The life aquatic

"It's critical to keep a close eye on the change of the seawater, the wind direction and the cloud layers while sailing on the Pacific Ocean," Wan said.

For example, when the seawater faraway gets darker, it reminds the sailors of strong winds and they must loosen the sails in line with the speed of the waves, Wan said.

Thick clouds do not always mean strong winds or heavy rain, which would also decide the change of their speed and direction, she said.

Captain Rolf, the name Wan calls her husband, stood at the right side of the rear compartment of the boat - the best position for observation - for at least 18 hours a day when they were sailing.

At night, they took turns to keep three-hour watches, but the husband would usually sleep for just one and a half hours and took over the job from his wife.

Still, bad weather would hit them in the blink of an eye.

On Oct 10, 2013, they sailed from Wallis, an island in the Pacific Ocean belonging to the French overseas collectivity of Wallis and Futuna, to Funafuti of the island nation Tuvalu.

The sky was grey with no wind in the early morning, but a thick layer of dark clouds gathered at about 7:30 am, a sign that heavy rain would hit any time.

Wan went to control the rudder while Captain Rolf handled the sails.

Strong winds came and suddenly turned around. Correspondingly, Wan shifted the helm abruptly, but the boat started shaking violently from one side to another.

The wind got stronger and the waves reached a height of more than 7 meters. Captain Rolf quickly prepared the anchor and threw it into the roaring sea.

"For the first time, I felt death approaching, but fortunately we remained calm and tried to keep safe," Wan said.

The most severe winds and storms would last from 8 am till 4 pm during their journey. During these times, the couple would also huddle up on the sofa and wait.

"Every time we survived the adverse weather, I had a better understanding of life and cherished every beautiful day of being alive," she said.

Compared with the unexpected bad weather on the high seas, the time they spent on the islands were delightful and relaxing, Wan said.