"In Sardinia? The French live there." The strange idea that in Japan they have of our Island

«When you ask the Japanese if they know any Italian islands, they answer yes: Sicily. Sardinia is not contemplated but is associated with Corsica, so they think Sardinians are French». The reason is easy to say: «It's all the fault of the film "The Godfather" which made only one of the two major islands famous in Italy».

Gabriele Enna is 40 years old, is from Bonarcado and lives in Tokyo, right in the center. Mechanical designer, he deals with 3D drawings of components for various machinery - agricultural, construction, industrial - of different sizes.

He arrived in Japan because he was tired of seeing nothing in his future. «In Italy you work to get money and to go to work again the next day. At one point I asked myself: why am I doing this?».

Bonarcado left her when he was very small and his parents had emigrated to Germany, he returned around the age of 11 and after middle school he attended the industrial institute of Oristano.

Looking for a job, he landed in Reggio Emilia and stayed there for 16 years.

Permanent contract, decent salary, but he wasn't satisfied.

«Not at all, I wanted something different, something more. Go further, improve myself».

And have you thought about the other side of the world?

«I immediately liked Japan, I went there on vacation on several occasions and I fell in love with this country. In the end I threw myself in, "I'll try", I said to myself. I quit my job and left."

And once there?

"It wasn't easy at all. I didn't know anyone. First of all I thought I had to study the language. In the first months I had a mini apartment: 18 square meters with a tiny bathroom, living room and kitchen all together. In the morning I went to school, private courses for a fee, in the afternoon I had a part-time job».

Now, after almost four years, do you speak Japanese?

«I get along with the daily conversations: to go shopping, ask for information, chat about the weather. I couldn't handle a complex conversation obviously».

Does he also write?

«Now we only use the computer, handwriting is not needed, everything is simpler with the keyboard».

Difficulty?

«To enter into a perspective according to which there are three levels of interlocutors: those with whom tu is used, those for whom lei or voi must be used, and then the more extreme one which in Italian can sound like vossia. The latter is for the workplace. Let's say that we go from an informal level to formal and extra formal».

Are the Japanese a bit ceremonious?

“They have their habits. For example, in internal emails, between employees of the same company, the first paragraph is entirely dedicated to the introduction which consists of a series of sentences such as "thanks for the work you do", "I'm sorry to interrupt you during your activity", and so on for four lines before coming to the point. And everyone does it."

A trivial copy and paste?

«Absolutely not, the formulas have to be typed in each time. But I have an advantage, I play the foreigner's card and say goodbye briefly».

Other things you find abnormal?

“They spend hours talking about nothing. If there is a problem, it is analyzed and a solution is proposed. The Japanese, on the other hand, continue to discuss and go on to the bitter end".

Punctual, precise bordering on fussiness. Do you share?

«I consider myself quite accurate at work but I'm light years away from their level. If we prepare drawings that are then to be printed, we must use an established Japanese font. And it is not the first in the list proposed by the system. The difference, I assure you, is invisible. Yet they see it. And that's because everything is controlled by at least 2 people. But there's more too."

Say.

«The “we've always done it this way” mentality, present everywhere in the world of work. This in my opinion has led to a blockage in Japan's advancement. Many companies use the fax for official communications, I find it incredible».

Did you also start a family?

"I got married three months ago, my wife is Japanese but we speak a lot of English."

Local style house?

«I would say no, here they call it western style: I don't have a tatami, I have "normal" doors and windows, an apartment in a 12-storey building».

How are you at the office?

«By train, an hour to go and an hour to return, from Monday to Friday from 9 to 18».

Friends?

«Those I met during the language school almost all had to return to their countries of origin because they couldn't find work and therefore were without a visa. The pandemic then blocked any possibility of dating, now I'm starting to go out a bit".

Are there many Sardinians in Tokyo?

"I can't make a precise estimate, what I would like is for them to approach our association," Isola - Amici Sardegna Japan ", recognized by the Region in 2017 and which is based in the Seadas Flower café".

Which belongs to a Sardinian.

«No, of a Japanese who makes spectacular seadas. He gets everything from Sardinia: flour, cheese, honey. He's very famous. His restaurant is our meeting place, it is there that we meet to organize the club's events».

Anyone recent?

«One we care a lot about, a traveling exhibition born from the idea of Emiliano Cappellini, also from Sardinia, who came to Japan to collaborate with an architectural firm. When he understood that Sardinia was practically unknown, he proposed a book, written half in Italian and half in Japanese, on landscapes, history, archaeological beauties. In the meantime, Giovanni Piliarvu, photographer and president of our club, also took part in the project, and the result was an exhibition that was inaugurated last week and will then move to Osaka and Toyama, and in the summer also to Hokkaido».

Do you have many partners?

«A few dozen and of various nationalities. We are very committed to trying to make Sardinia and its culture known. After all, the association was born in 2012 on the initiative of Valeria Pirodda, who is now the vice president, and since then various events have been promoted, above all focusing on the themes that arouse the most interest such as culinary traditions and tourist offers».

Japan is said to be facing a new wave of coronavirus.

"For the moment we are calm, we wear masks everywhere - which are only recommended, not mandatory, but everyone has them -, there are plexiglass dividers in the places where you risk the most, I don't think I see much concern".

Will it stay there for life?

“At least until retirement, I hope. After all, it's true that I miss Sardinia, but there are many positive sides here: if I go into a bar and place my phone or wallet on a table, no one will touch it. Petty crime is almost non-existent, this allows you to live with more serenity».

Do you recommend an experience abroad to young Sardinians who don't know what to do with their present and future?

«I was forced to leave, despite myself, as well as many people who are looking for something that is closer to their desire for satisfaction. Unfortunately, opportunities in Italy are scarce, there is a lack of a policy of aid and job development, as well as an incentive and control over what is done. And so yes, go, invest in yourself. Luck could always play a part in it."