Although it was quite a long time ago, there used to be a TV program in Japan called Umi no Mukou de Kurashite Mireba, which means “trying out life overseas”. I remember my excitement as I saw vast blue seas and blue skies on the TV. Since I got posted to Paris I have come to love France.

The streets of Paris are full of atmosphere. There are no earthquakes, so the streets are made up of beautifully decorated buildings of great historical value. In spring they are complemented by colorful trees and flowers of various types, in summer by the spray from water fountains, in autumn by golden leaves, and in winter by dazzling illuminations.

French people are experts at enjoying life without overdoing it. Each individual has their own values, and they don’t seem to be easily seduced by the latest trends. The clothes they normally wear and the foods they normally eat are very simple, as far as I’ve observed. At weekends they have picnics in parks or suburbs, or gather together with relatives at their parents’ home to enjoy lengthy meals and conversations. During the vacance (holiday) season, they take three or four weeks vacation, in what seems to be great celebration of life.

However, sometimes they don’t have very good manners in public places, I’m afraid. Some doesn’t clean up their dogs’ mess. Some toss cigarette butts on the ground. (The sidewalks are cleaned early in the morning, so by nightfall they are very dirty.) Another problem is that not small numbers of elevators and escalators are breaking down occasionally. In addition, strikes, which are so frequent they’re joked about as being the national hobby, caused me problems at the beginning because my job involves a lot of traveling. I’ve got used to them now, though, and am pretty good at dealing with them.

I’m writing this on a plane back to Paris from Moscow. My main job now is selling chemicals for use in environmental hygiene and veterinary medicines over a wide geographical area. I make a lot of business trips to the CIS countries, Africa, and the Middle East. I travel within a diamond with Moscow in the north, Tema (Ghana) in the south, Alger (Algeria) in the west, and Dubai in the east. During these trips, I aim to meet the needs of customers, and spend my time introducing them safe and superior products.

My job is varied. I supply finished products, introduce raw materials (i.e. active ingredients), manufacturing equipment and materials to customers, and provide help in their installation.

In case of projects which target at digging up demand through offering new technologies and products, I begin by conducting a market analysis and carefully business planning in details. When performing these tasks, I take care not to just sit at my desk thinking, but I go out to the frontline as much as I can, and try to also incorporate ideas I have gained through communication with people locally.

The products we handle enrich and bring peace of mind to people’s lives, and support the creation of healthy living environments. I work closely with my colleagues on the frontline on a daily basis to share ideas on how we can communicate the benefits of these products to more people, and how we can ensure a steady supply of them. This is a lot of fun, and makes me feel that what we’re doing is worthwhile.

By actually “trying out life overseas,” I have met lots of different people, and discovered how interesting it is that so many different values and standards exist. My life and my work are really exciting, and I have come to feel that a world that accepts variety is extremely comfortable, beautiful, and precious.