Hello all,

A quick note about the Pacific crossing then a special request.

The Pacific crossing contained everything Mother Nature could throw at us, from some sun, some hot (at the China side of the adventure), lots of COLD including rainy cold, sleeting cold, hailing cold and some snowing cold.  She also provided lots of wind to a few cases of the doldrums (no wind).  Three plus weeks of the journey were wet and cold.  It was like living in a COLD rain forest.  Many times, the condensation from inside the boat would drip down on us.  I did learn to sleep with my head under the covers during that journey. Continue reading →

At the Chihuly Glass Museum

OK, this is not Qingdao, but an afternoon with friends Renee, Lynna, Nancy and Ruby at the Chihuly Glass Museum in Seattle.  That’s me in the picture, but behind me is how my hair normally looked on the boat and is how I ended up with my head shaved when we crossed the Equator.  This was a great way for me to share the look with you.  And now to finish with Qingdao!!
Continue reading →

Having fun in Qingdao!

Yes, I am in here in Seattle and have been here over a week.  Yes I am slow.  Been dealing with a little issue called Immersion feet/trench foot and been seeing some great old friends, ex-students and life has been crazy.  For those not familiar with trench foot, it became popular in WWI in the army with soldiers always in wet boots, wet socks and cold weather.  So yes I have been in wet boots, wet socks and definitely cold weather the past several weeks.  It is very painful and I was REALLY glad we finished the race and got to Seattle when we did as I was in the Painful stage and not able to sleep at all due to pain.  However, once good friend Nancy Rumbel got me to her house and then to medical clinic I got the proper instructions and medication to get better.  Life is much better but several days of barely being able to walk and at one point crawling to bathroom was not fun.  All is good now! So here we go. Continue reading →

Though we still ended up accepting our position and motoring to finish, we made it with no major injuries! Once we started our motor around 12:30am, we began our deep clean of the boat and finally made it to deck after 1PM to get ready to go into port.

Han brought a bottle of Peach Champagne (NON Alcoholic since alcohol not allowed on boat) to celebrate arrival

Enjoying a cold drink while we circle around outside of Qingdao until our escort brings us in.  They do this as there is a celebration for each boat as they arrive. Continue reading →