Live on board a ship with 300 young people from Asean and Japan, learn about their cultures and visit their countries.

That's what 27 young people from Singapore are getting to do on the Nippon Maru, a cruise ship carrying the youth ambassadors on a South-east Asian and Japanese Youth Programme spanning more than 50 days.

The ship was at Singapore Cruise Centre for the last four days, during which the youth had a homestay with local families as well as a taste of Singapore culture and local life. It set sail yesterday and will dock in Jakarta on Friday before returning to Japan, where the youth, aged 18 to 30, boarded for the journey.