Old Japanese guys and young foreign girls.

Now I'm on holiday (which seems to have gone before it even started), I think it'S abot time I related the details of a rather strange friendship I struck up not so long ago in Japan (no, not Stuart the green shield beetle).
In October, I started going to Fukuoka a lot more, as on weekends it'S only 3,000 Yen day return on the shinkansen and the shops/nightlife/scenery is much better in Fukuoka than in Kokura. So there I was one Saturday afternoon on the shinkansen when an elderley gent walking throught the aisles stopped at my row and asked if he could sit next to me. "dozo.."
Anyway, after a few seconds I knew he was going to attempt to talk to me, because he kept looking towards me messing with my Ipod, then turning away again. Finally, he struck up a chat and preceeded every question with...
"I'm sorry, can I ask you personal question?"
"Yeah, of course!
"Do you like the... Japanese food?"/"How long you been Japan?"/ "Do you enjoy the Japanese culture?"

Highly personal questions! He seemed like a very polite old chap anyway, so I chatted away. As the train pulled into Fukuoka, he recommended shrines and places to see in Japan which I may like, and, as I alwasy tend to do when I meet new faces, I gave him my Email address and wandered off into the crowds of Hakata station.

This slipped my mind until, quite soon afterwards I got an Email from the guy, (I shant put his name up but will hereby refer to him as 'the doc'), asking me if I wanted to go to a famous shrine about an hour out of Fukuoka city. He would DRIVE and we would go to a nice tradtional restaurant afterwards so I could enjoy Japanese culture.

Hmm. How weird would that be at home? I can see the cogs turning in your minds already-an old perv? A guy who wants to be seen with a young girl? I wasn't sure. All I kneww was that I didn't have long left in Japan and that I wanted to start enjoying my last few months more. I DID want more Japanese friends who could show me these things, and I did want to see shrines and temples. However, I certainly did not want to get in a strangers car (flashbacks of childhood). Even through adulthood, it's funny how the warnings of your folks and one-day school visitiors harping on about strangers stay with you.

So, Double-C agreed to come with me. Ah, Double-C, my old missus. She has a similar old friend, who is also an elderly gent who seems to have a lot of leisure time and enjoys socialising, particualrly with westereners. However, her wrinkly 'sugar daddy' is different-they meet in neutral places, like bars and restaurants and always with other people. To cut a long story short (actually, it's fully related in my "shrines, squid..." post), we went and it was a lovely day. He told us his wife had died a long time ago, he had gron daughters ad sons (one of which works in the nearby uni) and that he was...SEVENTY THREE! Folks, you would not believe he was 73 if you saw him...I guessed around 60 at first. How do the Japanese do it? I advise you to start eating fish and rice ASAP.

However, a few things disturb me about the Doc. One is that he never seems to want to met casually for a chat. He alwasy wants to be completely in control of the situation. he wants to meet early, drive us everywhere and pay for things. I don't like not being in control of what I do, and I don't like people paying for me.

At this point, I'm (rather cruelly-but this is amongst friends, right?) going to cut and paste some Emails he sent me just before Christmas.Bear in mind he is using "Engrish" and it isn't even his first language...

"My dear Denise and Claire Hello!
This is from a quack ranging in Fukuoka, you know. I'm very glad you remember me and you give memost kind and heart warming comment about my medical paper. Actually, and also glad to hear that you enjoyeda day-tour for Shrine at that time including squid plates. I don't exactly know what you are doingon ordinary holiday. I spend my leisure time for mostly travelling once or twice in a month for joining forsome medical seminar or just for enjoying the travel itself. So, I'd like to ask you if you do mind staying inthe ordinary triple beds room in the hotel with me. If you don't mind staying with me in the same room inthe hotel, I could take you anywhere you like in Japan with only the air-fare on you. Any other miscellaneouscost which incurs for travel, like meal service, rent-a-car, hotel stay cost and any other expences mustbe on me. For example, you could enjoy two days tour for snowy Sapporo in Hokkaidou with only the air-fareroughly 37,000-yen for R.T. for each on you. How do you find it? I hope you and Claire could have the same off-time for a travel with me. And if you could, I would like to make an arrangement for somewhereeven in next December. Actually, I am planning to go to Tokyou for joining some medical seminar nextSaturday. If you follow me such a time , you can enjoy a whole day long for shopping and any other thingstrolling the downtown while I am in the seminar. If you don't like such a behavior, just forget it. Bye!"

Oh dear! "If you don't like such a behaviour..." See what I mean about pushiness? "Just forget it, bye!"
I declined gracefully and then he sent me this...

"My dear Denise and Claire,
This is another suggestion for you. I'm going to visit Beijin in China joining some tour groupvisiting sight-seeing spots including ' The Great Wall' from December 30th to January 2nd.The tour costs 129,800yen per capita. If you'd like to join this tour and not mind to stay inthe same room in the hotel with me, I would subsidize a half of the total cost of it for you.If you'd like to accept this suggestion, please contact me as soon as possible, becauseI have to make a reservation of the tour for you quickly."

Hehe. I also, gracefully declined and told him we were leaving in April so mst save for the trip home.

"My dear Denise and Claire,
Thank you very much for your quick reply mail. Your mail of this time reminds me two matterswith something sad feelngs. First one is an old English movie titled ' Brief Encouter ', a marriedwoman falls in love with a young guy met in a commuter train and then separated for somereason. Second one is an old Japanese adage saying ' Encounter is the beginning of leaving'.I don't know how many foreigners living in this area Fukuoka, and also don't know how manyof them I could encouter to by any chance. I have seen so many foreigners living for manyyears in this area and some of them for several tens of years, so I have never imaginedyou go back home within so short lapse of time. But come to think of it, it's quite naturalthat you go back to your home country when time comes. How about you and Claire goingto travel somewhere with me? We could'nt have so many opportunities to go for travelhence in coming five months, so all of the cost of this time must completely be on me. Please don't worry about any expenses of you. Just be my guest. Only thing needed is your time. Makingan itinerary for it isn't hastened because there is roughly five months before you leave Japan. I would be very glad if you could tell me when and where you'dlike to go. I hope you could make and leave a lot of fantastic, fabulous and fascinating memories of Japan and also least of an old guy, too. Thank you."

Sniffle, sniffle. Doesn't seem so unusual or sinister now, does it?
What can you possibly make of this? Shall I meet up with the 'Doc again? Will it be like "Brief Encounter?" Hang on, in that film, Laura falls in extra-marital love with...with...with... a ...DOCTOR!!!! AAah! An interesting situation, opinions welcome.