At a Glance

Arriving in Cartagena - What was waiting for us in the marina?

First weeks on board - A lot of work to be done.

Electrical battles - Sorry neighbours!

Spending our hard-earned money at IKEA and Mercadona - How much did we spend?

Conditions: Hot and sweaty

Wind: Non-existent

Arriving in Cartagena

Before you can enjoy the freedom of dropping anchor in clear water, there is a phase that I’m sure everyone who has ever bought a boat knows well: turning someone else’s old boat (or in this case, home) into our own functional, comfortable floating home.

When we arrived at the boat in Cartagena, we knew we had some work to do, we just did not expect there to be quite so much. The boat had been sitting empty in the marina for a few months, gathering dust and barnacles (which we later had the joy of tackling with plastic scrapers while diving under the boat).

We opened the companionway hatch for the first time and felt like we were stepping into an oven that had been left on for three months, which didn’t make the long list of upcoming jobs feel any easier.

Charlotte entering the boat for the first time

Arrival Checklist

Clear old gear & deep clean everything
Win the plumbing battle (unclog the sink)
Trace electric wiring to get power (and apologise to the marinero)
Move in personal belongings (about 5 suitcases worth)
€1,000+ IKEA run (for galley & cabin essentials)
Big Mercadona trip (find space for all of our food)

Here is what our first weeks on board really looked like behind the scenes

Dirt, learning curves, and IKEA meatballs included.

Deep Cleans & Plumbing Battles

Our first job was throwing out any useless items left behind by the previous owners. Once the lockers, cupboards, bilges, and any other nooks they had used for storage were empty, the deep cleaning began.

When you live on a boat, you get well acquainted with every hidden corner of the hull. We spent the first few days on our hands and knees with brushes and disinfectant, getting rid of months of dust and :

Washing & Sanitising EVERYTHING: Scrubbing every wall, headliner, and overhead panel throughout the entire boat to clear out lingering humidity, smells and dust.

Pulling everything apart to clean the boat from top to bottom

Under-Mattress Bilges: Pulling up every cushion and mattress in both cabins to deep clean the bilges beneath the berths.
The Galley & Fridge Revival: Cleaning every shelf, drain hole, and seal in the fridge, alongside scrubbing all the pantry lockers and under-sink cupboards.
Deep Bilge Clean: Scrubbing, and drying the main bilges, sumps, and storage compartments below the floorboards.
Locker & Drawer Overhaul: Wiping down the bare wooden interiors of every single hanging locker, drawer, and sofa storage bin before a single piece of clothing was put away.

The Sink Showdown: As soon as we started cleaning and running the taps, we noticed one of our sinks was completely blocked. Sakke spent a solid few hours head-first inside the saloon sofa lockers, battling old pipes and boat plumbing, but ultimately emerged victorious with a fully functioning drain.

Sakke working on the boat plumbing

Deciphering the Electrical Grid (And Blowing the Dock Fuse)

When buying the boat, we knew it was well-equipped in terms of electrical systems, but figuring out our breaker panel involved a lot of trial and error. We spent hours flicking switches on and off just to figure out what controlled what, tracing wires to see why a water heater switch seemed to be routing power to the TV outlet.

The highlight of our electrical discovery phase came when we turned on the water heater for the first time. Instead of warming up the tank, it immediately tripped the high-power breaker for the entire dock in Cartagena, leaving a good portion of our neighbours without electricity.

Cue a very awkward conversation with the marinero as we explained why the dock power had just gone out. Lesson learned: always double-check shore power loads before flipping heavy AC switches!

We have since fully unplugged the water heater just so we can flip the switch and turn on our TV without completely messing everything up.

The €1,000 IKEA Run & Moving In

Once the boat was spotless, it was time to make it feel like home. Moving in meant bringing most of our belongings all the way from Moscow (leaving just a few non-essentials behind at Sakke’s parents’ house).

Fitting our entire life into a 40-foot sailboat was surprisingly easy. When packing up back in Moscow, we (mostly Sakke) had a few moments of panic about the sheer amount of stuff we were bringing. After unpacking everything, we were quite surprised to find out that we actually had some empty storage space left on the boat. All that panic for nothing!

We made a massive trip to stock up on all-new bedding, cabin cushions, cookware, cutlery, and bathroom essentials. Naturally, we fueled the operation with a mandatory plate of IKEA meatballs for lunch.

Provisioning & Galley Budgeting

Living aboard means becoming your own grocery warehouse. We did a big initial food shop to stock the cupboards for our first few weeks out.

Buying food for a boat takes careful planning. You have to make sure you don’t overfill the fridge, carefully plan out dry-goods storage space, and ensure everything is stowed securely so items don’t fly all over the saloon when the boat heels over under sail.

Our first trip to Mercadona turned out much cheaper than we were expecting. We ended up paying about €200 for a week’s worth of food, cleaning supplies, toiletries, and all the essential household items that were missing.

Charlotte and Sakke with a cart full of groceries at Mercadona

Sakke was excited about all the food

Ready for the Next Chapter

It was exhausting, sweaty, and at times overwhelming, but finishing that prep work was a massive accomplishment for us. Knowing our boat inside and out and making it feel like home is what turned our pre-departure nervousness into pure excitement when it was finally time to throw off the dock lines.

The boat looking clean and ready for use

Boat starting look a bit more like home with Charlotte’s small touches

Massive shoutout to Charlotte’s parents. They were an absolute lifesaver during our first week in Cartagena. Not only did they let us stay in their Airbnb for the first few nights while the boat was still an unlivable sauna, but they also helped us power through the initial moving-in phase and survived the IKEA trip with us.

Charlotte & Sakke
20:00 UTC
Position 37°15.800'N 001°38.927'W