Nothing stops in Japan, come what may
Visiting Japan, the land of rising sun, was an unparalleled experience for me. It is the only country that rose like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes of the World War 2, despite having been brutally battered and terribly shattered.
On a scholarship in 1999, I found myself registering at the reception counter of the Association for Overseas Technical Scholarships (AOTS), Tokyo, one September evening.
The first requirement was to go through the instructions board that explained what to do in case an earthquake strikes. As if it was waiting to happen, a mild one visited soon after I occupied my room on the fifth floor and I knew exactly how to react! What a shaking start to my sojourn, I thought.
However, I was surprised more by the normal pace of life that went on after the quake happened. There was no panic, no hue and cry, and no ‘breaking news’ flashing on the TV screen put up in the lobby. Nothing stops in Japan, not even the elevators, come what may.
Next day, being a Sunday, it was recommended that I should go through a documentary about the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The old black and white film, as I saw it on one of the many laptop screens in the library, was replete with human looking figures, apparently wearing torn clothes.
On closer scrutiny, I found that it was their skin that had melted down under the searing heat of nuclear fission and not torn clothes! With their skin sizzling with burns, people calmly stood in queues for treatment from a doctor whose own skin was coming off! There could not be a greater lesson in patience, perseverance and patriotism. I felt like saluting the spirit of Japan.
As our course started, we had evenings to ourselves. We roamed about in the electronics market of a nearby suburb, Akihabara, where piles of computer hardware could be seen stacked on footpaths for sale like peas and potatoes.
What surprised us the most was that despite being one of the most populated cities in the world, there were hardly any traffic jams in Tokyo. My course-mate from Delhi, Rajesh, had a peculiar problem. He was missing the cacophony of the massive traffic witnessed in the national capital region (NCR). One day, he confided in me that he was feeling home sick as he had not heard even a single vehicle honking during all these days! We even wondered whether Japanese fit horns in their vehicles at all?
On a factory visit to Toyota, we saw the assembly line moving smoothly. Visitors, who descended from all over the world, were expected to walk upon a raised walk-way that ran throughout the plant, so that the routine operations were not affected.
Workers worked like robots, fitting parts to the car chassis moving on conveyors and staying for a few seconds at each post. We asked the guide, ‘What if a workman has to leave his post to attend to the call of nature?’ He calmly replied, “The line supervisor will take over the job of that worker as he is trained to handle each post in the line. The conveyor never stops.”
To the good luck of my Delhiite friend, I spotted a location where horns were being tested before being fitted in cars. I called him and both of us enjoyed honking to our hearts’ content. It felt like being in Delhi and Nagoya at the same time.
Jokes apart, the engineer in me got a jolt of his life when told that the factory worked 24x7 with an inventory lasting for half an hour only, for most of the items. Incredible! It meant that the supply trucks from ancillary units entered Toyota gates every half an hour, no matter what the hurdles, like bad weather, floods, quakes or traffic snarls etc.
There was something more to learn on the footpaths. Old men and women well past their eighties were found cycling to shop for daily needs with baskets fitted to their bicycles. If you, as pedestrians happened to block their way, they would not ring a bell. They wait for you to clear the way and after overtaking you, smile back saying ‘Arigato’ (Thank you). What humility as compared to road rage instances that we encounter day in and day out in our cities.
Our 15-day course ended soon. But the experience will never be deleted from the hard disc of mind. I remember what Robert Morgan said, “Distance not only gives nostalgia, but perspective, and maybe objectivity.”
I WAS SURPRISED MORE BY THE NORMAL PACE OF LIFE THAT WENT ON AFTER THE QUAKE. THERE WAS NO PANIC, NO HUE AND CRY. NOTHING STOPS IN JAPAN, NOT EVEN THE ELEVATORS, COME WHAT MAY.