A few weeks ago, I visited Hong Kong to deposit part of my fixed amount savings, deposited in Japan’s post office and matured last month, in HSBC Hong Kong, where I’ve had my bank account for 13 years, and to buy some gold, which was a bit less expensive than what you buy in Japan. Since nobody can predict what will happen to Japan and its economy in the future, I think it is reasonable to diversify assets both nationally and internationally to reduce the risk of loss due to possible economic uncertainty.

I found out two notable things through this trip. One is that Kagoshima is, in fact, one of the important gateways to Japan for some foreign travelers. From a Tokyoite’s point of view, Kagoshima looks like the southernmost far end of Japan, but for some people, it is not. I heard that a sales clerk at Chow Sang Sang’s Central store was selling me a gold necklace, saying she had been to Japan for leisure, entering Japan at Kagoshima Airport, then traveling east to Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo, where she departed. She also said that it was a golden route for travelers from China and Hong Kong. Those facts suggest that cities like Kagoshima, Nagasaki, and Fukuoka should look at Asian countries rather than Tokyo to survive in the future.

The other thing is my lack of ability in English conversation. When I talked to the sales clerk or any other people in Hong Kong, all I could say to those people was one-to-two-word sentences like “Yeah,” “No,” “Thank you,” “Oh really?” or something like that. Response speed in English was apparently slower than it was a few years ago. Clearly, it was because I hadn’t used English so much for years, as it is now irrelevant to me in the workplace. All I can do (and need to do) is to at least have my home Englishized to get accustomed to the English environment and to help me live in an English way.