Sailing yacht to China makes stop in Palau

Dirk Weicke, the sailboat’s captain said that the journey started in November 2007 with at least 120 participating in the tour.Weicke said the yacht has a crew of at least 10 people but in each leg a new crew member will join in.He said the journey was first made by Walross whose membership are composed of sailing enthusiasts from students to biochemists, men and women.Weicke added the tour include at least 25 countries before its China destination.Weicke said so far the journey has been smooth minus the strong winds.The project called  “Under canvas to Peking 2008,”  is expected to go back to Germany in May 2009.Prior to the stop in Palau, the crew members were in Guam.“We are right on schedule,” Weicke said.Michael Topert one of the crew members said most of them are here in Palau for the first time.“It is good to be on the other side of the world,” Topert said.The other crew members in the Palau leg are Uwe Kallenberg, Hannes Kolb, Astrid Kolb, Rolf Exner, Peter Schultz. Axel Michaelis and Bertha Heide.