Yesterday it was time to inaugurate a new tradition in the marina where we live: herring lunch with the neighbours on the jetty. Among other things, this event allowed us to photograph from new heights!
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ShareGetting along with your neighbours
We lived in an apartment before we moved to a houseboat, and then it was easy to shut yourself up in your little cubbyhole. We don't hang out with the neighbours very often now either, but we always meet on the jetty and it is of course nice to be able to help look after the boats.
There are a total of 40 houseboats for year-round accommodation in the marina, ranging from large floating villas to older barges. The neighbours are a great mix of people, with the common denominator that we all like to live on the water, and we usually have a great time together!
Lunchtime festivities
Yesterday it was time for the new neighbourhood tradition of herring lunch! We set the table on the bridge, but what happened? Just as it often does in Sweden, it started to rain ... One of our newer neighbours, who lives in a floating villa, hospitably invited everyone to sit under the roof. Sooo nice, and from here we could also look down on our houseboat which kind of looked tiny, haha.
It was a very nice lunch with our lovely neighbours, and after a few hours, our neighbours from the other pier headed home... by boat! How do you live? Do you spend time with your neighbours?
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Houseboat in Stockholm - some photos from our accommodation
Being at home in the houseboat in Stockholm again
Houseboat life in winter - how we live in wintertime
Easter, preparations and alerts
Lifting a houseboat - this is what happened when our houseboat was lifted
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Across the board says:
It's nice to have neighbours you can (and want to) spend time with. It makes it easier when you are away, to be able to look after each other.
12 June 2016 - 8:48
Goatfish says:
Wonderful! 😀
I think it's more appealing to socialise when you live on a boat or camp in season.
In my stairwell we cheer and talk but no socialising.
Sunny hugs!
12 June 2016 - 8:59
allotment says:
And it wasn't a bad view.
Says like Gerd. I live in a flat and cheer on my neighbours when I meet them. But it is completely different on the colony. I think you spend more time with your neighbours when you live in a way that means you spend a lot of time outdoors.
12 June 2016 - 9:15
Ramona says:
What a view 🙂 I liked it a lot. Have a lovely day 🙂
12 June 2016 - 9:17
Alexandra says:
Sounds cosy. Luckily you could go in somewhere, you don't want to eat rainy herring? Tonight my daughter and I are actually going on a cruise with our neighbour and her children. Our farm is actually quite social, often there are people who are out grilling and are happy to invite everyone who passes by and when the children are out playing, they always get grilled sausages. ? It might have something to do with the fact that we live in a multicultural neighbourhood... 🙂 .
12 June 2016 - 9:36
Ann-Sofie says:
We also live on a boat, but in a different way. We are not permanently moored but can sail away and change neighbours if we don't like it. Quite practical sometimes. Socializing with boat neighbours is very different depending on where you are. In the Caribbean during the hurricane season when we were anchored in the same place for 4-6 months, we met in the bar in the evenings. Here in Europe we very rarely socialise in the anchorage. Maybe if another Swedish boat shows up. But in a marina when you are tied to a jetty during the winter months, it tends to be all the more social. Activities and dinner parties every other day and often a joint BBQ once a week.
12 June 2016 - 9:45
admin says:
It's very nice to know that the neighbours keep an eye on the boat when we're away!
Geddfish, that's right! In general, it is easier to socialise if you naturally meet a lot outdoors. Not as easy in a stairwell.
Kolonilotta, can only agree with you. Understand that it is more natural to socialise at the colony!
Ramona, thank you very much!
Alexandra, nice that you live in a social area, and interesting that the multicultural may play a role...! 😉 Wishing a nice cruise!!!
Ann-Sofie, very interesting to hear how it works in boating!!!! Good to be able to change neighbours if they do not fit, haha 😉 (Will of course be a bit the same with a motorhome)
12 June 2016 - 9:48
Lennart says:
We have good neighbours who keep an eye on the apartment when we are on the road.
When travelling, we get new neighbours all the time.
In Oxelösund we have now met about ten nice neighbours!
12 June 2016 - 9:58
Catherine says:
No, not here. I don't even recognise them here, unfortunately. But would be good to do so you have control.
12 June 2016 - 10:03
Lotta says:
Nice to have new traditions in the Pampas. And it's always fun in this company!
Have fun!
Lotta and Mads
12 June 2016 - 11:14
Ama de casa says:
How nice! It looks so fantastically lovely where you live 🙂 .
We are actually going out for tapas with four neighbours here very soon. They don't actually live in our house, but in the one across the street, so I think they can be liked as neighbours anyway 🙂.
We still hang out with our "old" neighbours in Sollentuna. They were the ones we bought the house from in 1985 (they just moved across the street) and it was actually them who lured us down here to Spain. We were just going to visit and check out the apartment they had bought down here, and then it became what it became... No, I probably can't complain about the neighbourliness in the places where we have lived 🙂.
12 June 2016 - 11:26
Ditte says:
We live right by the water in Söder, in an apartment. We cheer and talk to the neighbours when we meet and have good contact, but we don't really socialise.
If anyone needs help, it is always available.
The housing association occasionally organises parties in our beautiful courtyard, which are cosy and usually well attended.
When we lived in a house in Upplands Väsby, we spent a lot of time with our neighbours because we wanted to, and we also owned some machinery together.
Here in the Spanish summer house we have friends in the street below "neighbours" that we hang out with and the Spanish neighbours next to us we talk to, but hanging out has not really happened, mostly because I don't speak very good Spanish and they don't speak any English....
12 June 2016 - 11:38
BP says:
Sounds really nice! Especially when you got to get up to higher altitudes and take pictures. You kind of get a different perspective there, I think;-)
I also laughed at the neighbours from the other building who went home with their boat. They obviously do not like to walk;-)
We cheer on the neighbours in the house, but don't socialise.
12 June 2016 - 12:52
Mr Steve says:
So you got to see your houseboat from a new perspective.
We mingle with the neighbours in the village and exchange a few words when we meet, but do not otherwise socialise.
12 June 2016 - 13:09
admin says:
Lennart, good to have neighbours who keep an eye out! And of course you get new neighbours all the time when you are on the road 😉.
Katarina, it's easy for that to happen, especially when you live in an apartment, I think. Maybe you should start looking extra at your neighbours when you get the chance and say hello, so you recognise them! 😉
Lotta, very nice! And fun to hear from you!!! 🙂
Ama de casa, it sounds like you have "chosen" your neighbours with care, haha, or you have been lucky? Sounds like good neighbours anyway! 🙂
Ditte, it sounds like you have pretty good contact with your neighbours anyway! It's always a little more difficult when you live in an apartment, it's not as natural to meet... It's not so strange that it's a little more difficult when there's a language barrier...!
BP, haha, yes, we had quite a lot of fun with them taking the boat home 😉 Of course, it is possible to walk around, but it is clearly a detour, so if you have a boat... why not? 😉
12 June 2016 - 13:11
Role o Carina says:
Lovely beautiful you live with good neighbours, nice!
We also have good neighbours who look after the house
when we are out on the road with the camper van 🙂 .
Take care and enjoy.....
12 June 2016 - 13:29
Emma, sun like sun? says:
I grew up with great neighbours, friends and classmates. My parents still live there and so do the others. They celebrate New Year's Eve together, look after each other's houses, etc.
Here we also have good neighbours who help us paint the wall, bring grapes and nisperos, I bake buns and give back. And we help with school transport, etc.
Neighbours are important! But I don't want them in my house all the time, I don't want them to get too close to my private sphere.
12 June 2016 - 14:51
Shamrock says:
How nice. I think it's ok to spend time with neighbours in a reasonable amount and to help with mail and flowers during the holidays.
12 June 2016 - 19:40
Matts Torebring says:
It's a great tradition that I'm sure few people have the opportunity to do or even don't want to. Nice!
12 June 2016 - 19:49
AuntieGlad says:
It looks really nice there.
Enjoy and hugs.
12 June 2016 - 20:15
admin says:
Rolle and Carina, we think we live fantastically well and enjoy every day! Nice to have neighbours who look after the house when you are travelling!
Emma, sun as sun, that sounds like great neighbours! I don't want to hang out with the neighbours all the time either (we want our privacy) but it's really nice to have neighbours who can help each other, and it's nice to meet and hang out once in a while!
Shamrock. i agree, want to have good contact but not hang out all the time 😉.
Matts, we like these traditions! There are certainly those who would not like it, but we think it is super nice!
Aunty Glad, we think we have it good here! Have fun!
12 June 2016 - 20:26
Comsi Comsa says:
In my house, many of the neighbours socialise. We barbecue, have coffee and talk often and happily. I think it's great that this is the case, we even water each other's flowers and bring in the mail if we are away.
Hugs ❤
12 June 2016 - 20:56
Susjos says:
What a nice idea with a herring lunch together with the neighbours! We live in a terraced house, and do not socialise with the neighbours, but of course there is a bit of a chat and we used to help with the post, now we have locked mailboxes, so no help is needed with that anymore!
12 June 2016 - 23:49
admin says:
Comsi comsa, that sounds nice! And nice to know that you get help from each other! 🙂
Susjos, that's a nice idea, isn't it?
13 June 2016 - 7:31
Inga Magnusson says:
Those of us who live in the forest in the countryside often socialise with our neighbours in one way or another. We help each other with things, borrow from each other and so on when needed. And we have been lucky to have great neighbours. Then the more frequent socialising is governed more by age perhaps, you choose to spend time with neighbours who are about the same age. It's great that you have developed traditions such as eating herring together with boaters in the neighbourhood. And so practical to be able to help each other with supervision. I just have to end on a curious note; I haven't really understood if you have started working again after the year-long trip with the motorhome. If so, with what?
13 June 2016 - 8:03
admin says:
Inga M, how nice that you have been lucky to have such good neighbours! I lost my permanent position in the county council during the trip but have been working as a project employee since I came home, first at KI and now for Gävle University (remotely). (I do qualitative research studies, i.e. interview studies and the like.) But the future is uncertain in terms of work! Peter has not worked much. He has done some carpentry for friends and so on. Then we both "work" hard with the blog, there are a lot of contacts with companies, fixing for fairs, writing assignments for newspapers, etc. etc. We simply limp our way forward... 😉
16 June 2016 - 6:41