A Day on the Black Sea

It should be no secret to anyone by now that I love being by the water. Rivers, lakes, seas and oceans help me get a certain state of ease and peace. It’s difficult to explain how my heart just settles into my body while I hear and watch the water.

Last summer, a friend invited me to go to the seaside with her and a group of her friends. The invitation came right as I was ending a challenging period of my life, so I was thrilled. I knew it would be a great idea to go and bring some ease and peace back into my life.

As we started planning the trip, my friend’s brother made us a proposition. He suggested we all rent a boat and go out sailing on the sea. Because he has a skipper permit, he’d be our captain for the day and we’d get a chance to play the crew role.

Some of us loved the idea, so our skipper friend booked a sailboat for a day.

I hadn’t been to the seaside in Romania in a long time. My memories go all the way back to childhood, when my parents and I took the night train and spent 14 hours or so crossing the country to reach the Black Sea.

This time, I was both excited and anxious to go to the seaside. After all, last July we were fresh out of lockdown and things still appeared super scary out there in the world. Taking a vacation was a big deal.

Indeed, the little resort town was full and physical distancing was not always an easy task. The sailing day we planned was particularly exciting for me, also because we’d be away from the crowded beach and I could relax and enjoy the sea much more.

After our first vacation day of chillin’ on the beach, on the second day, we made our way to the Limanu Harbor, where our lovely rental boat was waiting for us.

_{Limanu Harbor}

I had been on a sailboat before, but this time was different. Once we reached the harbor, our skipper friend showed us around the boat and explained a few basic things. A boat is like a little floating home, so there are some hacks to keep in mind when we close cupboard doors, use restrooms and store our belongings.

Then, we got an introduction on basic sailing like specific terms, knots and handling the sails. It was like a mini training session we attended before we even left the harbor. All of us were excited to contribute to the navigation process and be good crew members, so that really helped us once we were at sea.

It was such a beautiful, hot summer day. Because there wasn’t much wind to play with, we had a truly peaceful experience on the boat. It was incredibly soothing to just float and flow in rhythm with the easy breeze and gentle waves.

In the afternoon, we picked a nice spot closer to the shore where we anchored the boat. We had some yummy food, played music and just savored everything.

Of course, we also jumped in to surrender to the warm, salty hugs of the sea, which were so well received after several months of lockdown. The sea was unexpectedly clean and we had lots of fun diving in and swimming around.

_{The Crew}

As for bringing in more ease and peace into my heart, this sailing day was exactly what I needed and more. At the end of the day, I felt completely relieved of anxiety and frustration and I was once again recharged. I was so amazed and grateful at the therapeutic powers of sunshine and water in my life. ☀️🌊

After the wonderful experience we’ve had, my friends went on two other sailing experiences in Croatia and Greece in the fall.

Right after that, they decided to make this their full-time project. This is how Plus Sail was born. They felt inspired to facilitate sailing experiences Plus 😉 the possibility to explore, learn and work in an outstanding context for people like you and I.

Just a few days ago, my friends from Plus Sail embarked on a one-week sailing adventure in Greece. I would have loved to be able to go with them this time around. But since that’s not possible right now, I’ve been watching them virtually.

Seeing their pictures and videos reminds me of that feeling I had after our day out on the Black Sea. There is something so magical about sailing the sea and I hope I’ll be able to do it again, soon!

If you’re curious to see insights about living on a boat for a week, check out their page and follow along (Facebook, Instagram). They’re sharing live content straight out of Greece.

They also do one-day sailing trips on the Black Sea just like the one we did last summer. 💙 For people who want to get a taste and decide whether sailing is their jam before they book longer trips, it’s an experience absolutely worth trying.

How about you? Have you ever been sailing? If not, is sailing something you’d like to try sometime?

I’d love to read about your experiences in the comments!