Summary of our first season

What a summer and fall it has been! We were sailing in shorts and t-shirts in October in the Netherlands. We have been able to really get to know our boat and to know what we want to do to make her even better! We did a lot of sailing, all locally.

Hoorn. A very cute little town.

I did a lot of cooking with my GoSun. A solar powered cooker for meals as well as baking. It worked out great! Here I made some fresh brownies.

Medemblik. They had to open the little bridge you see in the background for us to come into the inner harbour. This is were our mast is right now to get a proper upgrade by Rake Rigging. This is also where they build the Contest Yachts.

Next stop Texel. We rented electric bikes and went around the whole island. It was really beautiful, and exotic.

We went to the Kaap Skil museum. It tells us all the stories about shipwrecks around the Waddensee. 

One part of the museum shows what the “professional” beachcombers have found on the island. You can only imagine all the stories behind thes items! 

Walking through the sand dunes.

Sailing into Amsterdam is really something special. We stayed at Sixhaven Marina where it is always very crowded. The harbour master will always find you a spot, even if you think it is full. It is located on the north side of the IJ river, and you can take the free ferry across to explore. Another plus is the large Jumbo grocery store walking distance from the marina. 

Bikes of Amsterdam

De Gooyer Windmill in a very cozy part of town.

We always had fresh herbs onboard. Good food is very important for us!

The lighthouse of Marken

One evening in Enkhuizen the fire department came to the harbour area and sprayed water like fountains! It was so hot so people were running through it and jumping into the canal.

Now Varuna is on the hard. We are continuing the maintenance and improvements to make her a safe and comfortable vessel.

A boat needs a name

Every boat needs a name. We have had a hard time renaming our boat. On our two previous boats we kept the names they had from the previous owner, but this time we wanted to change it for two reasons. We didn’t like the name it had, and we wanted to make it more personal. So we asked around for suggestions, searched the internet for a name that felt right. We have now come to a decision.

DRUMROLL

The name will be

Varuna

In the Hindu ancient text, Varuna is the god of oceans, his vehicle is a Makara (part fish, sea creature) and his weapon is a Pasha (rope loop). He is the guardian deity of the western direction.

This is a beautiful picture of Varuna, that is made by the painter Pieter Weltevrede. I have his permission to post this.

We think this is a perfect name for our boat. Another reason why we like is that we have lived in India for a few years and have learned to love the country and culture.

We would like to hear the names of your boats and the story behind it, so please leave a comment.