Japan: Keep To The Left
This morning as I walked into the Shinagawa Grand Central Tower which houses Microsoft Japan, I attempted to scan my Pasmo card instead of my company ID to pass through the gate to the elevator. This mistake was the culmination of a two week long process of adaptation that I hope remains a work in progress, because I'm still making mistakes all over the place! Keep to the left. No, this is not a political post, it's a neuroscience exploration. The move to Tokyo is a huge change in environment. At 54 years-old, the adaptation is noticeable and it's amusing if I can keep my sense of humor. In Japan, cars drive on the left and people walk on the left (except where they walk on the right). So, keep to the left! On the first day of work, two weeks ago, each step was an amazing invocation of information I had read in e-mails, some I printed out to study and other pieces I received via delivery services from Japan. I drew upon the experiences of thirteen prior visits to Ja...