Student sets sail on tall-ship adventure

I spent a recent weekend wallowing in maritime nostalgia near my home in Greenwich, East London, watching the annual parade of sail-driven tall ships as they prepared to race across the Atlantic to Canada to celebrate that country's 150th confederation anniversary.

Most of the ships, although based on designs that are more than 100 years old, are modern builds, but still rely on sails as their main means of propulsion. Many countries, including most European powers, maintain tall ships through various charity-based organizations known as sail training associations.

The aim, apart from maintaining a link with the maritime past before the days of container ships and massive cruise liners, is to encourage personal development and team-building among young people of all nationalities.