Like many young people, I graduated from college with no clue of what to do next. Sure, I had a degree, but what did that really mean anyway? I still had a craving to head off on my own and see the world. I wanted to explore and put the books away for a while. I came up with the best plan ever: I would move to Amsterdam and live on a house boat with an artist friend I had met during a semester of study there.
My parents were not too thrilled with the idea, but I think they also knew that I couldn't do much else with my degree in Creative Writing. So they eventually let me buy a ticket to Amsterdam and head off to live on a house boat with someone they had never met. Looking back on it, it feels a bit crazy and really surprising that they let me go. I guess they must have realized my need for adventure and even perhaps the good that would come from a year of living on a house boat.
I absolutely loved each day I spent on the house boat with Ana, my Dutch artist friend. We would sleep in till whenever we felt like it and then come onto the deck of our house boat to drink coffee and make small talk about the people passing by on the riverwalk or about the things we cared about most in life. We spent endless hours coming up with our philsophies about life and love and everything in between. Being the writer that I was, I was determined to record the year on the house boat in four spiral bound journals I had crammed into my suitcase upon living my home.
I spent my afternoons wandering the streets of Amsterdam and stopping for a coffee or a snack every so often. I would sit down and just watch people sometimes and try to write brilliant poetry about their clothes or their hairstyles or their secrets. The only brilliant writing that came out of my year on the house boat was my journals. I have kept those journals close these past thirty years and I have slowly begun to share them with my children as they become adults and seek to conquer the mysteries of the world in their own ways.
I wouldn't trade my year with Ana on the house boat if it meant my life. I loved that year. I learned more about myself, more about the world, and I decided that writing really was the thing I loved most. My parents were happy that I found myself that year and that I moved a little closer to home to continue schooling.
In the marine insurance industry, houseboats are categorized together with jet boats, ski boats, sailboats, cabin cruisers and party boats as a pleasure boat. For this reason, this kind of coverage is not generally handled by regular insurance companies. You should carefully shop for underwriters who specifically handle these policies.
The first houseboat insurance tenet you must follow is to find a reliable insurer who’ll service your needs. Conduct the search both ways.
·Word of mouth Ask boating friends for insurance recommendations.
·Conduct research on the recommended insurance carriers, the company in-charge of providing you coverage.
The following facts (as provided by the Insurance Information Institute) about your houseboat, such as horsepower, size and age of your boat, the type of craft and where it is used (i.e. moored in a river or hurricane prone area), determines coverage and premium you will pay for your houseboat.
Once that’s done, you can now carefully consider which of these policy clauses can help maximize your coverage and accurately answer your particular needs.
Hull and Machinery Clause
Because your houseboat is placed in the same pleasure boat category as a cabin cruiser, certain rates, coverage, restrictions, and terms will be similar.
Still, there are differences. The function of a houseboat is different from a cabin cruiser. The construction of a houseboat reflects this. They are normally flat-bottomed and designed to navigate slowly through the waters.
Many houseboats are bulkier, since they come equipped with bigger sleeping & living areas, full galley, and enclosed head. A race boat or cabin cruiser is smaller, more seaworthy, and easy to maneuver and built for speed.
Liability and Medical Payments to Others
Pays for bodily injury or property damage you are liable for.
Physical Damage Coverage
Pays for the damage your boat, motor, and trailer sustain.
Uninsured Watercraft Coverage
Pays for personal injury damages you are entitled to recover from the owner or operator who have not insured their vessel.
Medical Payments For The Insured
Covers you and your family’s medical fees, if you sustain accidental boating injuries.
Towing and Assistance
This coverage pays for the expenses you incur when you request a towing service to deliver the fuels and replacements parts, or fix your engine.
Additional Living Expense
you’re reimbursed for expenses incurred by living in a hotel, because your boat had to be repaired.
Be a responsible houseboat owner. Customize your houseboat insurance to safeguard your personal well-being, finances, and protect your investment.
Both Hallidae Thomason & Mansi Gupta are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Hallidae Thomason has sinced written about articles on various topics from Yoga Practice, Internet Marketing and Flirting Tips. Hallidae Thomason is a writer and a world traveler. Her year on a is one of her favorite memories. To see more about life on a house boat, check out. Hallidae Thomason's top article generates over 201000 views. to your Favourites.
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