Special Report LAST UPDATE June 2, 2009
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April 18, 2009 As the Ship Draws Closer to Yokohama, Participants Reflect on the Last Three Months
Over the three months of Peace Boat’s 64th voyage, participants have experienced the heat of Africa and the ice of Antarctica; have met Hansen’s disease patients in Taiwan and the indigenous peoples of Tahiti; met youth bringing music to the slums in Brazil and youth keeping their culture alive in Rapa Nui (Easter Island). Aside from the 17 ports that the ship visited, participants learned from over 20 onboard guest educators who discussed topics as diverse as surviving the Vietnam War, bicycling around Africa, the campaign to win international protection for Patagonia, the plight of the indigenous peoples throughout the colonized world, and the devastating effects of nuclear testing. But through it all, it was the participants themselves who made the voyage so exciting and meaningful. Peace Boat provided an opening, welcoming forum for the participants—who come from a huge range of occupations, backgrounds, and ages—to teach and learn from each other. The following six people are just a few of the more than 500 participants who made Peace Boat’s 64th voyage unforgettable.
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Toyota Nobu, 66, Medical consultant, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan
 Mr Toyota was one of the most energetic participants aboard the ship, and could always be counted on to approach guest educators with thoughtful and provocative questions. “One of my favorite guest educators was Dr Kamata because I had respected his work very much before I got onboard,” he said. Mr Toyota joined the trip at the spur of the moment, having noticed an advertisement in the newspaper for the 64th voyage after finishing up a consulting contract. He decided to take a break from his work and join the Peace Boat programme. “I thought this was a great chance,” he said. “I enjoyed the Antarctic cruising the best.” When Mr Toyota returns to Japan, he plans to continue his interest in meeting people from other cultures by joining newly formed international medical consulting company.
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Ishizawa Yusuke, 22, University student, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan
 As a student studying environmental biology with a strong desire to work outside of Japan, Peace Boat was an obvious choice for Mr Ishizawa, or “Mohi” as he is affectionately known on the ship due to his Mohican (Mohawk) hairstyle. After traveling to 16 new countries, Mohi decided that he would be most interested in working in Africa. “The continent is facing really severe issues, and I probably can’t change it that much just by myself, but I was really drawn to South Africa,” he said. “I felt like there was a lot of potential there. There was a lot of energy in the air that was a by-product of South Africa making a huge effort to pull itself up out of poverty. I want to be there for the moment that the country changes.” Mohi’s favorite event onboard the ship was the Sports Festival, where all the participants were split into four teams and competed in games like three-legged race and tug-of-war. “I felt like everyone on the whole ship came together to be a part of that, and something like that doesn’t happen very often,” he said.
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Iritani Kumie, 69, Homemaker, Kansai, Japan
 Ms Iritani, who joined the voyage along with her husband, had dreamed of joining Peace Boat for a long time, but had to put off the trip for ten years due to health and financial difficulties. When she was finally able to take part in the programme, the 64th voyage did not disappoint. “I was most excited about Antarctica!” said Ms Iritani, who joined a 19-day expedition to the continent with a small group of participants. “I saw so much nature, which I love, so it was wonderful.” Besides Antarctica, she was most interested in Kenya. “It wasn’t necessarily ‘fun,’” she explained, “but I was very moved by what I saw in Mombasa because it was even less developed that I expected. I never knew that they had to travel so far for water there or that they were so poor.” In addition to exploring the ports to their fullest, Ms Iritani and her husband also held daily table tennis lessons and occasional competitions on the ship, a hobby they have enjoyed for 15 years.
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Takeuchi Kengo, 22, University student, Aichi Prefecture, Japan
 Always smiling, Mr Takeuchi was a vital part of the ship’s social life, even becoming the drummer of a band formed on the ship called No Reazon. Though he concedes that the band might not be the most talented, that wasn’t the point for him: “I like to create spaces where everyone can enjoy each other’s company and drink and have a good time,” he explained. “Through music, I can accomplish that.” Although Mr Takeuchi loves to have fun, his reasons for joining Peace Boat go beyond socializing. As a student focusing on social welfare issues in Japan, he wanted to see what welfare systems are in place in other countries before graduating and settling down to a job at home. “My favorite port was Kenya because I got to go to a facility for mentally challenged people, and I’ve been working with people in similar situations in Japan,” he said. “I got to meet a Japanese person who was volunteering there and I got to talk to him about learn about the work he was doing, which was really inspiring.”
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Yamamoto Shiro, 63, Retired post office employee, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan
 When Mr Yamamoto first saw a poster advertising Peace Boat 15 years ago, he wanted to go, but couldn’t take the time off work. Still, he kept the idea in the back of his mind, and when he recently retired he was able to join the 64th voyage. He decided not to research any of the ports or the countries in advance, and to just experience them when he got there. “I was more excited than nervous,” he said. Like Ms Iritani, Mr Yamamoto joined the expedition to Antarctica, something he thought he would never get to experience. “I will never forget the two weeks in Antarctica,” he said. In addition to participating in the cruise itself, Mr Yamamoto realized another goal when he took part in Peace Boat’s Global English/Español Training programme. “I’ve always wanted to be able to have English conversation,” he said. Though his GET classes were “half painful, half fun,” one of his proudest and most enjoyable moments on the ship was when he participated in the GET speech contest with an original English speech. “I was really nervous, but had so much fun,” he said.
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Kawada Miyako, 20, Student, Aichi Prefecture, Japan
 Another talented young participant, Ms Kawada could often be seen at events singing as the leader of Ground Zero, a band formed on the ship. Having performed with a band only once before the voyage, the experience with Ground Zero was a lot of fun for her. “I have a lot of karaoke experience, but performing live was totally different!” she said. “But all of the members in Ground Zero were new at music, so we had to overcome stage fright together and learn how to write songs together.” Ms Kawada’s favorite port was Rio de Janeiro because “Brazil is famous for martial arts, and I do Japanese martial arts myself. It was cool to see the connection between Brazil and Japan.” After having joined Peace Boat “looking for a clue about what to do with my life,” Ms Kawada has decided that she would like to study abroad and become fluent in English. She might even like to return to Peace Boat as one of the Communication Coordinators (volunteer interpreters) one day.