After four days of thick fog where visibility dropped down to just a few metres, today has dawned bright and clear and the people of Qingdao are out in force. The Spring Festival is well under way and celebrations culminate with the Lantern Festival on Sunday.

    Yesterday, one crew member from each boat was taken on a VIP city tour and having become familiar with modern Qingdao, they got to see the old part of the town, visiting a hill top pagoda and the small island that is named Little Qingdao. The literal translation of Qingdao is ‘Green Island’ and it is from this small, violin shaped spur of lawns, trees and rocks that the city began to grow.

    On the promontory at the edge of the island stands a small lighthouse built by the Germans and there are strong signs of their presence all around the old part of the town. Many of the streets are full of traditional European style buildings and one could be forgiven for thinking that you were in the back streets of old Munich or Cologne.

    Qingdao is world famous for hosting the sailing Olympics in the 2008 Beijing games but it is also famous for the small green bottles of Tsing Tao beer. The local brewery was established by the Germans in 1903 before being taken over by the Chinese and then the Japanese. They brewed the famous Asahi and Kirin beers there until 1945 when it finally returned to Chinese ownership. After the May 4th uprising, it moved from private ownership to a state owned enterprise and in the last decade, Tsing Tao beer has become a global brand.

    The tour of the huge facility proved especially interesting to the crew. David Raeburn who is sailing round the world on Cape Breton Island, took great interest in the barley that was on show in the room demonstrating the malting process. Next July, when he returns to his normal role of farming 300 acres in Devon, it will be harvest time and it may well be his grain that is sold for export and finds its way out to China. Another item that caught David’s eye was an information board highlighting that beer was defined as a health food at the 9th World Health Food conference in 1972. He made a convincing argument as to why it should now be a standard part of the boat victualling process.

    Hull & Humber round the world crew member Arthur Bowers also showed great interest in the ultra modern packaging line where empty bottles and cans were filled, capped and packaged in just a few seconds. He also demonstrated a keenness to then remove said packaging in order to ensure that the quality control was up to scratch. At the end of the tour, the brewery filled several jugs of the excellent Pilsner and it was clear that the crew members sensitive palates found the taste entirely agreeable. But not before several further jugs were poured, just to be certain that their original assessment was accurate. And at the end of the brewery visit, it is good to be able to report that all were looking especially healthy from the mid morning refreshment,

    The final stop of the tour was the dramatic statue at the heart of May 4th Square. Resembling a flame that is being blown in the wind – symbolic of the ripples that were blowing through the country leading to the revolution, it is a focal point of the city. On Sunday, the area will be packed full of locals who will celebrate the Lantern Festival with food, drink and fireworks.

    On the way back to the Intercontinental hotel, tour guide Isobel finished the trip by singing a gentle song that talked about the moon and how, at this symbolic time in the Chinese year, families divided by thousands of miles can look up and be united as they gaze at the lunar orb. It’s not a service that one would expect on National Express or Greyhound coaches and was a sentiment greatly appreciated by the crew. Their own loved ones are miles away and the continued support and encouragement that comes from home is of very real value.

    As the Spring Festival continues, the numerous huge stages around the Olympic Sailing Centre are filled with a variety of attractions for visitors to watch. Today, there was a mass Tai Chi group going through their deliberate and controlled movements. They were dressed in immaculate white silk robes and just watching them created a sense of calm and well being.

    As a complete contrast, over on the next stage a boxing match was in full swing and the crowds eagerly cheered on the two opponents as they attempted to deliver the winning blow. Market stalls and food vendors were doing brisk business and there is real family carnival spirit in the air. Sunlight and the first fingers of spring warmth are working their magic and the crews are enjoying being the starring main feature of the show.

    Stepping out on stage are the new joiners who today officially become crew members and it’s been great to see faces, familiar from the training courses, now ready to do battle with the Pacific Ocean.

    The latest update on Team Finland is that Clipper has been expeditious in sourcing and readying the replacement mast and the work is now complete. As one might imagine, the logistics of moving a one tonne, 90-foot high spar over 5,500 miles and several continents has numerous logistical challenges where one is in the hands of various shipping agents, specialist aircraft operators and customs officials. The aircraft required needs to have a front loading door and unsurprisingly, they are not quite as common as the ubiquitous Boeing 737.

    Clipper is in touch with several such operators and continues to work flat out to source the earliest flight possible. The Clipper Race will start, as planned, on Tuesday 2 March but Team Finland will remain in port until she is fully ready for the crossing to San Francisco. All the crew are aware of the situation and are being updated on likely departure times. As one has come to expect from the crew of Team Finland, they have an indomitable spirit and set a fine example on how to deal with whatever this challenge throws at them.