an ordinary day in Xiamen

We don't know how many times people have asked us how we teach those 'chineesjes' how to sail. So it's about time we offer you an impression of our daily work.

Every day (except on sundays) we get out of our Asian Gulf Hotel -beds at 8 o'clock and have (a lavish) breakfast.

We take a taxi to the club (and it's always a miracle when we get there alive).

We welcome the kids. Pictures: Tom, Kennedy, Joe (the result of a chinese mother and a brittish father)

Yesterday we had a day off due to heavy rains, but today we could rig the boats right out in the sun ( in the picture: the children are pouring the water out of the boats). We let the children sail around two marks, which they did quite succesfully (hurray for us).

At 12 o'clock we have lunch in a local cantine nearby. On the menu today: rice, egg soup, fish heads, tofu, porc and soya beans: finger-lickin' good!

In the pictures: Mathieu showing off his chopsticks-skills and Barbara with the chefs.

After the break, which we spend most of the time on explaining Chinese and European differences, we teached them today how to beat upwind (which, amazingly, some of them understood).

And for those who think that this is the end of our day, we usually accompany the children to the centre of Xiamen, have dinner (with or without translators), rummage around, write blogs, go jogging, or, like this evening, organise a drink on the beach.