Minato – 港 – Sébastien Duval

15 June 201824 June 2018

Deryk Langlais & J2U… ラングレス・デリックと株式会社J2U…

Productive & enjoyable business dinner with Deryk Langlais (CEO of Nagoya-based J2U) at the Pink Cow restaurant & art bar in Tokyo Roppongi district: cranberry juice for me, beer for him, salad, and excellent vegetarian burrito (black beans and vegetables like last time plus cheese) for both of us! We discussed in English about the activities of J2U: worldwide promotion, export, and online sale of Japanese food & drinks, with a focus on small producers all over Japan to provide “Japan’s best food” while supporting local economies… then about the media & travel services of Japan Travel, where I am currently working. I’d love to see our companies promote Japan and Japanese goods together 🙂

Dîner d’affaires productif et plaisant avec Deryk Langlais (PDG de J2U à Nagoya) au restaurant & bar artistique “The Pink Cow” (“La Vache Rose” !) du quartier Roppongi de Tokyo : jus de canneberge pour moi, bière pour lui, salade et excellent burrito végétarien (haricots noirs et légumes comme la dernière fois plus fromage) pour tous les deux. Nous avons discuté en anglais des activités de J2U: promotion à travers le monde, export et vente en ligne de boissons & mets japonais, avec une attention particulière aux petits producteurs de tout le Japon pour fournir la “meilleure nourriture du Japon” tout en aidant les économies locales… puis nous avons discuté des services médias & voyages de Japan Travel, où je travaille actuellement. J’adorerais voir nos entreprises promouvoir ensemble le Japon et les produits japonais 🙂

名古屋の株式会社J2Uのラングレス・デリック社長と東京都六本木周辺ピンクカウ（桃色の牛）レストラン・アートバーで、実り多く興味深いビジネスディナー。私はクランベリー・ジュース、社長はビールで、サラダ、美味しいブラックビーン・ベジタブル・チーズブリトー（前回はビーガンで、今回は二人ともベジタリアンで！）…英語でJ2Uの事業活動について相談：日本製の食品の輸出、オンライン販売や世界へのプロモーションについて。日本で一番良い食料品を提供し、地域経済を活性化させられるように、日本中の小規模な生産者に的を絞る。そして私が勤めている株式会社ジャパン・トラベルのメディアや旅行サービスについて説明した。J2Uとジャパン・トラベルが一緒に日本や日本製品を引き立てていければ良いなと思う 🙂

Deryk Langlais – ラングレス・デリック: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deryklanglais/

J2U: https://J2U.jp

The Pink Cow – ピンクカウ: http://www.thepinkcow.com

29 May 201816 June 2018

Burritos? Art? Pink Cow Roppongi! ブリートとアート？ピンクカウ六本木！

Maybe the best burritos in Tokyo! Mexican dinner at the Pink Cow restaurant & art bar near Roppongi station: fruit juice, salad, vegan burrito (black beans and vegetables) for me, and vegetarian burrito (cheese included) for my Japanese companion! Super tasty food, fine ambiance with paintings and changing lights, English-speaking staff (still rare in Japan)… Motivated to try the Pink Cow restaurant near Akasaka station too 🙂

Peut-être les meilleurs burritos de Tokyo ! Dîner mexicain au restaurant & bar artistique “The Pink Cow” (“La Vache Rose” !) près de la station de métro Roppongi : jus de fruit, salade, burrito végétalien (haricots noirs et légumes) pour moi, et burrito végétarien (fromage inclus) pour ma compagne japonaise ! Nourriture succulente, bonne ambiance avec peintures et lumières changeantes, serveur parlant anglais (toujours rare au Japon)… J’ai bien envie d’essayer aussi l’autre restaurant, celui près de la station de métro Akasaka 🙂

東京都で一番美味しいブリートかも！六本木駅に近いピンクカウ（桃色の牛）レストラン・アートバーでメキシコ晩御飯：フルーツジュース、サラダ、私はブラックビーン・ベジタブルブリトー（ビーガン）、日本人の友達はチーズ入りブリトー（ベジタリアン）！超美味しくて、店内の壁絵とカラフルな照明で良いムード、英語を話すスタッフがいるのも日本ではまだ珍しい…ピンクカウレストランの赤坂店にも行ってみたいな 🙂

[EN] Fruit juice. [FR] Jus de fruit. [JP] フルーツジュース。

The Pink Cow – ピンクカウ: http://www.thepinkcow.com

26 May 201831 May 2018

Odaiba & illuminations… お台場とイルミネーション…

Relaxing evening walk with French friends on Odaiba artificial island: exciting fireworks, life-size Unicorn Gundam statue (20 m or 65 ft), Odaiba Statue of Liberty (12 m or 40 ft), the Rainbow Bridge and Tokyo Tower in the background… One of the great things to do at night in Tokyo metropolis thanks to the illuminations and thanks to the safety of Japan 🙂

Marche nocturne détendante avec des amis français sur l’île artificielle d’Odaiba: feu d’artifice époustouflant, statue Gundam Unicorn à taille réelle (20 m), Statue de la Liberté d’Odaiba (12 m), Pont Arc-en-ciel et Tour de Tokyo plus loin… C’est une des chouettes choses à faire dans la métropole de Tokyo en soirée grâce aux illuminations et à la sûreté du Japon 🙂

フランス人の友達と、お台場で散策。ワクワクさせる花火、実物大ユニコーンガンダム立像（２０メートル）、お台場の自由の女神像（１２メートル）、背景にあるレインボーブリッジと東京タワー…イルミネーションと日本の安全のお陰で、夜の東京のオススメだ 🙂

18 April 201509 July 2017

I tested SGRS Tourism Agency‘s Sumida river cruise and Walk with Geisha in Asakusa area (Tokyo, Japan)!

Invited by SGRS Tourism Agency to test its tours for foreign tourists in Tokyo, I enjoyed this afternoon a fun Sweet & Sound Cruise on the Sumida river and a Walk with Geisha in Asakusa area then attended its business presentation and a funny show (see next post). As a tourism professional and former preschool teacher, I believe these tours will be great once refined, providing fond memories of Japan to Western adults and children alike! I now look forward to a walk with a Japanese warrior, ninja or samurai 😉

I had a great time all along: Ken (from Hawaii) and Miki (from Japan) sang in English and Japanese during the cruise while Oui played the piano and Nanako the violin, Harusa (from ???) guided us in the streets of Asakusa accompanied by the “geisha” Otoki-san… Bilingual and wearing a kimono, Harusa motivated us to look for statues on rooftops (e.g. the thief Nezumi-kozo) and portraits of Japanese movie stars (e.g. Takeshi Kitano), touch a giant straw sandal at Senso-ji Buddhist temple, pray under cherry blossoms… Under a big blue sky, we took splendid photos of Odaiba island from the platform of our boat as well as cool photos with the staff here and there 🙂

The cruise is fine for Westerners but would be even more exciting with albums containing old maps, photos or ukiyo-e woodblock prints placed on the tables, with sale of traditional Japanese sweets/snacks like wagashi and karinto (plus a list of ingredients for allergic travellers), and with more Japanese songs (adding a lullaby would be great to transmit the Japanese culture).

The walk requires a method to avoid losing participants in the crowds and to prevent interruptions by bystanders jumping in for a photo with the geisha! To enhance the tour, the guide may bring a piece of kimono fabric to freely touch and may introduce holy seals at the last spot (Asakusa Shrine): watching a Shinto/Buddhist calligrapher write a goshuin is amazing but few Westerners know that! Finally, the guide may give maps introducing local restaurants and shops (see the Get Japan maps for examples).

I hope this feedback will help SGRS Tourism Agency make a better world, happier people 🙂 I just e-mailed the team!