29.07-01.08.2019 Singapore, here we are!

We made it! Finally, after many months of preparation, we arrived on late Monday afternoon in Singapore, where our expedition to the South China Sea with R/V Sonne will start on August 2. To the great joy and relief of all, the luggage is also here, so that after a few minutes of waiting the whole expedition party went with the ship agent to our hotel. Despite 14 hours in the plane it did not take long and some of us were on their way again, to explore Singapore by night. Since we still had one day on land to acclimatize, we could enjoy the tropical night to the full.

Our project and the expedition are also of interest to the local press. The German Embassy in Singapore helped to arrange an interview of a journalist from Eco-Business with Prof. Waniek (the chief scientist) and Prof. Schulz Bull, in which both reported about the upcoming four expedition weeks. Meanwhile there was a lot of activity on board. The equipment was distributed to the laboratories from the containers and the labs were set up.

Our Chinese colleagues also arrived in time without any organisational hiccups, including their equipment. Time passes quickly, but now, on the evening of August 1, almost everything is prepared for the expedition start. Until morning there are still a few things to do, but by tomorrow all will be ready.

(Photos: IOW / R. Prien, please click for a larger view)