Origami

 

Some time ago I volunteered as an Origami instructor at a cultural event in Melbourne.

I showed the children some of the easiest Origami; tulip, fox, elephant, etc.

For the adults, I encouraged them to take more of a challenge by teaching the to an Origami crane, which is the most popular internationally.

Japanese people learn origami from a young age, so we are know how precise the folds have to be, but most of the people I taught that day, had a quite a bit of trouble folding the papers into a neat  triangle or square by matching the corners accurately.

It is very important to get these basic steps right or we can't achieve our desired result. 

Which reminds me, I quite often see shop assistants, who cannot staple dockets, tax invoices and credit card receipts properly in Australia. They just clump them together without worrying if they are straight or not. I guess it's not important to them, but we must do these things in Japan.

Sometimes I am also disappointed by the gift wrapping service offered to me. Excellent presentation and attention to detail are critical in Japan. The customer is king there, and expects a high level of service. Maybe my expectations are too high. Things are much more relaxed here in Australia.