A&C 2009 koitrip to Japan
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Part 8
After a long journey we are back in the land of the rising sun. We hope to have better weather than last year, considering the low temperatures that time. The flight was without any problems. This year no seats nearby the emergency exits, but seats with plenty "leg space". Resulting in a long but more or less convenient and less fatiguing flight.
After landing we walked to the passport control where we expect a long queue of at least half an hour or so. But today everything is different because we are guided to a new check point for foreign travellers. There is no long queue and we passed quickly. The check runs very fast and after taking our pictures and fingerprints we quickly collected our suitcases.
Next
obtain the tickets for the train and of we went. If everything during
our trip runs as smoothly we can await some pretty surprises and can
close our trip with good results. The train trip as always long and
enforces the feeling of fatigue. But with a chat and some reading the
time is shortened in a pleasant manner.
For my daughter Sandra this all is pretty new and she does not know what Japan really means. Of course I had many stories about Japan, but seeing the reality as a complete different cup of soup.
Being for the first time in Japan and then in a "Shouting Bar" experiencing the preparation of your food directly in front of you and than shout loudly (audible by all) that your food is ready to consume is a strange custom that you can only experience here in Japan.
My daughter is well appreciated and the first remarks that we receive are "Tategoi" while looking at here with a big smile on the face. And yes they are right, for me Sandra surely is a "Tategoi", my pride and "rock in the surf". At home a have another like this one so I know where she good here looks. I am proud that she is accompanying me to this part of the world respected by me and visited with a lot of joy.
Although a koitrip is hard labour it is also a little bit of leisure and holiday.
This year however some additional work is connected to my trip. I have agreed to select additional 35 fish for a true "Koi Challenge" for the Dutch Koi Association (NVN). During the next two years these fish will be closely followed with pictures and articles in the associations magazine. Completed with comments from the breeders, me and national and international "Koi Judges". During this trip you can read more about this event.
This is not only about one but several varieties, namely: Showa, Sanke, Shiro Utsuri, Goshiki and Kujaku. The goal is to have 5 subscribers for each variety. That the end result was that we had more subscribers than expected was a surprise to me and gives additional work but also satisfaction once I have succeeded in my mission. It will therefore also be a challenge for me, but that is one of the reasons why I am here.
After some singing in the bar and a small number o9f beers preceded by Sake we hit the sack for a couple of hours sleep. Thus I will finish today's' report and make some preparations for our trip tomorrow. Hopefully we will succeed to obtain the best fish of the breeders.
Closing this day I introduce my fellow koi trippers, Marco and Leo. Marco who is already some years working for me is already known by many of my customers. Leo became such addicted to koi that he is starting his own business in the Netherlands. I think that his business will attain the necessary attention where quality will be part of his vision.
So, see you back tomorrow where we make a start with breeders and koi, more...