When deadline comes knocking at your door

By Al S. Mendoza

TOKYO, Japan — I had to rush this piece, as I need to rush to the Narita airport.

Narita became controversial when its construction in the seventies displaced hundreds of farmers.

Today, though, those farmers – many of them still very much alive – are well off, with their grandchildren leading happy lives with their own families now as well.

That’s because the airport-affected farmers received a bounty from the government in exchange for their farmlands for the erection of the Narita International Airport.

Enough of history.

Am I running out of time?

I’m rushing this column because I need to leave our hotel (Keio Plaza Hotel) in Shinjuku at 6 a.m. to catch the 9:30 a.m. PAL flight from Narita to the Manila Centennial Airport.

The bus ride to Narita is approximately one hour.

Since my bags had been packed last night, I have actually all the time to do this column.

I started writing it at about 5 a.m. and I should be able to finish it at 5:45 a.m. in time for the 5:50 a.m. assembly time at the hotel lobby.

Chicken feed.

Why am I here in the so-called Land of the Rising Sun?

Oh, well, aside from the sushi and sashimi, I came here as a guest of Toyota Motor Philippines to the 41st Tokyo Motor Show, a biennial event that began in 1954 and regularly features the latest in vehicle technology – from motorcycles to automobiles to trucks.

In case you still don’t know, I also write a motoring column at the Business Mirror that comes out every Friday.

Titled “Full Tank,” this column began at the Philippine Daily Inquirer when I founded that newspaper’s Motoring Section in 1991.

When I retired from the Inquirer in 2006 after a 20-year stint there, the Business Mirror, through its Motoring Editor Popong Andolong, wanted my “Full Tank.”

So, in October 2006, “Full Tank” found a new home in Business Mirror.

In short, aside from being a sportswriter, I am also a motoring journalist.

And likewise your columnist here allowed to write anything under the sun that’s why I’ve been here since 2003 – thanks to Jun Velasco’s unflinching avowal of trust and the express approval of Ermin Garcia for me to be of service to all of you, my dear judges and teachers.

A total of 270 vehicles are now on display at the Makuhari Messe, covering an area of 21,259 sq. meters. The show ends on Nov. 4.  Organizers expect 1 million visitors.

Japan is represented by eight companies in the passenger sector – Toyota, Mitsubishi, Honda, Subaru, Nissan, Mazda, Suzuki and Daihatsu.

The show’s theme is “Fun Driving for Us, Eco Driving for Earth,” zeroing in on the enjoyment of driving and protection of the environment.

The eight Japanese companies have come up with the latest hybrid gasoline-electricity vehicles and emissions-free electric vehicles with a user-friendly plug-in system.

Since 1999, Toyota had been my generous host to this great event, one of the five majors in the world insofar as motor shows are concerned.

I wish to thank once again TMP vice president Danny “Sir John” Isla and TMP media chief Elijah-won Marcial for their wonderful job of playing hosts to me at the Tokyo Motor Show.

It’s now 5:44 a.m. That means, my time is up.

Sayonara.

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