Home is where the boat is for French couple

[lhorenzoo]

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Home is where the boat is for French couple











Dubai: “Where in the world can you get a home like this?” asks Mathilde Rottembourg, looking out of her plush three-bedroom boat docked at the fishing harbour in Umm Suqueim 2.

At a time when UAE property prices are going through the roof, she and her husband Jeff swam against the tide. The French couple have made a boat their dream home and they’ve built it with their own hands for Dh1.8 million.

“It’s perfect with a breathtaking view and the entire sea for a garden. The sense of privacy and liberty is priceless,” said Jeff, 65, a retired events professional who has been in Dubai for eight years.

Mathilde, 41, who works as a commercial coordinator with an engineering company, said it took them a year to build the boat. “Jeff and I met in Dubai and wanted a very special home for ourselves. But realty prices were too high. Boat lovers both, the idea of a boathouse dawned on us when we were walking in Dubai Marina one evening. We wanted to get started with a wooden dhow, but it was too hard, heavy and expensive. So we did some research and opted for a fibre-glass fishing boat.”


The project took shape at a shipyard in Ajman. “We approached the shipyard in May 2011 and told them we wanted to do what they did, but in our way,” said Mathilde.

But converting the empty hull of a fishing boat into the ideal home was not easy. “You have to be crazy to build a boathouse and it requires conviction and energy. You have to believe in what you are doing as it is a lot of hard work. Jeff comes from a family that builds boats back in France, so he focused on the design and engineering, while I coordinated with the supplies.


Like any other home, we had to think of everything from the structure to the mechanical, electrical and plumbing works. On top of that, this house had to navigate and move. But Jeff’s subject knowledge and my tenacity saw us through,” said Mathilde.

It was not before last October that the house was ready. The couple can never forget the day — October 3 — that they sailed in their new home from Ajman to its current location. “We don’t have children and this boat is our baby. It gives us a great sense of pride and achievement,” said Mathilde, adding they moved permanently into the boat last November 28.

Measuring 25x7 metres, the boathouse has a living area of 90 square metres inside with an additional 100 square metres on the outside decks. The main deck comprises a tastefully done up living and dining area with a kitchen, bar and study. There are uninterrupted sea views on all sides. Outside the main deck is open seating with the Burj Al Arab in the distance when the boat is docked.

The upper deck is a plush open-air lounge where the couple entertains guests. The three bedrooms and three bathrooms are on the lower deck. “Every bit of the decor has been designed and executed by us,” said Jeff, going into the various stages of construction and interior design.

He said an Emirati man, inspired by their work, engaged them to build a floating majlis for him. “The project did us good and he is a great friend now.”

Mathilde said like other residents, they have to abide by stringent tenancy rules. “Our landlord or ‘waterlord’ is Dubai Customs and we are under contract with them. We pay around Dh5,000 a year to dock the boat here. The marina managers are fantastic and very cooperative.”

She said the boat has a 4,000-litre tank to cater to their water requirements. It also has a holding tank for waste water or black water that is emptied into the sea periodically. And they spend around Dh2,000 on fuel every month.

Jeff said the cost of constructing the boat came to around Dh1.8 million, a steal for the luxuries it offers. “For the most part of the month we remain docked. But we venture out into the sea every now and then. It’s an undescribable feeling to live in the sea, yet in such a beautiful city. This is our home forever.”

Home is where the boat is for French couple | GulfNews.com
sus , i could not hide my amazement with this,surely jud kong naa kay kwarta anything is possible .

[BanshEe]

Good for them.. but not for me.
I get seasick, a lot.

[brian joshua]

ayay boss enzo, naa na pd kay ingun ani dha nuh?

[lhorenzoo]

boss brian joshua ,sus im my dreams ,wa gani koy pumpboat ,sakayan ra ako maaford intawn . seriously bitaw ninduta nila og trip bitaw ,adventuruos jud ning duha

[sammedriano]

Di ko mabuhi sa dagat kay hadlok ko og dagko nga bawd

[Passport]

dili na ni kinahanglan ug titulo sa yuta

house and sea kay dili na house and lot ..

[ohohoy]

boss enzoo gwapo ni kung naa tah ani na boat..

[lhorenzoo]

boss o , na ,kanus a pa kaha ta maka pa assemble ingon ana ka dako og luxurious nga boat no ? dmd boss , lisod kaayo na hehehee kutob ra tas admire ani wa man tay pdaf