My job was to calculate the daily transactions and record them in a ledger by hand. It is amazing to think that in those pre-computer days that is how things were done! Our tools were typewriters, calculators and telex machines. Working for the Japanese company was a fascinating experience for me. I enjoyed the Japanese culture right away but since I had no prior knowledge of the language, people or customs, many times things were “lost in translation.”
I made a few friends and one of them, Noboru, a youngish single guy who always seemed to be smiling or laughing, (later I found out that the Japanese people typically laugh a lot when they are nervous) gave me a note that simply said: “Waldorf Astoria-Kitcho-8:00.” Intrigued by the cryptic note, I made sure to be at Kitcho, the Japanese restaurant at the Waldorf Astoria, at the appointed time. After waiting 45 minutes, I decided to leave just as he arrived, out of breath and apologetic. It was the start of our romance and the prelude to my move to Japan.
After a year of working together, Noboru was transferred back to Tokyo and we were heartbroken to be separated. He wanted me to come to Japan but there were so many challenges and obstacles to consider: the language, customs, food, families and the fact that international marriages were still a new concept in mono-racial Japan. Luckily, my neighbor Mr. Murphy, from Connecticut Avenue in Massapequa Park, was working in Tokyo for a telecommunications company and offered me a place to stay for a two week visit to Tokyo.
A long 16 hour flight later, I arrived in Tokyo, a city that was a fascinating mixture of both old and new. It was clear that I was a long way from home! For example, most public toilets in this very modern city were seat-less, squatter toilets without toilet paper (never forget to bring your own!), but love has a way of making things like that inconsequential, and I decided that I was going to go back home, quit my job and return to Japan to live.
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