N16Life Winter 2017

With London's house prices and rents constantly
on the rise, more people are looking for alternative
ways to live in the capital. Mersa Auda visited the
close-knit community of floating homes on local
canals to find out what boat life is really like.
Interview by MERSA AUDA
LINUS SAMS
Canal boats have existed for
centuries, but the idea of
canal homes has never been
quite as popular. To get a
clearer idea of the lifestyle,
we spoke to freelancer Linus; young
couple Lowri and David; and Damian,
who lives with his wife and nine-year-old
son Morgan. In spite of daily challenges,
it seems that the benefits of living on the
water far outweigh the difficulties - you
just need to be up for the adventure.
LINUS SAMS
“I was born in London and I also grew up
here. I was living abroad for ten years and
when I came back I found it had changed
dramatically: new buildings everywhere,
house prices gone up, higher living costs,
more people. I had to live in London
because all my family and friends are
here, so my sister had this idea. It was
very straightforward, we bought the boat
on the weekend and I moved in on the
Monday. This is probably the only way
that I could fit back into London life.
“I’ve only been doing this for a few
months but there’s been quite a few
challenges, like breaking down in the
middle of the canal! Then there’s the fact
that you’ve always got to keep the water
tank full. I don’t think there are enough
free water points where you can fill up.
Luckily I’ve got a car, but if you don’t have
that you’ve got to go miles up the road to
get it. And unfortunately, just when you
get used to an area you have to move and
start all over again every fortnight.
“You find your way around the
challenges though. It was quite stressful
at the beginning but I’m starting to enjoy
it now. You meet some really nice people
and you actually interact with others,
which is rare in London. People in the
city are usually doing their own thing,
not really wanting to talk. There doesn’t
seem to be so much human interaction
any more so for me, after being away so
long, it’s good to have this community,
otherwise I think it would be very lonely.
“I would recommend boat life but
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