My travelling studio is now high and dry in a Greek boatyard in the Western Aegean. Our boat's engine is currently on the ground inside a hand-made tent made from an old sail-newly painted and waiting to be lifted back into place after a complete rebuild by my partner. I've been sanding, scraping, excavating, epoxying, masticing and painting the boat's decks and coachroof...so he's looking very smart for a 45 year old wooden boat.

The winter here is much shorter than in the UK...and has been mos...

In May 2005 my partner and I set sail from Milford Haven in Wales. In the two years previous we'd juggled a major rebuild of our Wharram catamaran, a full-on house renovation, running my herbal medicine practice of 16 years and supporting our 2 youngest children through College before they went off to university to fulfill their own ambitions. It was time to move on!

We rented out our house in Wales and took off with some apprehension and excitement leaving Da...