Milanese Queuing Up for Japan Pavilion

Milano Expo is climaxing and now Japan Pavilion is queued up on every day by last-minute visitors. Italians habitually hate queuing up for anything, but not for Japanese food culture.

Milano Expo opened in May and is about to close as the month of October closes. Since May till October 19, Japan Pavilion has been visited by 2 million, or 10% of the total num number of visitors. No wonder as Japanese cuisine is registered World Cultural Heritage and more non-Japanese are accustomed to Japanese food.

Japan Pavilion introduces Japanese food culture as viewed from different angles. A digitalized presentation of Japan's traditional menu of one soup and three side dishes, Japanese rural sceneries, etc. offers the visitors an opportunity to appreciate how Japanese food culture is nurtured and how it has evolved to be today's level of refinement.

A 50-minute tour is guided in groups and the traffic is limited to only 20 thousand visitors a day. Experimental booths offer visitors a chance to manipulate chopsticks to arrange their own menu on the touch screen.

No wonder the Italians don't mind queuing up for eight hours. "It's an unfulfilled dream though", report a local media.

Japan Pavilion occupies 4,170 square meters of floor space divided into 5 scenes and 9 zones. A restaurant is opened for visitors to enjoy samples of Japanese top-quality dishes. The pavilion features a virtual reality-type presentation in combination with the "Fall of Diversity".
The 2 millionth visitor to Japan Pavilion was a couple from Bologna Sara and Francesco. It was their first visit to Japan Pavilion. Asked of their impression of Japan Pavilion, they jovially replied:

 "So attractive! The Scene I Harmony is superb with a series of lovely sceneries. We tried our first Kaiseki at Minokichi. We tasted such a refined Japanese cuisine for the first time in our lives. Our visit to Japan Pavilion this time will sure be unforgettable.
"We have never been to Japan, but we sure will go someday".