Impressions of the Third World Water Forum

Sunday 16^th of March

After a long flight we arrived at Kansai International Airport Osaka. As soon as we left the plane, we were confronted with the first sign of the World Water Forum, a big poster.

It took us the entire morning to find our hotel: reading Japanese signs is a challenge and getting out off a full bus with our luggage was almost impossible. When we reached our bus stop we had to fight our way to the exit only to find out that we already missed it. With Japanese help we got off the bus at the next stop. This was our first encounter with the friendly and supportive Japanese.

At five o'clock we picked up international treasurer of JCI, mr. Washizawa. With a vague picture and a single telephone-call we managed to find him. Junior Chambers Kyoto arranged for transport to his hotel in a very luxurious limousine; the kind you rarely find in Europe. On the way to the hotel we had a little sightseeing-tour. Kyoto is a big city with many impressive buildings.

At the Taharagaike Prince Hotel we met the national president, mr. Agehara and the local president, mr. Hirai with their delegations. After a formal introduction we left for the Kyoto International Conference Hall where the welcome party was held. Because we arrived 10 minutes early, they had the opportunity to show us the main conference hall, which we admired. The conference hall is very impressive and modern.

In a tradition that goes back for 37 years, Japan Junior Chamber has its annual opening conference in this hall. Last January, mr. Agehara held his opening-speech in this hall for 9.000 members of Japan JC. The January opening conference is organised by Kyoto JC, an establishment that they are very proud off. At the welcome party we had a meet and greet session with Japan JC and mr. Jacobs, the Dutch ambassador in Japan. With this meeting we confirmed the historical relationship between Japan and The Netherlands and the current possibilities to encourage business and cultural exchange.

We were delighted and honoured with the invitation for a dinner in the best Japanese traditions. We enjoyed the diner very much and practised eating with chopsticks, a challenging experience. And as you know, with a good diner come the drinks! So we enjoyed the Japanese beer and sake. Geishas treated us with an excellent service and performance in beautiful kimonos.

Tired but very happy, we left the restaurant and were driven to our Ryokan, a typical Japanese hotel.