The idea of going sailing for a year wasn't even a dream. We were just an ordinary couple with two young children, and there were so many reasons why it couldn't happen. But a series of events over the course of a few months changed our thinking, and soon we were selling and packing our belongings, in preparation for a 12,000 mile journey from Italy home to England, via the Caribbean. "Atlantic Children" is the story of how we left behind our family, friends, house and careers, exchanging them for a nomadic existence without the structure of work and school. We experienced the joy, drama and misery of sailing, the great outdoors in all weather conditions, extraordinary "off the beaten track" places, and many wonders of the natural marine world. Most of all, the book is about our family unit, the friends we made, how we coped and how we changed. The story is divided into two parts. The first book tracks the journey through the Mediterranean, to the Canary Islands and across the Atlantic.