Postcard From Tokyo

Shinagawa station sits to the south of Tokyo and boasts access to the shinkansen (bullet train) and the overland network on Japan Rail, together with the underground. A quick run along the Keikyu line takes commuters quickly to the nearby Haneda airport, in roughly twenty minutes. The ride is not complicated, but the process of buying a ticket for the train used to be. When I lived in what many would describe as the best city in the world, all signs were in Japanese and it was impossible without the help of a passer-by to purchase a ticket. As we can see from the map below, things have become relatively easier, with English signage.

Great cities evolve and having the good fortunate to recently meet some old ‘Tokyo hands’, we thought it would be interesting to explore how the largest city in the world has changed over the decades, through their eyes.

The 1990’s

The photo below appears to be a very nice gentlemen who moved to Tokyo back in the 1990’s, as part of a European Union funded language course for professionals; but Michael was my first boss twenty years ago and was quite scary back then. As a partner at the law firm now known as Hogan Lovells, I was the first trainee lawyer in the office and general whipping boy. Even when we meet now, my heart beat rises as I worry he will tell me off.

Earlier this month we met for drinks on the 51^st floor of a hotel in the Toranomon Hills area, with expansive views across the city. Early July is still the rainy season and as we were treated to a thunderstorm and torrential rain outside, I asked Michael what was the biggest change he had seen since his arrival in the city back in 1994.

Immediately he responded that the number of foreigners or ‘Gaijin’ as they are referred to has increased exponentially. It was very rare when he first moved to Japan to meet people who were not Japanese. Over the years this has changed, first in Tokyo which is home to over half a million residents from overseas and in total nearly four million spread across the country, with a large number entering over the last few years.

As the heavy rains subsided, Michael and I stepped out to find a bite to eat. Struggling to see the Katakana clearly (Japanese alphabet for foreign words), we entered into a basement restaurant which was nominally Italian, but served world cuisine. We were greeted by a couple of waitresses who appeared Japanese, but struggled to explain the menu in much detail. After some further deliberation, we found out that they were Nepalese and using Hindi, I was able to navigate the menu and order within seconds. For Michael this was also a change, as back in the 1990’s, the most visible and common foreign workers came from America and Europe primarily. As we can see from the chart below, this has changed with Asians from neighbouring countries arriving in large numbers. Sharing more cultural similarities, assimilation has been easier and the Nepalese can be seen in large numbers at the ubiquitous convenience stores across the country.

Michael’s final comment was in respect of foreigners, but not the resident variety, but those on holiday. Numbers have exploded, in 1994, there was around 4 million tourists traveling to Japan, last year the total was up to 36 million and the eventual target is 60 million per year. In his words, Japan has gotten a taste for the tourist dime, and that is driving a lot of change. In fact, tourists are now doing what successive generations of gaijin coming to Japan really failed to do, and that is opening the place up to the outside world.

The 1980’s

The usual path in the 1980’s for students from the prestigious engineering colleges in India was a journey westward to live the promised American dream. Many of the prominent management and decision makers in Corporate America first made their move at this time and climbed the career ladder and became fabulously rich in the process. My friend Indranil was different. He was keen to chase his own dream, something more culturally enriching and off the beaten path and this took him east and not west, landing in Japan in the late 1980’s.

A successful career in the insurance industry in Tokyo was followed by global roles in Japan and then subsequently in London, he is currently Chairman of the IOD (Institute of Directors) Japan Group. On a balmy night in Knightsbridge in London, we had drinks overlooking Hyde Park with Kawakami-san (the Economic Minister from the Japanese Embassy) and I asked what the biggest changes he had seen since moving to Japan nearly forty years ago.

He immediately turned to language and specifically English. When he first arrived, it was almost impossible to find any signage in English, hence his fluency in both spoken and written Japanese, but also English speakers. For many generations the question of whether the Japanese spoke or understood English was more often than not met with diagonally crossed hands and an embarrassed expression of ‘Dame’, which means not at all. This has changed rapidly over the last decade or so, with more and more bright young people conversing confidently in the language. Surprisingly, this has not been through extensive foreign studies, as less than twenty percent of Japanese citizens actually hold a passport, but rather they are learning domestically and speaking well. The city and country as a whole, especially the younger generations have a more international outlook than their predecessors, despite traveling less.

The 1970’s

We were very fortunate to meet with Hugh whose history with the country dates back nearly 50 years to 1977, when he first visited Japan. After a blistering hot day spent visiting the Expo exhibition, we relaxed in a restaurant on the ground floor of Shin Osaka station and enjoyed a cold beer, together with cold soba noodles and a portion of crispy tempura. Served with the meal was a small green stem of wasabi and a grating dish to give the freshest and most poignant condiment one can imagine.

Amidst the throng of tourists that have suddenly descended on Japan, he recalled his first trip to the Gion district of Kyoto and as the evening descended and the beautiful paper lanterns were lighted, it was possible to see the Geisha on their wooden shoes flitter from one location to another, without another tourist in site. Something that would be impossible to see today. As with our other interviewees, I was very keen to hear what Hugh felt were the biggest changes that have taken place since his first arrival in the country.

Interestingly he started with Tokyo Tower, built back in 1958 and pictured below. For a number of years the tower dominated the city’s sky line, but this is no longer the case. Due to high levels of seismic activity, tall buildings were restricted to the Shinjuku area, but with technological advancements that allow buildings to better absorb the shock of an earthquake, large towers have become a mainstay across the city and as a result the Tower remains symbolically important, but has much less of a dominating presence, compared to fifty years ago.

The other area that Hugh wanted to focus on was societal and in particular the role of women. Having worked in finance and supported Japanese companies as they expanded internationally and at one stage were the most valuable in the world, he saw first hand the inner workings of the local office. In the early days, women would typically work before they got married and would leave shortly thereafter. Further their role was very much gender based, pushing tea trollies and providing secretarial support, with little scope for advancement. This has changed materially in two aspects, firstly with respect to labour participation, more women in Japan are active in the work place, even more so than the US, as we can see in the chart below. Secondly and whilst slower than in other countries, we are starting to see more career progression for women into decision making roles, something that was certainly not the case when Hugh first moved to the country.

The 2020’s

Large successful cities such as London and Tokyo, with history dating back a few thousand years have remained vibrant by learning how to evolve with the changing times. To the idle bystander or tourist that might visit the traffic crossing in Shibuya or picture Mount Fuji, it might appear that Japan and its capital city remain impenetrable and impossible to navigate. However, as we have seen from our old ‘Tokyo hands’ the city has continued to evolve rapidly every decade and become more open and international as time has passed.

The country is far more accessible than the one that I lived in around twenty years ago and there have been vast changes seen by Michael, Indranil and Hugh over a longer time period. It is this ability to change and evolve, which no doubt will allow Tokyo to continue to challenge to be rated as one of the best cities in the world. If nothing else, Shinagawa station and the train services that cris cross the country remain the best in class and for many of us, buying a ticket is much easier than it used to be too.