Starting our journey to Japan we got a good chance to immerse ourselves in our design problem: waiting at airports. Our flight took about 19 hours, and we killed time by reading, listening to music and aimlessly staring into the TL-lit waiting area’s.
The other travelers were doing what most people do in any waiting situation, they grab their phones or other internet connected media, and nobody seems particularly happy or frustrated in doing so. What was happening in these waiting rooms was more or less a continuation of what modern people do when they are bored: they tap their screens, and occasionally smile at a passing cat video.
Are these moments of screen tapping truly meaningful? We started asking ourselves when arrived in Japan. If we interact with our smartphones around 150 times per day, then how many of these interactions are truly satisfying? What makes a moment meaningful anyway? The user scene video, centers around these questions. And at the same time it hinds towards an aspect of Japanese culture: striving for an harmonious society. A cultural factor that can be relevant to designing for Fukuoka Airport.
Other than making observations about waiting we have been enjoying the many weird and wonderful sides of Japan. from pointing randomly at menu’s and finding ourselves eating raw chicken, to toilets that play harmonious music. But above all: we have been very lucky with the wonderful people welcoming us, and showing us the way.
To sum up:
1. We’ve got some interesting insights into waiting
2. Japan is great
3. We now know what it feels like to be analphabetic
Love Willem, and Alex