In early May 2017, the temperature in Yokohama was mild and comfortable. It was the final month of spring, and I was enjoying my stay in the Japanese port city despite a hectic business schedule. The Asian Development Bank was holding its 50th annual meeting and I was attending the celebration marking the Bank’s golden jubilee, held at one of the world’s largest integrated convention and exhibition complexes: the Pacific Convention Plaza Yokohama.
Located on the waterfront of the futuristic Minato Mirai 21 district, the venue—popularly known as Pacifico Yokohama—is a major tourist attraction in its own right, thanks to its grandeur and striking, maritime-themed architecture that resembles a bivalve seashell and ocean waves.
For several days that May, it became my routine to walk along the beautiful Tokyo Bay area from my hotel near Sakuragicho Station to Pacifico Yokohama. It was a pleasant, 15-minute stroll. Every time I walked past the bustling Queen’s Square—which houses the Minato Mirai Tokyu Square, a major retail and dining destination spanning multiple buildings—my eyes fell upon a beautiful sailing ship docked permanently on the water.
Built by Kawasaki Shipbuilding in Kobe, Japan, the iconic Nippon Maru was launched on January 27, 1930, and served for over five decades as a training vessel, earning the nickname "Swan of the Pacific." A four-masted barque featuring 32 sails, the Nippon Maru is now permanently preserved in a stone dry dock at the Nippon Maru Memorial Park along the western edge of Tokyo Bay.
A barque is a specific type of sailing ship – having three or more masts and special settings of sails – that was highly popular in the 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly for long-distance trade and training.
During its 54 years of active service, Nippon Maru logged over 1.8 million kilometers and trained more than 11,500 navy cadets before retiring in 1984. It also served as an emergency transport and repatriation ship during and after World War II.
Following its retirement, the Yokohama Port Museum began maintaining the ship as a floating exhibit. By a pleasant coincidence, the year I visited Yokohama was the exact year Japan officially designated the Nippon Maru as a National Important Cultural Property.
In one of the photos accompanying this feature, readers will notice festive fireworks lighting up the night sky behind the majestic masts. The illuminated numbers "2017" visible in the background celebrate the milestone of its official designation. While strolling around the park grounds is entirely free, visitors can purchase tickets to tour the historic interior decks of the ship and explore the adjacent, semi-underground Yokohama Port Museum.
I loved watching the Nippon Maru during my time in Minato Mirai, but I left with one unfulfilled wish—I never caught a glimpse of it with 29 sails open. Because the "Full-Sail Exhibition" isn't an everyday event, timing is everything. It only happens about 10 to 12 times a year, when a team of roughly 80 volunteers unfurls the sails entirely by hand.
Beyond the ship, the entire vicinity of Minato Mirai is a tourist paradise. Adjacent to the Nippon Maru Memorial Park is Yokohama Cosmo World, an amusement park where I was captivated by a massive Ferris wheel unlike any I had seen before.
Known as the Cosmo Clock 21, it held the distinction of being the world’s tallest Ferris wheel when it first opened in 1989 at a height of 353 feet. A decade later, it was relocated slightly and rebuilt on a taller platform, raising its total height to 369 feet. While it is no longer the overall tallest, it still holds the unique distinction of being the world's largest Ferris wheel equipped with a clock.
During my days in Yokohama, this daily commute between my hotel and Pacifico Yokohama—framed by bustling malls, the World War II-era ship, and the towering Ferris wheel—became a comforting constant. One afternoon, I went up to the 69th floor of the nearby Yokohama Landmark Tower to visit the iconic Sky Garden Observatory.
Completed in 1993, this nearly 1,000-foot skyscraper stood as the tallest building in Japan for over two decades until 2014, and it remains one of the country's tallest structures today. Nursing a relaxing cup of coffee at the Sky Café, I enjoyed a spectacular, 360-degree panoramic view of Yokohama, the sparkling bay, and the Cosmo Clock 21 spinning down below.
Admiring that giant Ferris wheel in Minato Mirai left a lasting impression on me. Long afterward, the prospect of having one in my own city brought those fond memories of Yokohama rushing back. Today, Dhaka is getting ready for its own first massive Ferris wheel, set to open in the Central Park at the eastern periphery of the city.
