London Houseboats
Nel post British Homes abbiamo visto le varie tipologie di abitazioni inglesi: flats, bungalows, cottages, terraced houses, semi-detached houses, detached houses. Siamo anche entrati in una typical British home.
Ma, con i prezzi delle case alle stelle, sono sempre di più gli inglesi che, a Londra e non solo, decidono di andare a vivere sull’acqua. Le houseboats sono senza dubbio più economiche di un appartamento o di una casa e hanno il loro fascino, ma non è che la vita a bordo sia sempre tutte rose e fiori! Scopriamolo insieme con questo video di TRT World.
London’s housing costs are so high that more and more people have started considering alternative living like houseboats, which are, in fact, becoming very popular.
“Alternative living in London is on the rise and London’s waterways have seen a surge in interest”, to the extent that you can see a new boat every day.
“Nationwide there are now around 32,000 boats on the waterways with 3,500 of those here in the capital. So to find out if life on a houseboat is really smoother sailing, we went to meet 29 year old freelance photographer Simon. He’s lived on this boat for the last year and a half.
– I mean, you’ve got a good view.
– Well, yeah. So this is what’s nice about it. You know, you look out in the morning you can see the birds and reflections on the water.
Properties for sale for less than 350,000 dollars (about 313,000 euros) are becoming scarce. The average cost of renting a house or a flat in London is almost 1,800 dollars (about 1,600 euros) per month. Simon paid 22,000 dollars (about 20,000 euros) for this boat and for roughly 1,300 (about 1,200 euros) a year he can get a boat licence and insurance.
– Well, we’re in a pretty exclusive postcode right in the heart of London and for a lot of young Londoners living here would be simply unaffordable and it’s why so many people are taking to the water and doing this. It’s known as continuous cruising: you can live anywhere you like in London, anywhere you can find a space but, and it is a big but, you have to move every two weeks.
– I personally really enjoy just feeling like a nomad. And always living in different parts of the city, you get to explore a different area every two weeks, which is really good. But the downsides are that it’s pretty much like having a part-time job in terms of how much time you’ve got to devote to doing it.
Life aboard a houseboat is not necessarily significantly cheaper but, with no clear end in sight for those who can’t afford a home, many more young people could find themselves adrift.”
Very interesting, don’t you think so?
Now let’s take a look at the nautical-related vocabulary and idioms used in the report:
waterway = a navigable body of water, such as a river, channel, or canal.
smooth sailing = easy progress without difficulties
boat licence = permission to use or keep a boat on waterways
boat insurance = coverage by contract of the boat and possible injury or damage caused by it
(to) cruise = (to) travel over a body of water
aboard = on, onto, or within a train, a ship, an airplane, etc.
adrift = floating without control
And here are some other interesting expressions we can find in the video:
a surge in interest = an increase in interest
downside = a negative aspect
for sale = available for purchase
no clear end in sight = used to say that the point at which something will be finished is not clear
on the rise = increasing in amount, number, level, etc.
pretty = rather
postcode = a group of numbers and/ or letters that you write at the end of a person’s address to help the postman find the exact area where they live, an area
(to) rent = (to) occupy or use (property) in return for periodic payments
roughly = about
(to) take to = (to) go to, make for
unaffordable = too expensive to be able to pay
So, what do you think about living on a houseboat? What are the advantages and disadvantages? Let me know in the comments below! j
