Indonesian Woman
Last Thursday I met an Indonesian group at the cross-section in front of City Hall. The group consisted of about 10 people, most of them were men.
I asked a friendly-looking young woman who wore a scarf. I hesitated for the moment, because the Germans criticize Islamic people who wear a scarf. Moreover I haven't spoken to foreigners in English for years. But I took the plunge.
I said to her, "Excuse me.Where are you from?" She answered,"From Indonesia." I replied, "Great!"
The purpose of their visiting Japan was to learn an excellent Japanese railway system. They had already stayed one week. They were going to stay another one week.
I said, "It's a shame that you Indonesians adopted Bullet Train ( "Shinkansen") system from China at the last minute." She said, "Sorry, I know that Japan is better when it comes to building a railway. That's why we are here." I was surprised to hear such humble words. It seemed they respected the Japanese.
Then she talked about the population in Indonesia. Wow! 240 Million. The population is as twice as large as the Japanese one. She went on to say, "A lot of the Japanese people come to the Bali Island on a sight-seeing trip. So do the Europeans." That reminded me of Yamaguchi-san who often goes on a trip to Indonesia. People say that it is easy to learn Japanese language for the Indonesians. Maybe it has similarity in grammar, intonations and pronunciations.
Unlike radical Islamic people in the Middle East, she was a mild, polite and warm woman.
We walked down to Minoo Station.. I said, "Enjoy your stay in Japan. She smiled at me.
Then we parted.
I asked a friendly-looking young woman who wore a scarf. I hesitated for the moment, because the Germans criticize Islamic people who wear a scarf. Moreover I haven't spoken to foreigners in English for years. But I took the plunge.
I said to her, "Excuse me.Where are you from?" She answered,"From Indonesia." I replied, "Great!"
The purpose of their visiting Japan was to learn an excellent Japanese railway system. They had already stayed one week. They were going to stay another one week.
I said, "It's a shame that you Indonesians adopted Bullet Train ( "Shinkansen") system from China at the last minute." She said, "Sorry, I know that Japan is better when it comes to building a railway. That's why we are here." I was surprised to hear such humble words. It seemed they respected the Japanese.
Then she talked about the population in Indonesia. Wow! 240 Million. The population is as twice as large as the Japanese one. She went on to say, "A lot of the Japanese people come to the Bali Island on a sight-seeing trip. So do the Europeans." That reminded me of Yamaguchi-san who often goes on a trip to Indonesia. People say that it is easy to learn Japanese language for the Indonesians. Maybe it has similarity in grammar, intonations and pronunciations.
Unlike radical Islamic people in the Middle East, she was a mild, polite and warm woman.
We walked down to Minoo Station.. I said, "Enjoy your stay in Japan. She smiled at me.
Then we parted.
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