Japanese Bowing Frenzy....

I'm still snowed under with work. By Sunday evening I'll be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hopefully it won't be an oncoming train. Today I had to go over to the office on the Birchwood Science Park in Warrington. I like going there. The park is literally that, a series of high tech buildings set in beautiful grounds. The Atomic Energy corporation is based here along with domestic companies like Rolls Royce. There's a number of high tech companies and some of the big foreign companies have a presence here which means you often come across people from around the world. I hope none are planning to move out. The Fujitsu campus is enormous at the moment.

I needed to pick up a couple of things for dinner and popped into the Spar Convenience store there. As I was leaving I arrived at the door just as a Japanese businessman arrived to come in. And this is what happened when two members of, arguably, the most polite nations on the planet meet at a door. He stepped back with a bow to let me out which may be politeness in Tokyo. But I actually had my hand on the door opening it, so English politeness means I have to hold the door while he comes in. He indicated I should come out, I indicated he should come in. I actually won that one and he came in. He then bowed and thanked me. I bowed back and said it was my pleasure. He bowed again so I did it again. We repeated the bowing again and were up to our fifth repetition and it looked like we were there for the afternoon. Fortunately a woman came to get in and we both moved to allow her through, as is polite practice in Tokyo and Manchester. Spell broken I was able to leave and he could get in. It was an interesting and entertaining encounter.

No picture of the bowing, sadly, but here's the rather ordinary door.