Up: You get to go to all sorts of places. And when you’re down south its warm!
Down: On the way to all the places there can be big waves and you get seasick. And being seasick isn’t fun.
Up: You can find other boat kids everywhere. Almost everywhere we have been there has been at least one boat kid.
Down: There are not a lot my age. Most are below the age of 11 and that kind of sucks.
Up: The ones that are my age are awesome friends.
Down: Most of them are somewhere else right now and we might not see each other again.
Up: I can talk to all my old friends online and even play video games with them.
Down: We don’t have Wi-Fi that often and I can’t talk to anyone without it.
Up: When you are “boat-schooled” you have lots of free time to swim, play at the beach, and hang out with friends.
Down: You have lots of free time and when you’re stuck on the boat some days, you can’t go anywhere and it can get boring.
Up: You meet amazing famlies that are so much fun.
Down: You almost always have to say goodbye.
Right now we are in La Cruz and probably going south to El Salvador and have to say goodbye to friends again. We hope to see them again someday, and we will probably meet new friends. Being a boat kid comes with a lot of ups and downs but it usually ends up being okay.
Awesome description Tyler of a boat kid’s life. Clear and concise, straight to the point! Gives a really great picture of what it must be like to be a 13-year-old boat kid. (Did I get that right? You are 13, right?)
Yes! 13!
Do you enjoy experiencing other cultures? Have you made friends with any of the local kids your age? I would love to hear more of personal narrative about your experiences. I love that you are sharing your experience with people! Thanks so much! My mom was a boat person too! She lives in La Paz currently.
Wonderful glimpse of boat life for a teen. Great job, Tyler
Life is so fascinating… When you’re in it doing it (like you being a ‘Boat Kid’) … it’s just Life… Sure it’s Great… but it’s just what’s happening… you are living it every day! BUT… From the outside looking in… it’s Fantastical…Wonderful… almost Unimaginable!!!
I hope throughout this journey, you find far more Ups than Downs… and that the SeaSickness becomes a faint memory of your past 🙂
I love that you’re taking the time to give us the boat kid point of view. To put the “ups and downs” in context for those just comming to your blog and have read only this post, a small summary of your pre-boatkid existance in comparison, would lend some nutrative value to how you contrived your pros and cons, but not wholly necessary. I enjoyed this and appreciated it wasn’t overly lengthy. Super excited to read more from your unique perspective!