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Special Report |
LAST UPDATE April 25, 2006
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| April 5, 2006 |
Departure of Peace Boat’s 53rd Global Voyage for Peace |
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| Participants wave vigorous goodbyes to friends and family. |
All together nearly 1,000 participants and staff boarded the Peace Boat in Yokohama Port on April 5th and Kobe Port on April 6th, 2006. Due to tireless outreach efforts of Peace Boat volunteers across Japan, the 53rd Voyage will carry the largest number of participants around the world in Peace Boat’s 23 year history.
The themes onboard the 53rd voyage include: studying the importance of Article #9 of the Japanese constitution, the challenges of violence in the Middle East, rights and sovereignty issues of indigenous peoples, and creating an action plan for a nuclear free world. The boat will travel west through South East Asia, the Middle East, Europe, North American, the Caribbean, and Central American before returning to Japan in July. |
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| Yokohama participants hide from the rain and wait in covered areas. |
Once participants settled in their cabins after checking in, they made their way to upper deck to participate in the departure ceremony. Heavy rains in Yokohama initially deterred many participants from standing out on deck; instead they opted to stand in doorways and covered areas watching the port from the ship’s windows. But as the countdown to departure neared, many of them braved the blustery conditions to wave their last goodbyes. |
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| Friends and families came out in numbers despite the rain. |
In a sea of colorful umbrellas, friends and families gathered on the port-side to cheer their loved ones on. They waved large posters that exclaimed “Bon Voyage!” “Good luck”, and “Go for it, 53rd Voyage!” |
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| Nao Inoue, 53rd Voyage Director, leads the departure ceremony. |
Nao Inoue, Peace Boat’s 53rd Voyage Director, lead the departure ceremony. He galvanized the crowd by sharing the old seaman’s tale—“Rain is a blessing from God”. As the Topaz exited Yokohama bay, many participants were drenched head to toe but their spirits were not dampened. |
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| Kobe participants celebrate enthusiastically as the boat departs the port. |
Kobe was blessed with better weather, turning out a large send off crowd. Voyagers frantically texted and said their goodbyes via soon-to-be-disconnected mobile phones. Some donned colorful wigs and costumes smiling ear to ear with excitement, while others stood by wistfully already missing home. There were grandmothers sporting binoculars trying to catch a last glimpse of their beloved grandchildren. |
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| The last glimpse of Japan for the next three months. |
Participants threw colorful streamers with all their might, creating a beautiful paper-made rainbow bridge connecting the two sides. For many, Kobe will be the last that they will see of their homeland for the next three months. With the sound of the ship’s horn and the raising of Champaign filled paper cups, voyagers expressed great glee of the many adventures to come.
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