Just back from Japan last night ka.
It started off nicely with months ahead of time planning and communicating with friends in Japan about our get-together(s)!
Well! It’s the true world of changes kaaa!
Hagibis hit japan before we left and another storm greeted us the day before we left.
Learning from this trip ka:
Travel plans
Be ready to accept (uncertain situations from climate change, which is so worrying worldwide) that adjustments may be needed at the last minute (we changed our sightseeing destinations and the route we had to head for Narita, buying online tickets successfully around 2 to get up at 4 for the train connection!)
Local friends and contacts are the best to give advice from their direct experiences since news on websites may not be that updated, nor that friendly to visitors as wished.
Hotel management
One hotel came up with some gifts for customers if they don’t make make-up-room request, offering from a box of munchies and souvenir chopsticks to powder sheets and beer! Interested to get it mai ka? It clearly shows how housekeepers and costs could be challenging issues! Here’s where robots can just jump right in na ka!
Becoming cashless soon?
An incentive the Japanese government has been offering to its citizens is to give 5% discount when using card, not cash. I really wonder if it works and at the same time, have been thinking of strategies the Chinese government used to lure its huge population to have cashless lifestyles!?!
Career women!
With more women working even after they have children, nursery has become a must. Yet, it still poses challenges as numbers of babies aren’t that big!
Independent and healthy elderly
More working males and more female elderly are obviously seen! Would this be gradually changing when more women work and hopefully more males stay longer?!
I was at Himeji castle and saw one grandma climbing up to the top to see how it was built and how things were done in the long past. Even I’m much younger, it was a struggle climbing up and down on steep steps all through the six floors! She slowly went down and looked happy! It gave me a good lesson how one’s life can be enjoyable despite more limitations.
Olympics, management, and volunteering spirit
As Olympics will be held next year, my friend has been selected to be a volunteer, saying that her English proficiency should be useful to the event! Out of over 200,000 applicants, only 80,000 were recruited (to help with 'Game Operations' and more for others too). It’s ‘volunteer work with a proud and happy heart’ kind of thing to me ka. It’s not just the recruitment process (only 2 minute interview per applicant!), successful applicants have to enroll an intensive online training to have some basic knowledge. In addition, the tasks will be assigned, not by choice. Very systematic the Japanese quality style jing jing!
I’m curious to know how many Thais in their 50’s with a full time job and a family responsibility would go through such a process ka!
Living with nature
In the disruptive technology era, Japan stands proud with its philosophy to live in harmony with the nature. The new Digital Art Museum Teamlab Borderless has boasted the blended beauty of nature, art, and technology. Even the tea they served was with digital flowers on our small tea bowls!......Awesome! This makes me feel less worried to see that it’s possible for us to lead a pleasant life, partnering better with AI and other digital gadgets ka.
Is it all about relationships?
Being an alum of the Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Program, I have been blessed to have heart-to-heart friendship with my ship friends. Every visit to Japan and other 5 ASEAN countries (including Brunei which just became an ASEAN Member then!) is rich with endless cultural learning plus renewed or continued strong bonds.
How much such relationships could be nurtured among our digital-native-younger-generations and in what ways remain to be my big questions!
Let me stop before going on and on kaa.
Happy Sunday ka.
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