Violeta settled on a boat on the Neris River: “Here is another world” | Business

We meet the interlocutor in her rented house-boat, who, as soon as she enters, surprises us with her comfort: a kitchen with various utensils, a small living room, on the second floor – two bedrooms. “The place is made in the most economical way possible, using the spaces where it can be placed, to store things so that they do not fall during the rocking or the waves,” explains V.Masteikienė.

Washing dishes with mustard, doing laundry in town.

V.Masteikienė made the decision to move to a houseboat after the divorce, when she had to answer the question “what does she want and what does she do” to get interested and ask how to fulfill this wish.

“It just came to our notice then. After short negotiations, I managed to rent this houseboat for a year. Before you start thinking about something on your own, I’ll have a year to see what it looks like in the off-season, because a lot of people he likes the off-season. At that time, it’s really easier, “opens V.Masteikienė.

The houseboat, according to the woman, is a registered vehicle, so you can move when you start the engine. But the woman is in one place.

Here she is alone or with a daughter and a dog, but the interlocutor laughs that the animal does not like it very much here. “It just came to him then. It feels strange here,” says the woman.

Before staying on board, you need to know a few things, for example: there is no hot water here. Depending on the interlocutor, the limitations they face may seem challenging to some and simply uncomfortable for others.

You have to live here, because very often it is the case that “I would like” is different from “I can”.

“It has been raining for a couple of days, I have seen it as if it is here when it is wet, when the clothes do not dry. You have to live here, because many times “I would like” is different from “I can,” says the woman.

It is also necessary to bring drinking water here, so you come back every day with at least 5 liters of water. Non-foamy things should be used for washing and washing dishes. Mustard and soda are used for this. To wash your head, use an organic, low-lathering shampoo. And you have to wash your clothes in the laundries of the city, because there is no washing machine in the house-boat.

“There are certain things that change the way of life, for that you have to be determined,” emphasizes V. Masteikienė, who works with migrants at the Red Cross.

When asked how much it costs to rent a barge for a year, the interviewee smiles: “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“I gave up my vacation this year so I could live like this all year long. My vacation budget was for an annual vacation on the water,” says the woman.

Yes, V. Masteikienė has been living until recently, about two months, so according to her, every day is a journey.

“I feel like I’m traveling because the people who come to meet me are very new to the water. It really is a journey through everyday life, ”says V. Masteikienė.

Your place of residence also has an address, but curious situations have already arisen in this regard.

“I was in a car accident and hit my head. The team of doctors that arrives asks you where you live, give your address. I say: where Vilnelė flows into the Neris. It’s a lot of fun for me and I find that I am transporting myself to make my head shine, and the response to the fact that I feel good does not contribute either. But there is actually an old ship here and it has an address. Of course it sounds better when I say that I live on the River Neris, but there is also an address ”, jokes the interlocutor.

Do not use hair dryer, iron

As for talking, I ask the interlocutor to arrange a short tour of her house, she agrees with pleasure.

As soon as you enter, there is a closet for clothes and shoes. The cabin also has a water heater (the so-called “boiler”) and the electricity comes from solar panels. It is true that the electrical current thus obtained is not sufficient to use an electric kettle, a hair dryer, an iron or to turn on said water heater. According to V.Masteikienė, living here should be able to be with few things.

When asked what is the greatest challenge to living in the water, the interviewee responds: “Ask me that in a few months, when the cold season arrives.”

“It just came to our knowledge then. Let’s see. There is gas or electric heating, there are two options. Since my electricity is produced by solar panels, that is not enough for heating. It is possible to connect gas heating, but not yet. I have connected it ”, says the interlocutor.

He says that in summer he will have to travel to the winter port in Žirmūnai, where the ships of Neris set sail before winter, so that the winter and spring glaciers do not damage them.

There is also a toilet and a bathroom, but you have to wash it with cold water. It is true that this does not intimidate the interlocutors.

“During the quarantine I was moving to live in the country, a little outside of Vilnius, so I am used to living a little more ascetic, simpler. If there is no comfort in the city, I can do it too. However, I am very happy every time I go to the shower. You can’t imagine the pleasure of taking a hot shower every day ”, the woman smiles.

He adds that environmentalists constantly check that standards are being met and that the city is not polluted.

We continue to the kitchen: there is an oven on top, a kettle, a sink on the sides. Kitchen utensils are placed on top of the oven. There is also a refrigerator here, but it is currently used as a closet because there is not enough electricity to turn it on. However, the refrigerator is replaced by an electric cooling bag.

We have coffee at a wooden bar table, with soaked flowers, there is a container with fruit. Straw ornaments hang on the table. The vast majority of things were already here before the woman moved in.

From the kitchen we enter the living room: here is a seat bag, a wooden chair, a sofa and a TV. True, this – is not turned on. “It just came to our attention then. Still. Maybe there will be an autumn afternoon when I want it,” the woman does not rule out.

A large map is also hung on the wall of the living room – the interlocutor “travels in his thoughts” standing next to him.

“I have traveled a lot with paragliding. This is where I look at places that I am less familiar with, like Africa or North America. Now it is possible to stand on the spot, after traveling a bit, ”says V. Masteikienė.

Next to the stairs that lead to the second floor, cabinets and cupboards with various elements. And on the second floor, two bedrooms.

“You can still slip on the roof, get burned, but not me. I thought I would sunbathe there, but here too it is enough,” the woman shares.

The house-boat also has a small terrace with a table, chair and plants.

They did not say for a month where they settled

And didn’t the surrounding curves look at it when they found out about your choice? V.Masteikienė assured that the opposite is true: he receives a lot of support.

“I didn’t even tell anyone for a month where I lived and that my lifestyle had changed. I realized that as soon as I said it, it would be so interesting to everyone that there would be an excess of guests. And because the work is intense, I can’t even accept that many of my friends see them. Of course, everyone is interested, because it is unusual, new, interesting to see, ”says V. Masteikienė.

In general, while living here, you get a lot of attention from the city, people are interested, so you have to define yourself and set limits.

It is true that the area is guarded, so it helps to avoid people’s attention and unwanted access.

According to the woman, people are also interested in her determination to live the way she wanted, to take responsibility for making it a life dream.

If sometimes it turns out that this is no longer my dream, I will move on to the next one. But you must allow yourself to do so.

“If sometimes it turns out that this is no longer my dream, I will move on to the next one. But you must allow yourself to do so. Some acquaintances are going to talk about it, ”says V. Masteikienė.

She says she doesn’t have a goal of surviving here for a year; If it turns out that it will be very cold here in winter, the decision will change. “I have to make my dream come true, but I don’t have to show the whole world that I will survive in this place at -20. That must be fine. And if it goes wrong, you don’t have to be a hero,” thinks the woman.

“Vilnius not seen, not discovered”

Talking to us, we listen to the sounds of the city: a trolleybus passes, a highway. “I heard that the city is definitely not calm and peaceful. Life goes on, the pier and the boats come to life more and more. It’s not very quiet here, but it’s both a plus and a minus. Sometimes without knowing it, you are already in the vortex of events, you are at a party. But this is a city, we are not somewhere on the lake or in the middle of the fields ”, emphasizes V.Masteikienė.

She doesn’t hide the fact that coming home after work feels like entering another world.

“I go out and change the matrix. My work is one more matrix. There is still that house on the road. This doesn’t look like anything, it’s a completely different environment. Vilnius invisible and undiscovered. And for me it was not discovered, it is what fascinates me the most. Trolley buses pass the street 200 meters away, but they drive somewhere else and see completely different views. And you are in the center of Vilnius, but in a different matrix, ”said the woman who rented the house-boat.

From the waves, when someone passes, in case of strong wind or rain, the house-boat rocks. It also happens during this conversation. “Nothing is constant, even the location of your house is constantly changing,” says V. Masteikienė.

The woman also has a canoe, so sometimes after a hard day’s work she sits in it and paddles upstream.

“People have a bicycle, I have a canoe. It’s not like I’m swimming to the store with a canoe. A cafe has been opened on the dock, so one day I will ask myself out on a date, go canoeing, take off my shoes, go to the cafe and come back when I get back, ”the woman smiles.

She also sometimes comes home from the road, she has a garden there and, as she herself says, other things to take care of.

At the end of the conversation, the interviewee says that she is glad that she had the courage and determination to make such a decision.

“Leaving everyone practical or impractical, since everything will be here, maybe you need to think about pensions and the like right away, and just allow yourself to implement what you wanted and live as you want, as you dreamed,” says V. Masteikienė.