In 1962, Kenichi Horie, a young man 27 years
old, sailed across the Pacific in a yacht from Japan to
San Francisco. At that time the relationship between
Japan and the United States was strained. Mr. Horie had
no passport, no permission to land his boat. All he had
was the determination of a young adventurer. He was lucky
enough to have picked San Francisco where Mayor George
Christopher admired his courage, and made him and
honorary citizen of San Francisco.
Thirty-seven years later Mr. Horie again made the
journey. His message in the journey is respect for the
environment and good use of our natural resources. He
journied in 1999 from San Francisco to Japan on the
Mermaid II. See pictures
of the Mermaid II and the information placques about Mr.
Horie at Akashi Beach.
Now, the Mermaid III is going to make the trip from
Japan to San Francisco. Mr. Horie is sponsored by Malt's
Beer company. The boat itself is made from recycled white
oak from whiskey barrels, and the mast is recycled
aluminum from the beer cans. The sails are fabric from
ECOPET bottles.
