Chinatown

Wednesday morning I woke up very rested and ready to go. I got more than 8 hours of sleep which is more than I typically get at home with 3 kids.

Went into the office without grabbing breakfast. Definitely didn't feel hungry enough to have a meal. Had a call in with the US in the morning and a lot of work and organizing. Takashi brought me lunch from the convenience store (egg sandwich and dessert). It was very good.

Hiroki san and Takeo were gracious enough to take me to Chinatown for dinner that evening. It was about a 20 minute taxi ride over to the area. It was raining and had been ever since I arrived. We enjoyed a meal at Manchinrou in China town. The front of the restaurant was decorative and beautiful. Inside the colors were just as vibrant and I felt very under dressed. When I travel for business I still typically dress for comfort as there is a lot of walking, but it's time like these I wish I had changed.

I counted 12 columns on the menu…and it was a course for each column. The food was amazing, and it was filling! The company was great as usual and I've been learning a lot of Japanese viewpoints, culture and way of life.

Random Learnings

• When I asked what was the first things they thought of when mentioning the US the answers were: Coke, The Grand Canyon, Statue of Liberty, Golden Gate Bridge and Hollywood movies.
• There are 3 forms of written Japanese.
• The men (that I have been around) don't cook.
• "Hot Springs" seem to very popular here. (Like a spa)
• They are not allowed to work in the office on Friday nights after 5:45 (but some people sneak back in).
• The way birthdays are written is confusing to me. So if your birthday was April 8th, 1965, you would see 22 04 08. The 22 stands for how long it's been since the last Emperor passed away. The last one died in 1989 and when the next one dies it will start over at 0.

Fascinating.