The Japanese Do It Again! 

We were in Osaka for a few days, where we were filming some interviews and meeting with the senior executives of the company that publishes my books and essays. Later this week, I’ll be sending you more of my general observations about Japan. But before I do, I wanted to tell you one amazing thing that I discovered about this city.

Tokyo is, as I said, a great city – great for denizens and tourists in a dozen fun and practical ways. Osaka is not as large, with less to offer tourists, but it is apparently a great place to raise a family.

K and I discovered this while having dinner with SM, my primary partner in Japan, and his wife KM. They have two small children and one on the way. And they are thinking about moving to Osaka.

They mentioned all the benefits of making such a move, including the cost of housing, the cost of living, the opportunity to live abroad for several years, and the fact that Osaka is kid friendly. In an otherwise business-oriented metropolis, millions of Osaka’s residents are young parents. To accommodate them, there are innumerable little parks and amusements for children all over the city. The food markets are replete with kid food from baby formula to pop tarts. Pediatricians and OB-GYNs are as common as iPhone repairmen, and there are child care centers – very reasonably priced – on nearly every residential block.

But the craziest thing is this: Those child care centers are open 24/7.

Let me repeat that: 24/7. Apparently, if you want, you can drop off your kid on a Tuesday morning and pick him/her up Thursday after work!

Once again, the Japanese have taken a Western invention and improved it!