shumatsu... weekend...

thursday's excursion to the toyota suburb... in a nutshell, was "tiring", both physically and mentally... had to wake up at six, left by 645am, came back around 7pm! mentally... coz we had to listen to so so so many explanations and everything is in japanese! mind ya, of those technical terms, ya know, machinery and technology, concepts and principles... took 2hrs to reach toyota-shi...

first stop was the kojima press industry. i thought it's "press" as in printing and publishing kinda "press" but it is actually the active verb "press" as in "tekan"... their clients consist of toyota motors, daihastu to name a few... they produce engine covers for the hybrid cars, electronics for the audio system, and hey, even GPRS ya know! was so excited upon seeing one in the toyota estima we rode that day! macam rusa masuk ke kampung heh! i guess all hybrid cars have them nowadays... with the GPRS, you wont loose you way... i was so so amazed by it ya know... got some pictures taken... check it out!

then, the recycling plant... the toilet paper making process... hahahah! had lunch at the company's canteen... with a grand piano at the centre of the hall!!! you can actually place a song request so that the pianist will play your dedication the next day! talk about employees' benefits and welfare, malaysia has got a whole lot to catch up! i mean A LOT! they have recreation centres, health centre, education advancement, personal financing plan etc for their employees... it's quite a big corporation... with more than 7000 employees... will be joinin them for the annual sports day on the 3rd oct!

well, the kojima is also involed in the social community welfare... this sakuraworks set up to help the "mentally challenged" to acquire skills so that they will be able to secure a simple job in order to support themselves... there is this cookie factory, they bake cookies especially for the toyota motors corp... car shaped cookies, sold at toyota city hall and all toyota showrooms... malaysian companies should play an active role in giving back to the community too! it's not all about profit and growth all the time... everyone has got a role to play...

well, one thing i learned from that was that "harmony" plays an important part in the japanese society! be it the family institution, in the workplace... blending elements of nature into our daily life... and voila...this brings forth unity and loyalty... oh ya, had my reports written! hahah! finished them last night! dont wanna wait till the very last minute...

last friday night was "so so" lah! in japanese, you say "maa maa desu..." dooshite? otokono hito wa tabako o sui sugiru kara desu... meaning the guys smoked a LOT that night! i thought only japanese smoke... i was wrong! those french and americans smoke too! a few packs in 3 hours... cant really do anything bout it coz it's a smoking section and i'm not the one who made the reservation for that night!!! i came home smelling like "smoked salmon", only "yuckier" than salmon! yucks... had a "thorough" hair wash that night, did laundry straight away... my blouse, jeans, and everything including my bag! Ewwwwee... i mean, who would want to date guys who smoke? they stink!!!