One thing I’ve realised is that the Japanese really like information and user guides. They are there everywhere. A couple of examples: Narita Express – beside the best Vanilla Frappuccino ever: Breakfast user guide, including a map of where to find everything ! Some random sign on the Shinkansen:

Dinner Monday night consisted of BBQ at a restaurant next to the office with a Japanese colleague who used to work with me in the UK. It’s always good to go somewhere abroad with a native, and also someone whom you know well. Some pics, poor quality (sorry): Firstly, beer. I love how in Japan […]

Standing at a ticket machine charging up my travel card: “Craig, this is Japan, the machine will take more than one coin at a time, you don’t have to put them in serially !” I laughed…

This picture sums up the attention to detail in Japan. In this case, on a flight, when filling out immigration/customs forms, the most common question people ask is “what is the date” or “what is the flight number”. In this case, the custom forms are handed out on board, but with these 2 bits of […]

So, keeping with tradition (for want of a more suitable phrase like obsession or compulsion) I’ve bought a MacBook Air. Actually, I bought it last week in the US. I arrived on my flight and whilst driving down to San Jose I gave my usual Apple Store (Valley Fair) a call to see if they […]

[Originally written on Sunday, just getting around to post] This morning as I checked in to the flight the lady at the checkin desk asked me if I wanted my bags checked through to Tokyo. My answer was simple “Thanks, but I plan for failure, and Heathrow being an epicentre of failure, I think I’ll […]

Thankfully for the MacBook Air and my MiFi, oh and some 3G reception, I can do something useful sitting here stuck waiting for the usual British Airways late departure. I think BA must have to replace the seats on their aircraft more often than other airlines, since as a passenger you seem to actually spend […]

.. for a few hours. Sitting in the lounge at Newcastle Airport waiting for my flight to Heathrow, then onto Tokyo ! It feels strange being offline for a few days.

I’m going home today. I realised that with the time difference that going back via LA wasn’t particularly efficient, so it’s SFO again today. I’m checked in already, grab a shower before I board and then hopefully get a good nights sleep.

This trip has been a disaster in terms of healthy eating, thankfully I’m only here for a couple of days and so the opportunity space is somewhat limited. Inventory so far: * Sunday – Buffalo wings + fries * Monday – Cooked breakfast, Extreme Pita Philly Cheese Steak, In/Out Burger * Tuesday – Starbucks Croissant, […]