Senad Svaraka left Bosnia 10 months after the Balkans War started and moved to France. For seven of the 10 years he spent in Paris, he was bound to a desk, working as an accountant at the American Embassy. It bored him to death.

But very little would have changed in his life if the 42-year-old hadn't taken a five-day sailing course and bought himself a small boat a year later.

Now Svaraka has sailed the nine-metre "Alea" halfway across the world.

"When I got divorced at the age of 39 I knew it was now or never to follow my dream," the intrepid sailor says. This dream recently brought him to Thai shores.

His trip started in June 2004, when he headed for the Croatian coast from the French port of Saint Cyprien. In Croatia he spent four months sharpening his sailing skills and then set off for Istanbul. Then he went through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea on to Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Yemen and Oman. He crossed the Indian Ocean to India and then went on to the Maldives before arriving in Thailand last June.

Svaraka says he's always dreamed about sailing, even when he was a little child, and the thing that attracted him to it was the sheer drama on the seas.

However, though this drama and dream may be beautiful, the reality isn't - "Alea" is a 30-year-old vessel with no radar and requires a lot of maintenance.

 "I hate having to fix the engine from time to time, getting grease all over my hands. But this is part of realising the dream," he says. "To be able to do what I like is very important to me."

On board, Svaraka manages his time according to the sun. He wakes up at sunrise and goes to sleep just after sunset, which helps him save on fuel.

However, if he's sailing solo, he has to wake up at regular intervals to check on things. In good weather, this means he can sleep for two hours at a time, but when the seas get rough, he might have to get up every 15 minutes.

"The worst part of the trip was getting from Maldives to Phuket, where a squall knocked the boat down. It wasn't a proper storm, as the wind and rain lasted for just an hour. But, I have to say, I have been lucky with the weather so far."

Besides, Svaraka is grateful for periods of calm when he can savour the serene beauty of the ocean.

"I love it when the boat is just floating at night and the sea is even brighter than the sky. I often see the luminous glow of plankton beneath the surface. It's like a gift from nature. I've tried to capture these images in the camera, but it's not easy to get good shots."

Svaraka loves photography and says he really missed taking pictures while he was bound to a desk in Paris.

Apart from being able to soak in unspoilt nature, luck also seems to be on the sailor's side. He did, after all, made it through the notorious, pirate-infested Gulf of Aden, which runs between Yemen and Somalia, unscathed. He's also remained relatively healthy throughout the journey, and hasn't had any major problems with the boat.

"For me these are all good omens. It feels like the sea accepts me," he says.

All this time spent alone on the waters has also helped Svaraka understand the true meaning of life, dreams and making them come true.

"What you discover from the journey really depends on how you perceive things.

"For me, I'm happy and my life is beautiful, though it's not very comfortable. But comfort isn't what I want from life," he explains.

Svaraka will be leaving Thailand for the Maldives later this week.

"My next destination is the deserted Chagos Islands, to the south of Adu Atoll in the Maldives, where I plan to stay for at least two months.

"I hope to take some great pictures there," he says.

"To achieve what you want, you need to accept the risks amid the possibilities. It's also about freedom - we are all free to do what we want in life. For me, I have to accept the fact that I have less money."

This lack of funds explains why Svaraka has been trying to expand his media network. He's been writing articles for an English-language yachting magazine in Phuket. A Slovenian magazine is set to publish six stories he wrote, in Bosnian, about his journey from Turkey to Thailand. Svaraka also plans to write some fiction in French, and currently has three books - in English, Bosnian and French - planned. But, for now, he's busy putting down notes, writing his diary, compiling anecdotes and taking photographs.

"I'm good at taking pictures of nature and, in the past two years, I've gained more confidence in writing," he says.

As for his plans on the sea, Svaraka is hoping to head for South Africa in the next 10 months.

"That's my only definite plan at the moment. I can't say what my final destination will be, but I may return to Thailand in the next five years, after I've sailed to New York City, Brazil and Panama and gone across the Pacific to Tahiti and Australia."

Surely all this time spent alone on the sea has scared him.

"Death doesn't scare me.

"When I was an accountant, sitting in front of the computer all day, that was death.

"I will sail as long as I enjoy it, and I hope no bad fortune will come my way. And I will stop when I don't enjoy it anymore."

Vipasai Niyamabha

The Nation