i stayed in the city of ushiku near tsukuba in ibaraki prefecture. it was the city where my sister lives with her husband and her son.

a nice city and a very very very clean one.

i thought singapore is a clean city state but japan beats singapore in a heart beat.

i feel safe walking in the evening everywhere in ushiku or tokyo - it's one of the safest countries in the world.

its people are so kind and, my God, they really bow to you to say thank you and appreciation.

when you visit a department store, there are people standing inside the entrance just to greet the customers and bow to them. that was what they did all day -- saying the welcoming words over and over to the walk-in customers and bowing to them each time.

people were all just ignoring them and would not bow back, but what amazed me so much was their intensity and sincerely to please the customers.

try it in jakarta -- you would see a frowned face by noon time