Suzuka, Japan's gift to the world
In the mid 1990s I found myself on secondment to the London branch of a gargantuan Japanese bank. Of the many things I found peculiar about the experience, the best was the hauntingly beautiful presence of a Japanese “hostess” called Tsukasa.
Tsukasa’s job was to look after the needs of the expatriate Japanese management. If any of them required a family holiday, Tsukasa would arrange an exotic trip to Chile. If a manager felt hungry and desirous of well prepared sushi, Tsukasa was his girl. Over and above everything else, Tsukasa’s job was to arrange golfing sessions at the top golf courses in the South-East of England for her Japanese bosses. Golf mattered so much to these chaps that it surpassed work by a considerable factor. Writing off the afternoon after giving oneself up to the sumptuous food and wine available at, say, Le Gavroche, was heavily frowned upon. In sharp contrast, taking the day off to play golf at Wentworth or St Georges Hill was not merely indulged but positively encouraged.
As Tsukasa minced her way bewitchingly around the open plan floors of the bank approaching each manager with radiance and fawning respect, I was sometimes able to snatch a few moments of her attention. This way, I came to understand the significance of the game of golf to the Japanese. It is akin to a religion in their country because land comes at such a vast premium in places like Tokyo that giving up acres of it for a golf course is almost criminally wasteful. You, therefore, need serious wonga to be a frequent golfer in Japan. Joining one of the top clubs will set you back eye-wateringly large sums of money. If, for instance, you wish to join the super-exclusive Koganei Country Golf Club, be prepared to part with ¥65,000,000 (roughly $723,000). Very serious wonga indeed.
While not enjoying the same cachet as golf, motor racing – and Formula One in particular - is not very far off in the mind of the average Japanese sports fan. Apart from the obvious fact that racing circuits, like golf courses, require lots of acres of land, Formula One is about glamour and the Japanese certainly enjoy that in spades. For corporate entertainment, if you can’t offer a weekend at Koganei, you could do a lot worse than obtain decent Grand Prix tickets with corporate hospitality thrown in.
One day, Tsukasa came onto my floor armed with a few important looking gilt-edged envelopes. She minced her way from Japanese manager to Japanese manager handing over the envelopes and smiling sweetly. She had run out of envelopes by the time she got to my mate, Hirai-san, and quietly withdrew. Each envelope contained an invitation to a prestigious golfing tournament at the Sunningdale Golf Club in Berkshire. At this realisation Hirai-san looked more crestfallen than I had ever known anyone to look. He sat still as a post quietly staring out of the window at the City beyond and contemplating hara-kiri. Tsukasa re-emerged, daintily walked up to Hirai-san and handed him a purple envelope. When he opened it, his suicidal expression was replaced by a toothy grin. “Ah so!” he declared. To soften the blow, the ever resourceful Tsukasa had arranged an all expenses paid trip to the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. Hirai-san was pleased.
I often sought ways of exploring Tsukasa’s resourcefulness outside the bank but, regrettably, was never successful. Privileges such as Tsukasa offered were exclusively for those born in the land of the rising sun, not those born within the sound of Bow Bells - still less those born on the slopes of Kĩrĩnyaga. Like I did 13 years ago, I will have to get up early in London on Saturday and Sunday and watch the action in Suzuka through my Japanese manufactured television equipment.
Of the two active F1 circuits in Japan (Suzuka and Fuji) Suzuka is easily the better one. For many drivers it is a proper driver’s circuit and easily the best one there is. Lewis Hamilton – who is at Suzuka for the first time ever – concurs enthusiastically. Michael Schumacher, a devastatingly efficient winner here (6 times!), marginally placed Spa above Suzuka (partly, I think, for emotional reasons) but had enormous respect for this circuit.
With this being the first of the final three races of the season, the championship battle is shaping up quite nicely. If Jenson Button finishes 5 points ahead of his Brazilian team-mate, Rubens Barrichello, he will be crowned world champion on Sunday. That is to say, if Button wins the race and Barrichello is fourth or worse, the battle is over. Short of an accident taking Barrichello out or a mechanical failure on his car, I cannot see this as being remotely possible.
Barrichello is fired up and driving better than he has ever driven in his career. With the exception of last weekend, where Button managed to finish one place ahead of the Brazilian, the second half of the season in the Brawn team has belonged exclusively to Barrichello. One can sense that he wants this more than Button. He is like a cheetah that hasn’t eaten for a whole week and knows that he has to put in a life-sapping 70 mph run chasing down an antelope if he is to have any hope of survival. Barrichello means to take this championship down to the wire. He knows the best he can do is aim to win every race and hope that something happens behind him affecting Button. What is more, Barrichello has won a Grand Prix at Suzuka before. Do not bet against Barrichello being world champion. We have seen more dramatic ends to a season.
From the reports I am reading about rain interrupting this afternoon’s practice session at Suzuka, the omens look good for a wet weekend. Wet races make all the difference to one’s enjoyment. And they are rather better to watch from the comfort of one’s living room, Kirin beer in hand, than at an open stand on a chilly afternoon in Japan! Catch it live if you can and,
Enjoy Suzuka!
Gĩtaũ
02 October 2009
Tsukasa’s job was to look after the needs of the expatriate Japanese management. If any of them required a family holiday, Tsukasa would arrange an exotic trip to Chile. If a manager felt hungry and desirous of well prepared sushi, Tsukasa was his girl. Over and above everything else, Tsukasa’s job was to arrange golfing sessions at the top golf courses in the South-East of England for her Japanese bosses. Golf mattered so much to these chaps that it surpassed work by a considerable factor. Writing off the afternoon after giving oneself up to the sumptuous food and wine available at, say, Le Gavroche, was heavily frowned upon. In sharp contrast, taking the day off to play golf at Wentworth or St Georges Hill was not merely indulged but positively encouraged.
As Tsukasa minced her way bewitchingly around the open plan floors of the bank approaching each manager with radiance and fawning respect, I was sometimes able to snatch a few moments of her attention. This way, I came to understand the significance of the game of golf to the Japanese. It is akin to a religion in their country because land comes at such a vast premium in places like Tokyo that giving up acres of it for a golf course is almost criminally wasteful. You, therefore, need serious wonga to be a frequent golfer in Japan. Joining one of the top clubs will set you back eye-wateringly large sums of money. If, for instance, you wish to join the super-exclusive Koganei Country Golf Club, be prepared to part with ¥65,000,000 (roughly $723,000). Very serious wonga indeed.
While not enjoying the same cachet as golf, motor racing – and Formula One in particular - is not very far off in the mind of the average Japanese sports fan. Apart from the obvious fact that racing circuits, like golf courses, require lots of acres of land, Formula One is about glamour and the Japanese certainly enjoy that in spades. For corporate entertainment, if you can’t offer a weekend at Koganei, you could do a lot worse than obtain decent Grand Prix tickets with corporate hospitality thrown in.
One day, Tsukasa came onto my floor armed with a few important looking gilt-edged envelopes. She minced her way from Japanese manager to Japanese manager handing over the envelopes and smiling sweetly. She had run out of envelopes by the time she got to my mate, Hirai-san, and quietly withdrew. Each envelope contained an invitation to a prestigious golfing tournament at the Sunningdale Golf Club in Berkshire. At this realisation Hirai-san looked more crestfallen than I had ever known anyone to look. He sat still as a post quietly staring out of the window at the City beyond and contemplating hara-kiri. Tsukasa re-emerged, daintily walked up to Hirai-san and handed him a purple envelope. When he opened it, his suicidal expression was replaced by a toothy grin. “Ah so!” he declared. To soften the blow, the ever resourceful Tsukasa had arranged an all expenses paid trip to the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. Hirai-san was pleased.
I often sought ways of exploring Tsukasa’s resourcefulness outside the bank but, regrettably, was never successful. Privileges such as Tsukasa offered were exclusively for those born in the land of the rising sun, not those born within the sound of Bow Bells - still less those born on the slopes of Kĩrĩnyaga. Like I did 13 years ago, I will have to get up early in London on Saturday and Sunday and watch the action in Suzuka through my Japanese manufactured television equipment.
Of the two active F1 circuits in Japan (Suzuka and Fuji) Suzuka is easily the better one. For many drivers it is a proper driver’s circuit and easily the best one there is. Lewis Hamilton – who is at Suzuka for the first time ever – concurs enthusiastically. Michael Schumacher, a devastatingly efficient winner here (6 times!), marginally placed Spa above Suzuka (partly, I think, for emotional reasons) but had enormous respect for this circuit.
With this being the first of the final three races of the season, the championship battle is shaping up quite nicely. If Jenson Button finishes 5 points ahead of his Brazilian team-mate, Rubens Barrichello, he will be crowned world champion on Sunday. That is to say, if Button wins the race and Barrichello is fourth or worse, the battle is over. Short of an accident taking Barrichello out or a mechanical failure on his car, I cannot see this as being remotely possible.
Barrichello is fired up and driving better than he has ever driven in his career. With the exception of last weekend, where Button managed to finish one place ahead of the Brazilian, the second half of the season in the Brawn team has belonged exclusively to Barrichello. One can sense that he wants this more than Button. He is like a cheetah that hasn’t eaten for a whole week and knows that he has to put in a life-sapping 70 mph run chasing down an antelope if he is to have any hope of survival. Barrichello means to take this championship down to the wire. He knows the best he can do is aim to win every race and hope that something happens behind him affecting Button. What is more, Barrichello has won a Grand Prix at Suzuka before. Do not bet against Barrichello being world champion. We have seen more dramatic ends to a season.
From the reports I am reading about rain interrupting this afternoon’s practice session at Suzuka, the omens look good for a wet weekend. Wet races make all the difference to one’s enjoyment. And they are rather better to watch from the comfort of one’s living room, Kirin beer in hand, than at an open stand on a chilly afternoon in Japan! Catch it live if you can and,
Enjoy Suzuka!
Gĩtaũ
02 October 2009
posted by Gitau at 4:08 pm
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