Foreign Affair Sailing

Off to North Carolina - Halloween and Reformation Day

We left Maryland on a cloudy and sometimes rainy day bound for North Carolina where Carla will spend time with her children and grandchildren.  The trip down the Shenandoah Valley and over the Appalachians is always scenic even in the rain.  We made good time.  Of course, the grandkids were excited to see their grandmother and have her around for the festivities.  This year Halloween coincided with Reformation Day which acknowledges the beginning of the Protestant Reformation with the posting of the 95 Theses by Martin Luther on the door of the All Saints Church in Wittenberg, Germany on October 31, 1517.  Carla's grandsons attend a Christian school which hosted a Reformation Day fair on the school grounds during the day.  The costumes were primarily of dress worn by people living 500 years ago.  We are sure many of these costumes were worn for "trick or treat" later in the evening.

Downrigging Weekend in Chestertown

We made one more trip to the Eastern Shore to enjoy a wonderful Fall day on the Chester River and in Chestertown during Downrigging Weekend.  This event is a tall ship and wooden boat festival organized by the Sultana Education Foundation.  The Sultana is a replica of a vessel built in Chestertown in 1768 and used by the British Navy to enforce the tea tax laws and monitor trade on the Chesapeake Bay.  Chestertown is one of the best preserved early colonial seaports and a major trade center during the colonial period.  George Washington was instrumental to the founding of Washington College which was chartered in 1782 making it the tenth oldest college in the USA. Many colonial homes exist in Chestertown with several lining the banks of the Chester River.  Six tall ships and two skipjacks provided an opportunity to sail on the Chester River for the afternoon.  We enjoyed the spectacle from the deck of the skipjack, Sigsbee which was built in 1901.  The Sigsbee is one of less than 20 skipjacks still sailing the Chesapeake Bay.  About a dozen others are on exhibit in museums.  We felt there was no better way to say goodbye to the Bay than by sailing on a skipjack.

The Skipjack Elsworth - Built 1901

Aboard the Skipjack Sigsbee - Built 1901

Winterizing Foreign Affair

We rested for a day after returning from China.  Adjusting to the 12 hour time difference is harder when coming home than it is when arriving in Beijing.  Foreign Affair was hauled and shrink wrapped while we were away.  A door was installed so we could get inside and complete the winterization process.  Carla cleaned and packed away gear inside the boat while Dwayne worked on the outside.  The thru-hull valves were lubricated and antifreeze was run through the toilet and macerater pump. Batteries were checked and charged.  The rest of the winterization was done by the marina.  We removed all our personal items and the gear we felt would be better stored ashore.  The sails, bimini and dodger went to Dwayne's brother's house in Columbia.  Several boxes of items were stored in his garage.  It took the better part of 3 days to complete closing the boat up for the winter.  We will spend the holidays with family.  Instead of heading South on Foreign Affair this winter, we will be traveling around the world with Dwayne's brother, Brian and his wife, Janet.  The big adventure begins in mid-January and will last 68 days or so (mostly in warm climates).

Heading Home

We boarded our Hainan Airline Boeing 787.  The flight was long but smooth.  We landed in Boston after watching 3 movies and a few short travel programs during our14 hours in the air.  We did our best to get some sleep.  We checked our bags for our flight to Baltimore upon our arrival in Boston.  Then, it was off to the KLM/Air France lounge for breakfast and to relax while waiting for our flight to Baltimore.  It was a very long journey from Beijing to our beds in Columbia.  Getting our sleep patterns re-established is going to be a challenge and take several days.  But it was all worth it.

Shanghai - Maglev - Shanghai Museum and Yangtze River Walk at Night

We rode the world's fastest train again today.  The Shanghai Maglev train reaches speeds in excess of 425 kilometers per hour (260 miles per hour) covering 30 kilometers in under 8 minutes.  The Shanghai magnetic levitation train is the third maglev train to be commissioned for commercial purposes.  The German firm, Siemens, built the Shanghai train which has been in operation since 2004.  At 260 mph, we were gliding along quite rapidly.  It was a fun ride both coming and going.

Shanghai Museum, Bund and Yangtze River Walk

Shanghai is the world's largest city by population with 24 million.  It is China's financial center and busiest port in the world.  The Bund is the old financial district established by the European colonial powers.  The land across the river from the Bund was farmland until 40 years ago.  The city has rapidly grown and modernized within the past 40 years.  Of the 5 tallest buildings in the world, 3 are located in Shanghai.  At night, the lights on the buildings along the riverfront are lit creating a scene which is a mash of Las Vegas and Times Square.  Brightly lit boats cruise the river at night giving the tourists a spectacular view.  The weather was perfect for our walk along the waterfront.

Mei Jia Wu and Hangzhou West Lake

Our next stop was Mei Jia Wu enroute to Hangzhou's West Lake.  Mei Jia Wu is famous for it tea production.  The scenery was once again spectacular with terraced tea plantations intermixed with forests and streams running through a river valley.  We made a stop to learn more about tea production and sample some of the local tea which is reputed to be the best green tea in China.

At West Lake, numerous tourist boats were on the lake with those aboard taking in the marvelous scenes which came into view.  The hills around the lake were cloaked in mist.  We now understand why so many Chinese art works depicting natural settings contain mist or clouds.  The Leifeng pagoda was one of the oldest in China erected in 975 c.a. before it collapsed in 1924 and rebuilt in 2002.  It was one of the most impressive images we have seen in China.

Suzhou - The Grand Canal and Wuxi - Ling Shan Grand Budda

Suzhou is located on the Yantze River.  It is considered a small city by Chinese standards with a population of only 4 million.  It is known as the "Venice of the East" due to the many canals running through the city.  The Great Canal runs through Suzhou which helped the city to become a major trading center and resort throughout its history.  Marco Polo wrote extensively about the most beautiful city he encountered during this voyages.  We took a boat ride through a section of the Great Canal which is still in use today.  We always take the opportunity to be on the water.

Temple of Heaven and Peking Duck

We spent the morning at the Temple of Heaven which is a vast 660 acre park and several structures used by the Emperor during his annual prayers for good harvests.  The Emperor was regarded as the "Son of Heaven" and as such represented heavenly authority.  The three primary structures of the Temple of Heaven are:  The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests; The Imperial Vault of Heaven; and The Circular Mound Alter.  Construction on the temple complex began in 1406 during the reign of the Yongle Emperor who was also responsible for the construction of The Forbidden City.

The Great Wall, Cloissone Factory and the Olympic Green

We departed Beijing to climb the Great Wall of China.  We went to Juyongguan, the same spot as last year but climbed the wall westward from the South Gate rather than eastward from the North Gate as we did last year.  This extensive section of the wall was a stronghold guarding the Juyong Pass which cuts through mountainous terrain just 37 miles from the center of Beijing.  This location has been fortified for over 2,500 years.  The climb today was more strenuous than last year; however, the weather was perfect - sunny and not too warm.  Also, it was not very crowded.

The Forbidden City and Summer Palace

We began the day with a trip to Tiananmen Square and The Forbidden City.  Tiananmen Square is in the center of Beijing and around it are: The Gate of Heavenly Peace which separates the square from The Forbidden City; the Great Hall of People which is the meeting place for the Chinese parliament; the National Museum of China; and the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong.   It was from the top of The Tiananmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace) that Mao made the proclamation of the People's Republic of China on October 1, 1949.  The 125 foot tall Monument to the People's Heroes is located in Tiananmen Square.  Security was high as the National Congress of the Communist Party of China was meeting later in the week to elect the Chinese leadership and prepare the next Five Year Plan.

Arrival in Beijing

Our flight from Boston to Beijing took 14 hours and went well.  We arrived shortly after 7 pm and were met by our tour guide.  Two hours later, after gathering our luggage, clearing customs and immigration, we arrived at our hotel.  The Chun Hui Yuan Spring Garden Resort and Spa is located in a suburb of Beijing and part of an extensive collection of buildings which support conferences and conventions.  It was a very nice hotel; however, it was a long drive to the sites we were to visit during our stay in Beijing.  Traffic in Beijing is very heavy and we will spend more time commuting and less time sightseeing than on our last trip to Beijing.  At least the weather is forecast to be nice.

Link to the Chun Hui Yuan Spring Garden Resort and Spa:

Bound for China

We headed off to China again for a ten day tour with Brian and Janet (Dwayne's brother and sister-in-law) who sailed with us on Foreign Affair in the past.  Brian finds great bargains on travel and we couldn't pass this one up.  We were up at 0415 so we could catch our early morning flight from Baltimore to Boston where we transferred to our Hainan Airline flight to Beijing.  We met up with Beverly (Dwayne and Brian's sister) and Judy (Janet's sister) in Beijing.  Our itinerary for this trip was different enough from our last trip to China to warrant a return visit.  Our flight to Beijing from Boston took almost 14 hours.  We occupied our time reading and watching videos enroute.

Meeting Friends at Rock Hall

Frank and Carol are planning to sell their 33 foot Beneteau slope, Hakuna Matata and purchase a larger boat.  They were in Delaware for a few days and drove down to Rock Hall to look at a Beneteau 393 listed there for sale.  We joined them when they met with the yacht broker to examine the boat for sale.  Aside from being a larger boat, it is very similar to Hakuna Matata which would make transition easy.  One feature of the 393 that made it less desirable was the second head located in the bow.  It took up quite a bit of room and wasn't really necessary.  They preferred a larger forward berth.  We left satisfied with having a better appreciation for the features of the Beneteau 393.  Lunch followed and we finished the day at Haven Harbour catching up on life, planning for the future and drinking moonshine Frank bought when they took a road trip through North Carolina.

Sea Trials

All of the navigation instruments on Foreign Affair have been replaced or refurbished.  Taylor did the installation and calibration.  He joined us for a sea trial to make sure everything was properly working.  Foreign Affair's engine cranked up right away and sounded great during our hour long sea trial. It was a great feeling to be out on the Bay again.  The sun was shining and the temperature was in the high 70s.  Unfortunately, we had removed all the sails.  So, we motored for the hour.  We wished we could have been able to just head out for a few days of cruising; however, this was not possible.  We only have one more day to complete stripping the boat before it is hauled for the winter.

Patowmac Canal - Great Falls, VA

There was an urgency for a means to swiftly travel and move goods throughout the new nation after the American Revolution.  George Washington was a major force in promoting canals as a means to connect the Eastern Seaboard to the Great Lakes and Ohio River.  In 1785, four years prior to his being elected President of the United States, he and several other investors founded the Potowmack Company which made navigation possible on the Potomac River by building canals to skirt the major falls which prevented barges from continuing down the river prior to the building of the canals and locks.  The Patowmac Canal made barge navigation possible from Cumberland, MD to Georgetown/Washington, D.C.  It met the National Road in Cumberland allowing goods from west of the Appalachian Mountains to move to the Eastern Seaboard via the Chesapeake Bay.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patowmack_Canal

https://www.nps.gov/grfa/learn/historyculture/canal.htm

C & O Canal

On our way back to Maryland, we took a break in Hancock to check out the National Park Service visitor center for the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal.  We arrived just as they were closing; however, we did take pictures of the lock and the ranger station which was once a lock-tender's house and resting place for travelers along the canal.  Construction on the C & O Canal began in 1828 and the last section was completed in 1850.  The canal was 184.5 miles long running from Cumberland, MD to Washington, D.C.  The canal was initially planned to reach Pittsburgh, PA; however, it became too expensive due to engineering challenges associated with crossing the Appalachian Mountains.  The Erie Canal was completed in 1825.  Engineers and workers from the Erie Canal were also employed in building the C & O Canal and benefited from their Erie Canal building experience.  The C & O Canal continued to operate until 1924.  Today, the canal is managed by the National Park Service which has converted the towpaths to hiking and cycling trails through the parkway.