In connection with my work at corporate Kawasaki, I had opportunity to attend the factory's yearly distributor technical meeting in Akashi, Japan.

Actually, I was so busy in the meeting, which took just short of three days, that I seldom had time for anything beyond an occasional pix taken with my cell phone.

I had known for a long time that in Asian countries scooters were extremely in use, but it was interesting to see them and all the bicycles, at 6:00am, ridden by businessmen.

Urban areas in Japan are of course very populous. Not so different from anywhere else.

Another, similar view.

The hotel, very Americanized.

Inside. Absolutely opulent by Japanese standards.

My hotel room. Pretty small.

Computerized toilet.

A picture of a picture. This is the famous Akashi bridge. It is known for having the longest single span of any bridge in the world. Not the longest bridge, but the bridge with the longest sections, I gather. Kawasaki had a part in designing it.

Akashi is proud of their bridge. They put its likeness on a lot of things, buildings, even food wrappers.

This is the other thing Akashi is famous for, octopus. This is a wrapped cookie.

And here's the real thing, for sale in a food market.

Speaking of food, this is "curry", a dish having nothing to do with curry but apparently a concoction the Japanese believe is very appealing to Westerners. A lot of the restaurants in Japan have this "American" option, usually the only thing a Westerner would recognize, though of course we would call it chicken fried steak with gravy! And rice, of course. The gravy is a little spicy (barely), so maybe that is where the name comes from. It's pretty good. I ate it three or four times while in Japan.

Any restaurant in Japan that tries to attract Americans serves "curry", even if they offer no other Westernized dish. Kind of funny, really. Speaking of restaurants, very few do accomodate Westerners. If you're lucky, you can ask for a fork or a spoon. But not always. The Japanese seem to eat everything in a bowl, and always using chopsticks.

How about green tea ice cream? This is not a joke. Even Kit Kats, the candy, are available in flavors unknown in the states.

Still on the subject of food, kind of. Pizza Hut delivery scooters in Japan.

Not only Pizza Hut but 7/11 too.

Menu at the hotel's restaurant. Don't have a clue...

A shinkensen train blasted down this overpass, never even saw it. But, you could feel it coming even in the street. Rumble, rumble, whoooosh!

One of the slower trains (there are three different speeds of trains). The operator. Likes his job, I think. The regular trains are so quiet inside. Nobody talking, very low volume jazz playing. Very soft-voiced recordings telling you to be safe, when your stop is.

Car ownership isn't unusual in Japan, but the cars are (tiny!), and where they keep them. Right by their front doors! No garages, at least in the city. Like New York?

I have seen something like this in the States, but it seems a little more elaborate in Japan. Bots dots for blind folks.

More.

And more.

Cigarettes sold on the sidewalk. Beer, too (not shown).

I am told Japanese view Christmas a little differently than do Westerners. It isn't at all a religiuos thing but rather something else, I'm not sure what. I get the impression that it is mostly for Americans and even then something, a great deal actually, is lost in the translation, so to speak. It seems to be reduced to simply a greeting.

A Japanese mall. Very quiet.

Not a mall but more an outdoor bazzar.

Pretty creative use of what look like small air conditioning units.

Restroom sign in a small restaurant. Unique.