Regarding internal refugees, a factoid of note, and in the “well of course they did” department…
Three of my favorite boats that I consider VolksCruisers are the Tonic, Sangria, and Sangria NV/ Fantasia. By today’s standards they’re all too small for most folks to consider.
We’re not most people now are we?
The thing about these designs is that their interiors make sense and, in spite of being small, the ergonomics of the designs work well. For instance, I’m 6’5″ and found the 23-foot Tonic extremely comfortable.
I mention this because I saw an ad for a Tonic in Georgia for $1K and it got me thinking of the adventures I could have had way back when.
On another tack, Dave Z has a great post you all need to checkout.
Oh yeah! I prefer the looks of the old Mousquetaire and Armagnac, the later GTE version sails really well. A floating home that is wind driven is not the same as a boat that really sails that you can live on. Compromises of course, but having sailed engineless, how a boat can be worked under sail comes high on my list. There was a Harle “Punch” up for sale here in Sweden a long time ago which in retrospect i should have jumped on, It got taken back to Brittany on a truck.