(www.imperialhotel.co.jp/e/tokyo)—is one ofJapan’smost popular luxury hotels. It has a long and rich pedigree. Ameri- can architect Frank LloydWright designed its second incarna- tion, which was completed in 1923. (The first Imperial Hotel was opened in 1890.) On the day ofits opening, the Great Kanto earthquake struck, devastating Tokyo—yet sparing the Imperial Hotel. It took 45 years for time, war, and weather to wear down the structure, which was dismantled in 1968. Pieces ofWright’s masterpiece were incorporated into the
property’s third and current incarnation, which opened in 1970. Today the Imperial Hotel is a tranquil, refined space with 17 restaurants and lounges and 26 banquet and meeting rooms, including the 21,151-square-foot PeacockRoom, one ofTokyo’s three largest hotel banquet halls. Last May, the Imperial Hotel hosted a meeting ofASEAN, the Association ofSoutheast Asian Nations. After leaving the Imperial Hotel, we strolled
through theMarunochi district, past high-end shops and tightly packed phalanxes ofteenage girlswait- ing silently on the sidewalks to meet two popu- lar Japanese boy bands, A.B.C.–Z. and Kis-My-Ft2. Soon we arrived at the Tokyo International Forum (www.t-i-forum.co.jp /english), the city’s preeminent convention center. Although we weren’t able to explore the facility on ourown(the Forumwas jam- packed with suit-wearing young people), we learned that it has seven auditorium-style halls (the largest with seating for 5,012), a 53,819-square-foot exhibi- tion hall, and 34 conference rooms. Ataxi ride brought us to the neighborhood ofAsakusa, where
we had a casual lunch at Aoi-Marushin (www.aoi-marushin .co.jp), a famous tempura restaurant that opened in 1946, and tried on kimonos (which, I learned, are not just for women—I wore a traditional Japanese student’s kimono) at the shop ofa cultural-experience company called Jidaiya (www.asakusa- e.com/jidaiya/jidaiya_e.htm). Following our dress-up adventure, Jidaiya sent us on a half-
hour rickshaw tour of the bustling district. From the rickshaw’s cushioned velvet seat, we marveled at Senso-ji, Tokyo’s oldest
BOUNTIFUL FORMEETINGS: At left, the sea’s colorful bounty for sale at Makishi Public Market in Okinawa. Above, my colleague Katharina Brauer, editor of a German meet- ings-industry magazine, and I touring ACROS Fukuoka’s Symphony Hall, with seating for 1,871 people. Below is the business card for Kayanoya, site of our farewell dinner in Fukuoka (see p. 152).
Buddhist temple, originally built in 645. Likemany historic sites throughout the country, the temple has been rebuilt a number of times, most recently after its destruction duringWorldWar II. Dinner that evening was at Tofuya Ukai (www.ukai.co.jp
/shiba), near the red-and-white, Eiffel-like Tokyo Tower.We sat on woven tatami mats and enjoyed an eight-course, flower-themed meal, which included lovely dishes such as garland chrysanthemum with ground-walnut dressing and chestnuts. The restaurant has a number of private rooms, including one with space for 30 people and another that can fit 70.
Monday It was raining, gray, and cool when we awoke on Monday morning.We checked
out ofthe ANA InterContinental Tokyo and took a
cab to Haneda International Airport for our flight to sunny, bright, and warm Okinawa, the main island of Japan’s southernmost prefecture (which is akin to a U.S. state).We were met by Shuhei Kohagura, MICE coordi-
nator for the Okinawa Convention & Visitors Bureau (www.ocvb.or.jp/en), and our translator, Kei Kodama, both
of whom were wearing loose, colorful kariyushi shirts—sim- ilar to aHawaiian-style aloha shirt, and standard issue for Oki- nawa’s sub-tropical climate. First stop on our two-day tour ofOkinawa was the Loisir
Hotel & Spa Tower Naha (www.loisir-naha.com/english /pages), in the island’s capital city, Naha, and just a few minutes fromthe airport. The hotel has 417 guest rooms in its SpaTower (which opened last year) and 89 guest rooms in another tower, plus 11 meeting rooms, including the city’s largest banquet hall, a butterfly-themed space that can seat 900 people theater-style.