JAPAN LOVE MY TOKYO ( VOL 9) - EXPERIENCE AT TOKYO DOWN MEMORY LANE

Tokyo Disney Parade

Taken on 20Jul 1986

Dinner at Kuga San Home

With Kuga San wife at home dinner 

Tokyo Disneyland special lighting at night 

Theme Park Tokyo Disneyland

Tokyo Disneyland  Main Theme Park

Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade

Tokyo Disneyland Main Entrance

Kuga San and daughter  meet at Tokyo Suburb station(Raymonds Promotion?)

Yaskawa  Company Dinner Party

As the whole world is watching Tokyo 2020 Olympics now somewhat subdued due to epidemic, I am now into nostalgia of this Tokyo trip about 35 Years back.

This was my first overseas exposure and so it was special. It was also due to being official trip for Technology Transfer through L&T for 12 weeks and that too to Japan at its prime in the mid- 80s.That was the time when Japanese companies like Sony, Panasonic in Electronics ruled the world .It was also special because this trip materialized within 3 months of our marriage, probably due to the luck factor of my life partner!! Thank you, L&T for opening the eyes of this Chennaiite to this wonderful experience. 

I had joined L&T in 1983 July in their new PLC R&D setup at MLDP Chennai and this opportunity came three years later. If there is one job experience, I cherish most until now that was this period at MLDP.

 In July 83 myself and Baghi from L&T manufacturing Powai was selected for the technology transfer of U84 PLCs from Yaskawa Electric. Our collaborator proposed us to stay in a comfortable hotel near the facility, but we preferred their subsidized dormitory accommodation to save money. Our daily allowance then was Fifty dollars max per RBI limit and if we had stayed in the hotel there will be hardly any money left for sightseeing. There was a genuine reason why my colleague in Yaskawa wanted us not to be in their dorm which I keep you guessing and will reveal in the end! 

As we landed in Tokyo Kuga San received us at the airport and took us to the company dorm in the suburb of Tokyo. Kuga San had been assigned the role of the technical coordinator from Yaskawa throughout the training. Kuga San was one of the few in the company who knew English and so he was also the interpreter. He was such a warmhearted person who went out of the way to make us feel comfortable. 

Kuga San used to pick us up every day in the dorm and drop us in the evening. He or his other colleagues will entertain us in the weekend too, for our sightseeing tours. Never after this first overseas trip seen this much hospitality from any other country. Japanese are special. Just like their lifetime employment with their company their commitment is total with their joint venture partners beyond the scope of training. I used to get personal letter from Kuga San along with the greeting card (redirected being not in that division) even after 8 years when I was in L&T Medical. If their product quality was such that it worked its lifetime, their association with strangers are also meant for lifetime. 

The beginning of the training Monday whole morning session was for the entire team to Meet and Greet. As we have come from the land of Buddha first in the Agenda, they wanted to know everything about Siddhartha and how he became Buddha and about Indian culture and places in India where Buddha lived, about Buddh Gaya and Buddhism doctrines. Our homework on Buddha was not good enough as have wasted preparing on PLCs and there was no Google search engine existing then! 

 Next in the agenda will be where to take us that weekend. They would debate within themselves and charter the plan for every weekend and who will escort that weekend. When we meet next week the first in the Agenda will be sharing our weekend experience. This continued till the end. This nation and its people with their humility, discipline and compassion to the visitors follow the core of Buddhism. This experience to Japan opened the eyes of how this country devastated from the world war has come back and has become a role model for gratitude and human excellence besides technology.

Here are few incidents which showed how much this country is different. 

Kuga San and other colleagues invited us to their homes for dinner to introduce their family members who were genuinely interested to know about India. Woman role generally is confined to home and taking care of children like in India. Woman do part time work for few hours in the daytime and their pay is less. Men work long hours and cannot spend time with their children and understanding that woman take care of their kid’s education and upbringing. We were also entertained into their weekend company parties. I have posted some family get-together pictures. 

Kuga San used to pick us from the nearby station in the weekends where we reach by bus from the dorm. Both Saturday and Sunday outing would be to Tokyo specific areas and sometimes he used to bring his daughter also during sightseeing. If he has some other schedule another colleague will take over that week. 

The places we went on our own was towards the end to Tokyo Disneyland. Tokyo Disneyland has same roller coaster rides like in US Disneyland in Orlando which we visited later when we came to US. The difference between Tokyo Disneyland and Orlando is that this was better organized and with precision performance while US main Disneyland like their culture more open and fun. 

 The roller coaster ride and theme parks were awesome out of the world experience and we stayed late in the night to see the special lighting and the Disney Parade. 

When we went to a cave another weekend with Kuga San, on my return to dorm found the Nikon camera which I purchased in Japan missing. When we told Kuga San next day then he said nothing to worry as long as I know where I kept. Next week end we went to the same place and it was just there exactly where everyone can see it. The same camera worked for next 25 years until I lost it in India and the pictures till then were as good as in the first year. Compare this with use and throw technology today where iPhone and Android phones work only for a year until the next upgrade release. That is the difference between Japanese Quality then and now. 

We bought 2 old cycles later to commute from the dorm to the station and initially used to lock the cycle at the station. This used to puzzle them, and I realized afterwards honesty and integrity are the traits of citizens of this country. 

 It is the teamwork not individual brilliance that makes them innovate and arrive at every decision. Robotics even in 80s was very advanced in use throughout manufacturing in Yaskawa. Robots will be everywhere moving and in action in manufacturing . I have read before  Sujatha's Tamil tech novels while in college like this  Kanavu thozirchalai (Dream factory) and it was awesome to watch them live there. Yaskawa are today leaders for AC and DC Drives and not PLCs!!

 The problem with Japanese is that they are too soft and cannot say NO like in west. They gave us components drawings which was in Japanese. I wanted it to be translated in English. After a week Kuga San came with translated printout of all the documents. He had been working till midnight all that week to translate all of them alone since we insisted on English. Anywhere else they would have said no. I felt bad for making him work all night for these component drawings.

 The tendency of Japanese to go into secretive is because of their introvert nature of being soft and not forceful and so they appear to be not transparent. 

Japanese live long because they take food raw with no salt and no frying. Inspired by Idhayam Pesukirathu  Manian's  travelogue my family had stuffed my suitcase with paruppu podi (dal powder) and pickles to last for 3 months along with rice. Rice is the staple food of Japanese and available everywhere. Seeing these pickles itself my dorm colleagues were in tears and they slowly introduced me to eating Noodles using chopsticks and eating raw boiled vegetables with no salt or spice and no frying !

When I returned back to India and insisted at home to prepare like Japanese it worked for a few days, but spice was back soon in life with a vengeance!! How I wish now I had continued this healthy food habit which could have avoided future health issues! 

The title of this blog" JAPAN LOVE MY TOKYO" is inspired from this super hit Bollywood song of 60s. We are going through difficult period now with the epidemic Let Rafi Saab motivate with his golden voice under the baton of my  favorite music director Shankar Jaikishan! This is title song of joy for  the hero Joy Mukherji from the movie Love in Tokyo!   

JAPAN Love my Tokyo.....

 

(TO BE CONCLUDED)