their own bubble.Always on boats, on the water, under thewater, in the waves, facing the wind - saltwater visibly works miracles on these littlechildren of the ocean, who today areenjoying their lives to the full – lives whichare certainly offbeat and atypical, but oh soenriching and fulfilling.

And this fulfillment has naturally rubbedoff on us, the parents, who for 12 yearshave been able (not without difficulty andalways sticking together and keeping thenecessary energy) to realize one of ourdearest dreams – to cruise as a family,for a long time, around the world.

THE BOATS

Longer and longer, wider andwider, more and more comfor-table... As we get older, webecome fonder of our creaturecomforts. From our first boat tothe current one, the area ofsolar panels, the watermakeroutput and the area of the boathave all been multiplied by 5...

From 2003 to 2010: Hildi• Classic wooden ketch from1965• Builder - Boudignon• Length: 11.60m• Beam: 3.16m• Weight: 8.5 tonnes From 2010 to 2012 : Barbarin• Lagoon 440 from 2001• Length: 44 feet• Beam: 8m• Weight: 14.5 tonnesSince 2014 : Katali• Looping 50 from 2014• Length: 15.50m• Beam: 8m• Weight: 9 tonnes

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