Hikawa Maru, Yamashita Park, Yokohama

Since we're on a Japan kick, here is the Hikawa Maru, which has been berthed in Yokohama's Yamashita Park since 1961. Seeing it as a child, I thought it must have been the biggest ship in the world.The ocean liner was launched in 1929. Charlie Chaplin was its most famous passenger. A number of Jews used it in 1941 to flee the Nazis. During WWII, it was used by the Japanese Imperial Navy as a hospital ship. From 1945 to 1947, the U.S. used it to repatriate American G.I.s. It was then returned to the Japanese and used for carrying cargo and passengers.


CKY