Captain Joaquin Zetina is the commanding officer of the Mexican navy vessel Cuauhtemoc, which is taking part in Friday's Hong Kong Tall Ship Spectacular. The naval training ship sailed into Victoria Harbour on Saturday with its 233 crew and cadets on its third trip to the territory since 1990. Born and raised in the east coast tourist haven of Cozumel, the 45-year-old skipper became a naval cadet 29 years ago. He spends half of the year at sea, one month overseeing the ship's annual overhaul in Selina Cruz, and the remainder at home in Acapulco with his wife and three teenage sons. His eldest son has recently joined the Navy. What's on your mind? The ship will be leaving on Friday to sail for Okinawa and I think we can do the trip a couple of days faster than the 12-day schedule. We made it into Hong Kong from Guam in only 14 days. The wind in this area is very good. Why is a naval vessel taking part in the regatta? It is important to win, but the most important thing is that this is a good opportunity for the cadets to learn how to sail under pressure. It is an important part of their studies and development. For most of them this is their first time outside Mexico, and it gives them the chance to interact with other cultures, through the parties they have with seamen from the other vessels. Most Hong Kong people associate Mexico with tequila and fiestas - will there be plenty of this after the trip? Well, concerning your handover, July 1 will also be a celebratory time for us as it's the 100th anniversary of our home naval academy - so we will be celebrating this day along with Hong Kong, although there is a 14-hour time difference! But there is a lot more to Mexico than tequila - like our beaches and resorts, Mayan cultural relics and ruins. The country is bigger than people might think. But yes, tequila is very important, especially when you combine it with the food and music and create that special atmosphere. How was this, your first personal trip navigating Hong Kong waters? Oh, we have had several problems. The weather has not been very good and there is a fair amount of traffic. There are many fishing boats just outside Hong Kong and many do not have enough lights, so we had to be quite cautious. But we were very impressed when we entered the harbour, we could fully understand how economically powerful it is here.
