ZU Men's Business Association trip to Japan - Emirati planning in action (Part 3)

Much less of a delay – I should get this done before I leave for Canada for vacation J

Day 6:

Tuesday was kind of a super cool day – we started the day at Toyota Mega Web – a concept showroom in Tokyo for Toyota. I am not super into cars – I drive a rented Yaris because it is easy to park and I used to live downtown, and even now with a parking space I drive it – but it was interesting. We had arrived early and stopped at the Starbucks for breakfast (most of us seemed to always miss the hotel breakfast – except 2 early risers!) – I got cherry blossom espresso cups and a travel mug J Oh, a pack of cherry blossom macaroons… (OK, I might have developed a slight obsession with all things cherry blossom while I was there – what can I say, I am a sponge for local culture – and all things pink!).

Oh, the car place… http://www.megaweb.gr.jp/About/en.html so we toured around and then we went to see the “Personal mobility” section  and got to take a spin in this! Oh my goodness we laughed so hard and it was so much fun – they are battery operated, so zero emission, and go pretty fast and are super easy to maneuver.  Unfortunately they are not for sale L

From the megaweb website

I'm the one wearing red!

We then went to the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation – we need one of these in the UAE! It was amazing and made us think, laugh, ponder the world and learn. http://www.miraikan.jst.go.jp/en/

The most amazing thing for me was this floating globe that revolved on the ceiling – and people were on couches looking up at it – I got excited every time the UAE or Vancouver Island or Quebec would come to the front J

What everyone really enjoyed was this huge room – where we followed a maze of wonderful facts and figures and questions that we would need to answer by moving magnets, or writing on post it notes – some of the questions were hard to answer, or didn’t really have an answer – but it made us all think of the world in a little different way.

There was also this weird space with shapes and another with a computer screen floor – anyways – I was kind of mentally exhausted after this. It felt like 2 full days and we hadn’t even eaten lunch yet!

Day 7:

This was our off day and Dr. Connie took it off too (thank you David). I went to the hot springs (Oedo-Onsen Monogatari http://whereintokyo.com/venues/25106.html) for 10 hours and got 1 of every treatment on the menu – and there was an outside part and it was lightly raining and it was amazing –

The guys went to Mount Fuji – by bus, by bullet train, by metro and they loved it – it even snowed at the top! They saw cherry blossoms and had a snow ball fight and I think enjoyed it for so many reasons.

Emiratis on Mount Fuji!

Day 8:

A visit to the Tokai Universityhttp://www.u-tokai.ac.jp/international/index.html  and a campus tour was our main activity on Day 8 – it was a bit of a drive, but it was beautiful and as we drove south the cherry blossoms were more and more evident –

The University is very interesting and focused on research – the highlight was visiting the workshop/lab of the solar powered car that had just won a race and were crowned the fastest solar-powered car in the world! http://www.u-tokai.ac.jp/international/news/2011/1111_01.html

Of course I asked lots of questions – and the shy guy that was hanging back mentioned he had worked on the battery – I asked him if he was a Master’s student or a PhD student – uhm, no – a Bachelor’s student – Wow! But there is a professor who runs the workshop who is dedicated and passionate and has a lot of corporate sponsors! The place was full of students working and interacting.

Photo of team from Tokai website

On the way back the guys might have mentioned that they wanted “normal” food – and so the amazing guide and host from the embassy, Ms. Sumiyo Shinagawa – called the only Iranian restaurant in Tokyo and asked them to stay open for a late lunch for us – and they did J Now don’t get all “they should have tried Japanese food” – they did – and some came to like it, but some didn’t. And that is OK – these trips aren’t about immersion, they are about learning and sharing and seeing things done in different ways – but we can still like our way best!

Day 9:

We all had felt like we had been in Tokyo for a month – and many of us wanted to stay longer J There was so much more to see and do and buy – We knew how to get from point A to point B using the maps – quite a few of them had picked up expressions (and one of the group modified their first memorised greeting – which turned out the mean “Hello, how are you – shut up!”), and we knew how to navigate and how things worked.

On this last day we went to the Panasonic Innovation Centre – which has a “house” with all the sustainable products that Panasonic sells – as an innovation freak I loved it – and the guys loved it too – and I loved their questions, which were smart, intuitive and just plain “have you thought of this” – especially when it came to solar panel testing in a sandy, dusty, HOT environment like the UAE.

That evening Mr. Hasan and his lovely wife took us to dinner with our GCC-Japan volunteers turned friends and they presented us with keepsakes of Japan. I know that Emiratis have a reputation (well deserved) for hospitality and generosity – but the Japanese we met were as generous and as hospitable as the people here. Maybe that is one of the reasons there seems to be an affinity for so many things Japanese on the part of many Emiratis – especially with Manga.

Day 10:

Departure – what can I say. While we missed home, I think we were all a little sad to leave. I think we really learned things as individuals and as a group – they had worked soooooo hard in the organising to get there and then the organising each day and the minor conflicts and the hiccups and all that – but they handled it all.

In the rain!

There are so many people to thank – and I think I have thanked them all in the three parts – but of course this would not have been possible without our sponsor. ADNOC Distribution contributed to the development of each of these students, as leaders, as thinkers and as (en’shallah) future entrepreneurs, who will see Japan as a market for high quality, unique goods – things I know my students will develop through their future endeavors!

Now, where to go next??????????

ZU Men's Business Association trip to Japan - Emirati planning in action (Part 2)

Sorry for the delay between Part 1 and Part 2 – Jordan, end of semester, big report corrections due, a hair catastrophe – and almost a month passed!

I will start where I left off in Part 1. Through the force of will and the strength of Emiratis in getting things done when things need to get done, we are at the airport.

Oops – I should say I am at the airport, at the arranged time – and super nervous (I really don’t like to fly) and then they start arriving – in Western clothes! I didn’t recognise my own students and it was just so weird to see them in jeans and sweats (!) and Crocs (yeah a former Canadian/Quebec City company started by a husband and wife entrepreneur team!) and hair! (Sorry for the explanation marks, but really, it was weird to see them dressed in Western clothes).

So, finally, everyone arrives – and the fun begins with the line to check in. Some have brought a lot of luggage (I will not name names, but we all know who I am talking about) – and some less – so we check in together and combined the luggage – and then on the way to the gate – and the plane (gulp).

Day 1:

The plane ride had many funny moments and we landed in Tokyo a bit tired to be greeted by the Embassy people and two vans to take us to the hotel. Yeah students and Embassy officials for making our trip so hassle free. Truly, if you want an event or a trip organised well – get an Emirati to do it!

That day was just relaxing and that evening I may have forced everyone to try Japanese food – maybe not my wisest decision – but they tried the noodles and I heard found an Indian place after to actually eat a meal!

Day 2:

On Friday we woke up early to go to the Islamic Institute for Friday prayers and a presentation of the Institute. The  boys dressed in their kandoras and warm jackets and everyone was in high spirits. After prayers was a very interesting presentation about the Institute – they are there to build an understanding about Islam in Japan and also have many classes for Arabic language training. I was given the name Ayesha by the imam there and it was really a great experience for all of us.

At the Islamic Centre after Friday prayers

After the presentation we explored the city a bit and tried to understand the subway systems – a bit of a challenge, but again the boys did better than I did and were excellent about just asking for help (and the Japanese were excellent about giving help, or finding someone who speaks English to help).

I think the most striking thing the first day was how clean everything was, how polite Japanese people are and how absolutely organised everything is. We also discovered the vending machines with warm karak and coke and water and cold green tea (YUM) – and the corner store with the gigantic apples and weird snack foods and getting change back with lots of coins!

Asakusa, Japan

Day 3 & 4

We spent the weekend exploring temples, cultural sites and shopping (Ginza anyone?) with our wonderful, amazing, kind guides from the GCC-Japan Club. They are a group of university students from various universities around the Tokyo region with a shared interest in the GCC – many have visited the UAE and even know Arabic. The students were volunteers and really made our trip a cultural exchange – and extra rewarding in so many ways. I know none of us can wait to return the favour of their wonderful hospitality.

Enjoying the rain!

Day 5

Today was a very big day. Everyone had bought suits and we went to the UAE Embassy to meet with the Ambassador, H.E. Mr. Saeed Ali Alnowais. He shared his years of experience with us as he has been an Ambassador and diplomat for many years. One of the students (also featured in the Poetry blog posts) wrote a poem for the Ambassador to thank him for his generous hosting of us and it impressed everyone present. The students asked questions about trade with Japan, his experiences as a diplomat and any advice he could offer them if they wanted to study in Japan to learn Japanese. After the official meeting with the students (who looked very handsome in their suits) His Excellency’s cook had prepared an Emirati lunch for us. To say the boys were happy to eat “normal” food would be an understatement!

There was a reporter for WAM there and we were featured the next day in the official news outlet for the UAE! (WAM story in Arabic) It was very exciting for all of us and a wonderful visit to mark the half-way point in our trip.

OK- the rest will be said in Part 3 – I don’t want to bore you all writing too much at one time!

ZU Men's Business Association trip to Japan - Emirati planning in action (Part 1)

This past Spring break the Men's Business Association at Zayed University in Abu Dhabi went on a study abroad trip to Japan. Ten of the founding members of the Association, myself (the supervisor of the Club) and David (awesome instructor in College of Social Sciences and only Westerner I know who speaks local Arabic!) went on a ten day adventure to Tokyo - this is what we did, but more important how it all came together through the amazing support of so many people at ADNOC Distribution (forever grateful), Mr. Hasan (the most Emirati, Japanese person I have ever met), the UAE Embassy in Japan (will never be able to thank you enough) and ZU (many individuals put a rush on things that are not normally rushed J).

The whole adventure started in September when the Association was founded – what should we do was a question the members raised many times – a trip abroad was a popular choice – after much debate they settled on Japan. Now, contrary to the belief of many female students who think I spoil the guys (you know who you are) – I did not organize a thing – nothing. I sent them a copy of a proposal I had written for a trip to Brussels that never happened (which I had organized myself) and waited for their first draft – and waited.

When the first draft was ready we had a meeting to flesh it out – and decide who would go (members active with all the fundraising efforts they had done from the beginning of the year), and what we would do there. Second draft completed – kind of. Then I edited it and told them to make a meeting with Dr. Christopher the Assistant Dean of the International Program – and he helped them develop their ideas into a coherent proposal – and it got sent off for approval.

We got the approval in record time and were told it would be hard for us to find a sponsor – it had never happened in so short of time. Of course, the guys took this as a challenge rather than an ill wish (I won’t say how I took it!) – and they got to work.

A sponsorship proposal was drafted (OK, I might have helped with this) and the boys went to work (yes, we got permission from ZU).

I got frantic texts to wait by the phone for a call – no calls came L A few weeks past, I finally had to set a deadline – “go or no-go” time was upon us. Then I got a call from a marketing manager in ADNOC Distribution – they had funded such trips in the past to Japan and were interested! Happy day J So email were written, details given, formal letters outlining benefits was drafted… and it got approved!!!!! We had sponsorship!

The trip was sponsored by ADNOC Distribution as part of their CSR activities

Oops, but where would we stay, what flights, visas (not for me J), details of official visits, letters to write, people to contact, awk! Of course, my skill is letter writing, but I couldn’t write a letter unless I knew who to, to say what and for what purpose.

All ten guys came together and got everything done! There were hour long meetings with assembly line visa application, with dates and details being shouted out – passport photos were laughed at and compared – it was a very, very hectic time, and yet a lot of fun.

Then the money came in – and we needed help to get it released in time – and we got the help! We needed forms filled out (but the forms were written for females, so I had to modify them to make sure that the guys weren’t asked if they could be pregnant!). We needed official letters to be written to the Embassy in Japan and Dr. Sulaiman Al Jassim (the Vice-President of Zayed University) and his office did everything possible to help us (even though the WAGL Conference was going on and they were super busy) to ensure that things went smoothly and professionally.

It seemed that help – and the exact help needed from the key person in the key position – came out of the sand dunes (not much woodwork here!). We had a schedule of official visits to key places and assurances of transportation from the Embassy, a meeting with the Ambassador arranged, a team of local student guides (thank you Mr. Nasser and Mr. Hasan), and it all came together.  Many people said it was going to be impossible or at least very improbable for the guys to organize the trip, but those people so do not understand Emiratis, when you tell them it is impossible you give them fuel to prove you wrong!

The gang and Mr. Hasan on day 1 (I am in the red jacket)

There were a few last minute (e.g. the morning of our departure) panics from an evil eye – but again the boys and Dr. Sulaiman’s office came to the rescue and told us don’t worry and enjoy yourselves! And we did, but that story will be presented in part 2.