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The Exceptions to "History is Written by the Victors"

For those who are knowledgeable about modern history of Japan, Kagoshima is very much considered a pivotal place.  Led by the open-minded Shimazu family, the former Satsuma domain remained in contact with the outside world, absorbing Western technologies and ideologies during the long self-isolation imposed by the Tokugawa Shogunate.  As the 19th century saw the forced opening of the Shogunate to Western military coercion, the leaders of Satsuma emerged to lead the reformist movement in Japan to modernize the country, ending the Shogunate and rapidly catching up with the West with Meiji Restoration.

地方活性化のキー?

今回の日本旅行も時間でいうと明日で半分が終わるとの時点になるが、今夜でこの作者は鹿児島以外九州すべての県とほとんどの大きな都市部に携わることができた。 楽天時代の終了で日本在住も約4年前 の話になるが、この来たこともない九州で意外と「家に戻った」雰囲気を感じる。最初、作者はこれをただ親しみがある言語か文化にもう一度触れるちょっとした感動と思い込んでいたが、今夜偶然宿泊先で見てたテレビ番組が「地方活性化」のトピックで議論をしていたところで突然デージャーブーを感じた。

"Omotenashi" in the Red Light District

"Omotenashi" (おもてなし) is a cultural concept that the Japanese are deeply proud of.  While difficult to translate directly into other languages, it pertains to attentiveness toward small details when dealing with customers in the service industry.  Often, it is most visibly displayed in the meticulous training Japanese personnel receives on what kind of languages and gestures to use under what circumstances when speaking to clients , as well as the little things Japanese restaurants and hotels use, such as tools and signage, to make customer feel comfortable and convenient while dining.

The Happiness of the Supposedly "Incompetent"

The older generation of Japanese often lament that the youth in the country are not aggressive or ambitious enough.  They are easily satisfied by the status quo and seem to be quite narrow-minded and short-sighted on how they see the changing world around them, much unlike the older generation that has experienced so much of sudden changes in their lifetimes .  The elders say want the youth to go out there to the big cities and outside Japan, so that they can become global citizens capable of changing not just their country but be a much more active force in global affairs than Japanese have ever been.

A Legend in a Legendary Town

"Hey, do you know what time is it now?"  A fairly normal-looking elderly man casually asked the author as he was walking down the backstreets of Nagasaki.  Given the time, the elderly did not simply walk away.  Instead, he pointed the author to the nearest streetcar station (without the author's prompting), and motioned the author to walk with him as he was heading toward the same direction.  The author was a little hesitant at the beginning as he was eager to head to the next major scenic spot in the scenic port town, but little did he know that he was about to speak to one of the most legendary figures from a legendary time.

Charting the Unpredictability of a Distant Future

Given that this is 3 days from the author's (once again) departure from Malaysia , the author is has a very relaxing time not doing much, well, at all.  Reflecting back on the another year spent here required so inputs so the author found himself watching the new Terminator movie that just came out across the theaters here in Malaysia.  While there is little notable about the plot worthy of in-depth discussion here, this particular installation in the series put a much stronger emphasis on the ability of time travel to change events, and the idea that knowledge about events in different timelines can be simultaneously had by one person.