After traveling 12,000 nautical miles around the Pacific, students of the California Mari­time Academy pulled into Honolulu on Monday afternoon aboard the training ship Golden Bear.

The students, a mix of soon-to-be seniors and sophomores, arrived at Honolulu’s Pier 19 Ferry Terminal after a two-month voyage.

Of the 240 academy cadets aboard the ship, 10 are from Hawaii. Many parents and siblings waited at the pier.

Kaimi Yoza, 15, held lei to give to her sister Aloha, 19, a St. Andrew’s Priory graduate.

"She just loved living at sea and traveling the world," said mom Kehau Yoza of Kailua. "When she would email us, it was so full of excitement."

The training voyage included stops in New Zealand and Australia. The California Mari­time Academy of Vallejo, Calif., is part of the California State University system.

Harry Bolton, captain of the 500-foot Golden Bear, said the ship allows students preparing for careers in the maritime industry to "take all the training and practice from the academy and apply that in real life, in real time, at sea."

Aloha Yoza had a chance to help with the steering. "It was stressful (at the helm), but it was a great opportunity to bring the ship home," she said.

Napu Hamasaki, 19, of Kaneohe graduated from Saint Louis School.

"I’ve been on the water my whole life, I’ve been fishing my whole life and I have uncles in the industry," said Hamasaki, who wants to operate tugboats after graduating.

Nainoa Gumapae-McGuire, 19, of Waima­nalo, a Kaiser High School graduate, said he was motivated to attend the academy to explore maritime careers. His goal is to become a harbor pilot.

Elle Watson, 19, of Kaimuki, a Mid-Pacific Institute graduate, was set on the Maritime Academy and applied only to that school.

Watson, who is studying to be an engineer, said of the school’s 7-to-1 male-female ratio, "It was difficult, especially as an engineer. There are not many girls in my major. Right now on the cruise there were only three girls in the engineering department in the freshman class."