Just got back Saturday from another week in Japan. I was in Osaka for the general membership meeting of the SD Card Association for which I serve as the Executive Director. Great meeting; the group made alot of progress on specification and marketing work. On Wednesday we had a board dinner at a very traditional restaurant built on the grounds of an old estate belonging to the family of a baron of the empire. The picture of course one of twelve. They sure like fish... some of it was even cooked. I really enjoy meeting with the members from all over the world. My flight back didn't leave till after 5PM on Saturday so w few of us got together and toured the Osaka castle. Great history in Osaka. The castle was destroyed and rebuilt at least three times since the 1600's. The last time by the citizenry of Osaka in 1961, I think. We got a guided tour of the grounds from two very nice volunteer ladies who were sent by a service the Hotel Otani (where we stayed) engages. Unfortunately they couldn't speak much English. They were fun though and we had a good time trying to understand what they were telling us. One said she made an entire suit of samurai armor out of paper (probably cardboard type) which weighs about 4 kilos compared to the 20-25 kilos that the real stuff weighed. She seemed quite the enthusiast. After the castle we walked to a restaurant one of the guys knew... it was closed. Bummer... So after a significant walk and a couple very real blisters, we ate some delicious American fast food. As much as I really like Japanese culture and business practices, I just can't seem to get used to raw fish. Kudos to anyone who can.
