Crew Blog

Sailing away from home

24 February 2008

Qingdao legger, Teddy Lazarova-Burns, gets to grips with the snow

Qingdao impressed everyone again with an amazing send off. Thousands of spectators came to the Qingdao Olympic Marina to watch the start of the race to Hawaii.

I was overwhelmed with emotions saying goodbye to family and friends and seeing the city lights disappear in the distance. It almost felt like there was an invisible string connecting me to it. It was harder than I imagined leaving the comforts behind and not knowing what is in store for the next couple of weeks. The uncertainty and fear was soon replaced by the thrill of the adventure ahead and the race. Qingdao has been a home to me for the past six years and I am feeling very proud to be representing it on this leg.
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We just had our first dinner onboard and soon our very first watch. The Chinese watch names are now replaced by Hawaiian ones. The weather is cold and there is not much wind. Hopefully it will not take us too long to leave the cold waters of the Yellow sea.

Teddy Lazarova-Burns