Bulletin August 12th 2006

Captain’s and Engineer’s reception
On Thursday, the captains and engineers of the participating ships were officially welcomed in Rostock. Holger Bellgardt, the Hanse Sail manager, greeted the captains aboard the GORCH FOCK. Among the 300 good-humoured guests were prominent ones like Rostock’s mayor, Roland Methling and Klaipeda’s city councillor, Judita Simonaviciute. Applauded by the other guests, the QUALLE was awarded with the Baltic Sail Trophy, because it had moored at all participating harbours that year. Furthermore, the great amount of  € 400 has been collected and handed over to the Swedish GERDA GEFLE because it had unfortunately had a small collision accident at the quay on the first day. The schooner brigg GREIF captain had spontaneously decided to top the sum by 100 euros. The representatives of the GREIF handed over the Klaipedan honour flag to the GORCH FOCK.
More than 90 engineers of the mooring ships were welcomed by Helmut Köster, who is spokesman of the doyens of the Rostock ship engineers’ association. First the engineers talked shop and enjoyed their dinner, to be entertained musically by the Rostock Shanty choir “Breitling” afterwards.

Eight seaplanes from three nations
The atmosphere in the fishing harbour in Marienehe has ‘taken off’. For the 6th sea plane reunion, the requests for joint flights is big. A total of eight seaplanes offer to take passengers up into the air. For the first time, among them is a  Dutch seaplane. According to the manager of the seaplane reunion, Peter Kumpart, “The feedback is great. However, it is very sad that the pilots from England and Austria were not able to come here because of the bad wheather conditions.” The most wanted flighing time: this morning when the traditional sailing ships sail out for the parade. The start of the 50 ships for the regatta also promises to be a feast for the eyes from above. The starting signal is given at noon near the Western mole. Depending on the wind conditions, the route of the regatta is supposed to be parallel to the coastline.

‘Healthy’ state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
The 7th Baltic Sea forum, organised by the Herder society, was dedicated to chances and opportunities of the health economy. The conference themed “Get old healthily”, worked on its objective to make Mecklenburg-Vorpommern the ‘healthiest’ state. The society’s president, PhD Ines Nagijew, “The 7th Baltic Sea forum is supposed to be an international platform for the dialogue between business, science, politics and administration.
Many different guests from Iceland, Austria and Bulgaria participated in the discussions in the townhall. While the marketing director from Reykjavik informed the audience about the ‘healthy’ country Iceland, the Rostockers presented the expert centre of orthopaedics.

Open ship at the speed boat OZELOT
A great visitor attraction is the fast patrol boat of the German Navy, at the city harbour, from the 7th speedboat squadron Hohe Düne. “Our crew is very proud to show the boat to the Hanse Sail visitors. The attendants are interested in the technique of the vessel, its field of application and the daily routine aboard. It’s about starting with doing one’s daily dozen, the places to rest and the ocean shipping lane. Today the lieutenant commander Swistek, the 1st  officer of the watch of the boat, expects the biggest visitor boom. Michael Swistek thanks for the fantastic care  that he and his crew have been experiencing every day. Thanks to the organisation team of the Hanse Sail.

Action at the beach: Kitesurf-Trophy
The smallest and surely most sportive unit on water at the Sail are the Kitesurfers: 45 sportsmen start for the SEAT Kitesurf Trophy on up to 1.60 metre boards in Warnemünde. Alex Soto from the Dominican Republic belongs to the favourites as well as the 15-year old Mario Rodwald from Redsburg. “The location is great, the riders are excited”, according to Pascal Matzke, head organiser of the German championship Run that has already taken place on Fehmarn, in Kiel and on the island Sylt.
Daily at 10 am, the competitions on water start – provided that the wind blows strong enough. “ 3 to 4 Beaufort would be ideal, but also without wind we can offer a lot at the beach”, says Matzke. So the SEAT-Bungee-Jumping Tower, the EA Game Zone and the North German Radio 2 showtruck are going to entertain the guests. The last tourstop takes place from August 25th to 27th in St. Peter Ording.

Diving at the museum harbour
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the German Navy, the helmet diving club Ostsee e. V., the Navy diving group and a South-German diving club present their technical equipment at the museum harbour. According to the club manager, Rolf Schleckel, “We are presenting four different diving methods and want to show the equipment, which was used yesterday and which is used by the Navy today.” 
“Depending on adequate health conditions, Hanse Sail guests can dive here. The water is 4.5 metres deep here, but the visibility ranges only 30 cm.” The algae are responsible for that.
Test dives with light-weight instruments is possible in the neighbourhood at the “D.I.V.E. diving centre Schwerin, Parchim,Waren”. By the way, this diving container was sponsored by the Warnow crossing association.

A king at the Sail
The self-crowned king is on our Hanse Sail stage today. From 10.45 pm, Jürgen Drews is going to liven up the supposedly big audience with his songs and entertainment. On the stage at the Haedge-Halbinsel (peninsula) there is Shanty and brass music in the morning. At 4 pm, we can listen to the anniversary concert of the Breitling Stompers (on the occasion of their 20th birthday). The trade chain Globus made the whole programme on stage possible, with the ‘royal’ star guest. Organiser, Elfy Zentsch, is happy that there has been a steady partnership for many years.
On the NDR stage, at 5 pm, the participants of the Hanse Tour Sonnenschein are going to arrive and will be welcomed together with co-cyclist, premier Harald Ringstorff. For many years, they have been cycling for financial support of children suffering from cancer. At 8pm the Austrian music star DJ Ötzi & Band is going to heat up the atmosphere. On the LOHRO stage there is pop music by “Klee”, wave sounds by “Burn” and the presently best Hip Hop act from M-V “Milz & Tristan Micronomicon”.
At noon there is going to be the starting signal of the two-days fleetrace. They 30 best optimist sailing boats from North Germany are going to start at the sailing stadium. For the second time in Rostock, the NDR sailing newcomer has to be found.
From 8.30 pm N-JOY is going to present Germany’s Top Ten music, R&B and Soul music by Rapsoul, Seabastian Hämer & Band and DJ Grandmaster Ben & Fab – Five fingers. The sky above Rostock and Warnemünde is going to be the night’s greatest stage at 10.30 pm, when as every year two big firework are started.

On a big journey with the SONNI
SONNI is the Sail’s smallest participant. It is a boat for four persons, which are seated on two benches behind each other. PhD Andreas Wiese and Volker Rechenberg are presenting their boat at the quay of the sailing harbour: “Under the backbench there are four 12-volts storage batteries”, according to Wiese, the skipper of the solar boat from Remagen-Oberwinter. “It is open to all sides but with a roof, on which two solar modules with a power of  115 watt are installed. With these, the outboard e-engine reaches a speed of 7 knots. “This is comfortable but fast enough.” Moreover, PhD Andreas Wiese points out the single-hand control of the water vehicle. Similar to air plane control sticks,  the steering and speed regulation is operated with a kind of joystick.

Happy moments at the city harbour
Volker Rosin has arranged for happy moments at the city harbour. The king of the kids disco makes the smaller guests move with songs like “The singing kangaroo”. Till Sunday, the adventure village “Nivea - Happy moments” is open from 10 to 6 and is offering a mobile tent town on 4,000 square metres in front of the GEORG BÜCHNER. There is much to do and to see for the youngsters and their older company. “Especially, the bread baking and the SOS children village tent, hosting an exhibition of the playing situation of the Third World, are a great success.”, according to project head, Volkmar Bobsin. He and his team have already brought the happy moments to Dortmund, Hannover, St. Peter Ording and Köln in 2006. The adventure village is a project in cooperation with Nivea and SOS children villages worldwide. The project supports the official charity project “Six villages in 2006” for the FIFA World Cup. There is free entry to the “Happy moments village”, but donations are welcome.

Lithuanian bread with garlic and cheese
The 25 ladies and gentlemen present the Lithuanian market in the International Village deliciously and aesthetically. For the first time, such a big crew from the Baltic state has come to Rostock, with caterers, craftsmen and tourism experts. The visitors can choose between self-made bread with spices, garlic and cheese and smoked beer sausage or beer pure from Klaipeda. According to the team leader, Vida Leonaviciene, “We have been welcomed in Rostock heartily. I and my crew think that the market organisation is very good. The partnership with the Hanse Sail is also a future task for us.” On the market there is lot for sale: the famous Lithuanian amber jewelry, fine wood carvings as well as clothes with folkloric patterns and pictures. Moreover, the tourism service centre on the market offers trips to Klaipeda and other Lithuanian places, as well as street maps, ferry and flight connections.

Captains praise the great crew of the harbour master’s office
The BALTIC BEAUTY (brigantine 1926/1980) skipper, Viktor Gottloff from Rönneby, South Sweden, is already a Sail veteran. However, he is still impressed by the whole atmosphere and organisation of the maritime service. According to him, “There is a magnificent crew of experts who supervises the water traffic and the service.” The former captain, who sailed the seas with big Swedish cargo ships, has now retired. The diving fan guides his baltic beauty on the Baltic Sea and is happy about being at the Hanse Sail for the 10th time.  The captain of the freshly renewed WISSEMARA, which has come to the Hanse Sail for the first time, answers the question with a very short “OK”. According to Dieter Pochert, “The crew of the harbour master’s office and the shipping office and the ship servicemen are doing a great job.”

Join a trip on a ship – still ‘place for the race’
The traditional sailing ship, OLL KORL bears its age really well.The cutter with 140 square metres sail canvas was built in 1910. The small crew is known for an experienced and safe navigation as well as for humorous company. Guests are invited. The same goes for the schooner VORPOMMERN (1950/1955) . Passengers are most welcome for trips and those who prefer sailing on the cutter yacht called SEEHUND (1950) – there is also still ‘place for the race’. Interested? Please contact the booking centre at +49 (0)381 208 52-26/-61 or +49 (0)162-458 777 2.

From chef to guest
The crews of the participating boats and ships have been invited to local restaurants, in the framework of the project “Invited by Mecklenburgers”. The crew of the frigate MECKLENBURG-VORPOMMERN, for instance, has been invited to the Hotel Hübner. Thus, the ship cooks will be able to change roles and become guests. The local restaurants want to to integrate the Sail participants into the events in the city centre and give them some moments of relaxation. The seamen of the MECKLENBURG-VORPOMMERN were really happy about the invitation and hope to get a chance to exchange recipies with their colleagues from the host hotel.

Hello Mr Postman
The collecters’ club Hansephil e. V. has set up its tents once more. The club and its partners of the Hanse Sail association and the private post service “Ostsee-Post” have pitched camp between the gantry cranes in the city harbour. Apart from maritime post documents of the former years, new editions themed “The Navy in Rostock” can be seen. Hanse Sail guests can decorate their holiday greeting cards with special stamps of this year’s participating vessels GREIF and GORCH FOCK and post them.
A hello to Mr Postman – not only in the city harbour but also in the rotunda at the IGA park site, which is going to open August 12th.

Crew and guests truly inebriated by the FREYA
The 101-year old paddle-steamer FREYA, which is mooring at the quay near the storage houses, attracts a lot of attention. Not only Klaus Hetzer from Kühlungsborn finds really romanticising words “The ship is the epiphany of seafaring. I worked as a deep-sea fisherman in Rostock for 7 years. I think my opinion is a good judgement.” According to another thrilled guest, Gisela Fram, from Delve, Dittmarschen: “ The FREYA is really elegant. From the out- and the inside. The sea-trip was great, regarding the catering and the further entertainment.” If the passengers leave his boat in a good mood like that, the skipper, Hans Joachim Wiegmann, is happy, the catering chief glad, his deputy, Martina smiles, and the cook, Peter Wernitz, is once more satisfied with their done work.

For the culinary well-being of …
… all the Sail guests is cared for by many, many, many. Well-known restaurants like “Zum Alten Fritz” or the “Hafenrestaurant Borwin” in the city harbour have been satisfying the hungry as well as small food stalls. You can imagine their popularity, considering the sale numbers. The small company, Siegmar Böttger, which offers charcoal-grill delicacies was able to sell 100 kilos of meat. Anne Lieberenz and Thomas Rangel, who are responsible for the field kitchen of the LT club, have had similar sale success: 200 litres of pea soup and 400 sausages. Those who are dying for a healthy drink, can  ask Rainer Schnurre, the wine adviser from the winery Pallhuber – clearly not for wine but for fruit juice which is also on offer and a big Sail success.
Finally, a very special stimulant for the own lust can be found at the “Schokoladeria” – the chocolate shop of Ulrich Deprie. The big Sail success is a chocolate drink with orange juice on ice. Chocolate makes people happy and gay - many Sail guests have already tried that. We are very content with our sales so far.”

Preview for Sunday (August 13th)
Tomorrow at 10 am the sailing vessels and their guests will glide into the sea area off Warnemünde. At the same time, an ecumenical divine service is going to take place at the passenger quay of Warnemünde. The exhibition of model trains will let their trains go from 10 am. In the city harbour, the maritime market mile will be open and in Marienehe you can visit and test water planes and helicopters. At 1 pm the DGzRS will organise an Open-ship day. There the rescue of castaways will be simulated. “De Klaashahns” are going to sing on the Hanse Sail stage at 11 am, Heide Mundo on the Goliath-stage in the city harbour, the Rock and Pop school Rostock wants to present newcomer bands at 4 pm in the Segelstadion and at 11 am the famous “Breitling Stompers” invite guests to their 20th anniversary with their fans on the stage at the lighthouse.

Our Hanse Sail series (3)
Iceland – science and culture
Science and culture are of great importance in the North European island nation which hosts 280,000 inhabitants. Nearly 14,000 students study at the three universities in Reykjavik and Akureyeri. More than 1,800 young Icelanders study abroad. And there is even more potential scientificwise- the research council, the Navy research institute, the fishing laboratory. The academy of arts, the Iceland movie centre and the symphony orchestra form a part of Iceland’s cultural institutions. Nine per cent of public investments are spent on education. More money is spent only on social affairs.
The Icelanders value their language. There has been an agreement since the 17th century that for all new words, be it discoveries, inventions or loan words, an Icelandic equivalent has to be found. There is a committee, formed by the people, which deals with that language control. The Germans, on the contrary, tend to have problems in finding German equivalents to English loanwords. There is no possible translation of words like ‘skateboard’ or ‘halfpipe’. Words like ‘shoppen’, ‘chillen’ and ‘boxen’ – are they German or English words?

The wheather forecast
Up to now the Hanse Sail guests have been lucky. The sun has been fighting successfully against the rain and cloud axis. In the morning we will have a partly cloudy sky and some rainy but also some sunny moments. The afternoon will be as varying as the days before. When the German band “Die Prinzen” entered the IGA stage yesterday, clouds covered the sky and the temperature went down from 20 degrees Celsius to 10. Luckily the atmosphere at the concert was hot enough. Today we will have the same sky szenery, but unfortunately without the “Prinzen”, since they have already gone back to Leipzig.