Xiamen boat show

This weekend was the Xiamen Boat Show at Wuyuan Bay （五缘湾）, an inlet of the sea at the North-East of Xiamen Island. The event reflects the growing wealth of the Chinese upper middle-class, who are looking for something new and exciting to impress their peers and/or business clients.
Xiamen is an attractive island, surrounded by a multitude of smaller islands and islets, and nice sheltered waters, perfect for sailing and motorboating. There are two marinas, one here at Wuyuan Bay, and another on the East coast, near the Xiamen Convention Center, but both have only a small number of available spots occupied, mostly by motor yachts. Sailboats are still very rare.
The Xiamen Boat Show is not very big, and dwarfed by the Dutch Hiswa show. Interestingly enough, the largest motor yachts on display are build by Dutch wharfs, looking for new export opportunities after the economic crisis hit the European market.

The reason for our visit was the presence of Marine XO, a Chinese company funded by a British boat enthusiast, which specializes in building replicas of classic Chinese sailboats or junks. Both sea-going ships and scale models for museums and private collectors are build by this wharf, based in Zhoushan, Zhejian province. Marine XO brought a 4m and a 6m version of their Chinese junk. The larger one was in the water, fully rigged, the smaller was on display at their booth.
I was introduced to Wayne, the driving force behind Marine XO, and he showed me around on his creation. A beautifully crafted sailboat, build according to original plans, but fitted with modern electronics and a German-build electric motor for precise and easy navigation in harbours.
If all goes according to plan, I will sail these boats in the future, as part of our sailing school operations.