Going away party

Even though it has been what feels like a very brief and fast moving four weeks, my coworkers decided to organize a big goodbye party for me this past Tuesday night.

Around 6:30pm, I and about 15 others at Nikken who I had had the most contact with over the last four weeks left together and hopped on a train to Asakusa, one of the older parts of Tokyo. There we walked for a few minutes over to some docks along a river and boarded a Yakatabune boat for a dinner cruise out to Tokyo Bay. We all boarded and put our shoes in plastic bags, taking them inside with us. Inside was just one large room with a long table. Throughout the evening many different foods were brought out for us to try: tempura, sashimi, sushi, etc.

Everyone had a fun time pointing out landmarks out the windows as we floated south along the river. We even passed several Nikken projects. We passed underneath the Rainbow Bridge before coming to a stop near Odaiba, a section of the city that was built on man-made islands in Tokyo Bay.

Right in front of us was the enormous Fuji TV building by Kenzo Tange, which looks like a kind of spaceship or something when lit up with blue LED’s at night. Most of us had brought cameras and were leaning out the window taking pictures for much of the night.

I sat at the middle of the table across from Kamei-san, a friend of my professors who was largely responsible for making this internship happen. I also sat with Nakamura-san, our team leader who speaks fluent English and has helped translate things for me but has also been a great friend, telling me about his experiences and making sure I got the most out of my experience at Nikken. I was also next to the always entertaining Mariko-san, the person who I worked the closest with everyday. She, too, has been a great friend as well as a constant source of new Japanese words and many laughs. All of these people also happen to be hugely talented architects as well, and I’ve tried to learn from them.

At one point they decided to (again) offer me some gifts. I was given a(nother) beautiful book of sustainable buildings done by Nikken from one of my supervisors, a very nice pen holder tray and handmade cloth drink coaster from Yamaguchi-san, my desk neighbor at work, as well as a t-shirt commemorating Nikken’s 110^th anniversary with a picture of the new Sky Tree on the front. They said I had to wear it and be their walking commercial in America. I will say it again – the generosity and hospitality of everyone has been unbelievable. I can’t say enough about these guys. I had brought a few gifts to give myself, so I passed a few of them out, saving some other for later in the week.

After several beers, it was time to address the karaoke machine lurking at the far end of room. I think we kicked it off with some Livin’ on a Prayer and we kept going for another hour and a half or so. What a great night. If Nikken people are reading this…ARIGATO!!