I arrived in Japan yesterday for SIGGRAPH Asia 2009. It’s been a long time since I’ve been here, and it’s nice to be back.

It turned out that a few KAUSTicans were on the same flight as me, and we had a good time talking shop while waiting for flights. Good guys - I look forward to hanging out with them at the conference.

It wasn’t until I stepped off the plane and saw that my travel companions didn’t look to be immediately at ease in this country that I realized that Japan is almost a second home. Outside of the US, it’s the country in which I’ve spent the most time, though Japanese is not my strongest second language. Still, I was able to pick up right where I left off in terms of daily life without missing a beat - it’s a different city, but the people and places are recognizable.

Glad to be back, Japan.