Homeless and vagabond in Sweden

As of today, the 3rd of May, we still have nowhere permanent to live from the end of the May.

We move out of our lovely rental house, as the owners are returning from their work abroad. Something that was on the cards since last year already, when we moved in. Though we hoped, as they had extended their stay abroad year after year, that they might extend for another at least.  They didn’t. On the plus side, we’ll have a chance to get to know them personally too, as so far they have been lovely and we’ve had many Whatsapp conversations, like friends.

On the 31st of May we are moving for the third time in 2 and a half years.  As it stands today, we are moving most of our belongings into storage and a small selection are moving onto our new (to us) 28 foot yacht, Mariposa for the summer with us.

This was always the plan: go sailing for 3 months this summer.

What we didn’t plan on is not having a place to come back to.  As I lamented in my post about the trickiness finding accommodation in Sweden, we’ve been through the bidding wars, the excitement and disappointment.  Going on viewing, watching the newly listed properties, getting into bidding wars that take the prices to beyond our budget, starting the cycle again.

 Read more about why it’s so difficult finding living accommodation in Sweden in my previous blog post

As funny as it is, I was coping well with the idea of packing up our stuff to move into storage for the summer and sailing back into town in September when we’ll have a month or so of “camping”  in our little boat while we hope to find accommodation.  Last night, however, I cracked under the pressure and broke down, because I couldn’t get my head around what to do with our chest freezer filled to the brink (I’m a food hoarder, so if I see our staples on offer, I’ll buy them and freeze them) and our houseplants.  I mean, seriously!

After a good night’s rest I see the light:  I guess I need to get a freezer and plant sitter.

… so that’s all well and good, you’ve got it sussed, you say.

Yes, I convince myself that it will all be fine… then next minute, when I’m supposed to be getting through my enormous to do list, I find myself clicking on the internet and looking at flats and houses and houseboats AGAIN. Some of which I’ve scrutinised already.

There is a primeval instinct in us that wants to know we have food and shelter, isn’t there?

How do I override the fear of being homeless to allow me to get on with my job and the daily tasks? 

Would love some tips on how to trust in the Universe, how to trust that it’ll all be fine?

I have to find the balance and solider on looking for accommodation, brainstorming options, because we are open to compromises:

We are trying to get something of our own, where our next move will be dictated by us not a landlord.

Our budget is really small considering Uppsala is among the most expensive places to live in Sweden.

We’ve been looking at small apartments within the city (so we don’t need to invest in a car, but can just have CampyVan as our car and kids can retain their independence of coming and going to school).

We’re considering alternatives like living on the water on a boat or houseboat (despite the river and lake freezing a foot deep most winters) or even

adapting a small summer house in the countryside to meet our needs… we are flexible!

I have been toying with small space living and alternative lifestyles for years.  Gathering ideas on Pinterest boards, so it’s not a new concept for me to gravitate towards tiny living.

However, with all of this does come further doubt… are we doing the right thing?  Would we small space living suite us?  Would our family, our marriage survive more compact living?

If you could choose between a small apartment (just 720 sqft/67 SQM) or a medium sized boat with even less living space, but in a cool city centre location, which would you choose?