Balangay Boats to Retrace Sultan’s Historic China Voyage
In 1417, a Filipino sultan made his voyage to China riding a traditional wooden boat called a balangay. Several centuries later, 29 crew members and three vessels are retracing his journey.
Three identical wooden boats together with its crew members set sail from the Philippines to China on Saturday. The goal is to retrace the historic trip of Sultan Paduka Batara.
The sultan was the East king of Sulu. He sailed to China in 1417 with 300 other people of noble descent to pay tribute to the Chinese emperor and also to trade. He eventually fell ill and died there.
The 18-meter boats used for the modern-day journey are balangay replicas. Two of them are equipped with engines while the other one is propelled by sail. Engines were installed to comply with Chinese maritime regulations prohibiting wind-powered vessels from docking alone.
The vessels are being manned by 29 crew members, including three women. They are hoping to cross the South China Sea and get to the Eastern city of Xiamen by May 2.
There were already attempts to complete the journey before using the same vessels. Unfortunately, all of them failed because of the winds and rough seas.
“This boat is a replica of an ancient boat. It is not an all-weather boat. You have to fix it up. It is very vulnerable to weather and sea,” said expedition leader Arturo Valdez, who previously led a Filipino expedition that climbed Mount Everest.
Valdez remains hopeful, though. He mentioned that the state weather bureau in Manila forecasts fine weather from Saturday until the morning of May 2, but the weather conditions can get rough beyond that.
The crew members are hoping to slip through and dodge the bad weather before it hits their route.
Although the Philippines and China still have territorial conflict specifically over parts of the South China Sea, Valdez said that this voyage can help showcase longtime maritime ties.
“These waters never divided us. These waters unified us,” he said. “And this boat, as a replica of an ancient boat, is a symbol of that relationship.”
via ABS-CBN News / Agence France-Presse
