This afternoon I have been thinking of a trip that I took to Tokyo seven years ago.

The trip was not a training trip, but instead was to provide technical support for a conference.

I was lucky that the conference was scheduled right at the height of the cherry blossom season. I have now been in Japan several times when they have been in bloom.

It was interesting to see the people celebrating under the beautiful trees full of blossoms.

The opening ceremonies for the conference included a kumi-daiko performance. Kumi-daiko is performed on different drums or taiko.

The term taiko refers to a wide range of percussion instruments.

During the conference we had a special team dinner to celebrate our accomplishments during the week. We had a lovely Shabu-Shabu dinner and really enjoyed the cultural experience. Click on the link for pictures from the entire meal.

After the conference I was able to spend Sunday with one of my Japanese colleagues and his family. We made a trip to Ueno to see more of the cherry blossoms. Then on Monday I visited our Tokyo office for some service and training meetings.

Another memory from the trip was the flight home, as it was my first flight on a 787 Dreamliner. See: First 787 Flight

Many more memories of the trip have wandered through my mind today. I also have some other wonderful memories of working on the project we were there for.

Steven