The Nippon Diary

Posted on May 17, 2010 
Filed Under Blog

The Nippon Diary - 1   The Super Cabbie :

We got into a Taxi from our Hotel to get to the office in downtown area of Tokyo this morning. Inspite of a local resident who played the role of an active navigator for the cabbie, a couple of mistakes led to the drive getting longer than necessary – say, by about a couple of kilometers and ten minutes of time. We were, in fact, displeased enough to crack a joke or two amongst ourselves (in Hindi) about the Cabbie.  Soon, we had to eat the humble pie. At the end of the journey, the cabbie not only apologized but insisted on taking only 1000 Yen against the meter reading of about 1920 Yen. 

 

You can imagine the impact that it had on us – we travelled from ridicule to admiration about the person.  Just imagine – this is a normal cabbie that we hailed outside our hotel. On the street experience #1!

 

 

 Is this normal for a youngster to do ?

In the afternoon, we were travelling by the local train from Gotanda and had to change at a particular station. With enormous effort and after overcoming his hesitation, Rajesh politely enquired a young girl about the directions.  The hesitation was due to the fact that she was waiting for her own train during peak hours and more importantly, was enjoying her music with the iPod / ear phone. The response was unbelievable. Just as she took her ear-phones and began assisting Rajesh, her train arrived on the platform. However, she felt that she must accompany us to help us find our way. She gave up her chance of boarding her train, walked along with us over the bridge until a point from where she could clearly give directions to us towards our destination.  We were left stunned and soaked in admiration for this college going young girl of 18 or 19!   On-the-street experience #2!

 

As you know, the first impressions are very important. They end up playing a crucial role in building a lasting perception of any new experience – a person, a place, an event etc,. As a traveler, I have also been fairly conscious of the inaccuracy that the first impression could build vis a vis the reality of a new place. As I landed in Tokyo and prepared for the days ahead, I was looking forward to a nice experience with my own discounting factor built in my head.

 

At the end of day two and with a few on-the-street experiences, I do think that the reality is reasonably closer to my perceptions. My earlier experience of Japan is that of a day-long loitering on the streets of Osaka. This is a first on-the-ground experience of the country of the rising Sun. I am not jumping to conclusions as a traveler should not. At least not prematurely. But, the country is growing enormously in me. Perhaps, on us.

 

Some obversations – orderly, no honking on the roads, spit-and-polish clean, humility is institutionalized in the society, very hands-on people and so on.

  Electronic shitpot

Can u imagine a commode that is more of an electronic device than a mechanical one (because of the flush J). Imagine (or see the pic on FB) a shotpot that has sensors that you have taken your seat, that has electronic buttons just you would have in your high value car to adjust the stereo or lights.  You are controlling the variables such as the type of jet (mono / dual), the angle, the speed, gender sensitivity etc,.  I am told that this is still far from the real e-commodes with sensors that are already in the market.

 What is ICU for us -  is first aid for them !

For any one who knows a bit of healthcare, AED is a known acronym. It stands for Automated electronic defibrillator (AED) that is deployed first on the patient in the case of a heart attack. It is believed to be an effective intervention in at least 75 per cent of the cases. You will find the doctors applying it in hospitals across the world including India.

 

It is just a tad different in Japan. You find AED in malls, rail stations, hotel lobbies (all public places – See Picture on FB) with greater frequency than the first aid kits that I have seen back home. I guess it is partly to do with the economics of the country. India might get there when we get to a per capita of USD 40,000!  

 

Of course, there could be reasons that are less forgiving or escapist for ourselves as an individual or society.

  

Satya

           

Comments

One Response to “The Nippon Diary”

  1. Kandarp Rai on May 18th, 2010 12:00 pm

    Thanks for the interesting sharings sir!
    Kandarp rai

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