Field Trip to Chuo university, Saitama government office and the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel

Another field trip today, this time to Chuo university, the Flood Forecasting Center at the Kanto Regional Development Bureau and once again the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel (首都圏外郭放水路 shutoken gaikaku hōsuiro). I have added some pictures from other students as well.

The trip to Chuo university took us right past the Tokyo Dome and L'Aqua entertainment section, which shouldn't have surprised me. Our lecture was by the number 1 Giants fan, who even says you have to become a paid member of their fan club if you wish to be his PhD student!

At the Flood Forecasting Center we had some time to explore the building, merging modern with nature wherever it can. After lunch we practiced performing serious discussions, and somewhat less serious poses while waiting on the elevators. The Flood Forecasting Center basically does what it sounds like, though it was difficult to get an unambiguous answer as to how inter-regional communications are arranged. As there are several rivers crossing the region's boundaries, this is an intriguing matter.

Third and final came another visit to the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel (MAOUDC? We need an abbreviation more clear than G-Cans I think...). The tour was shorter than my previous Japanese tour, most importantly due to all students asking questions as ever. Still, I was able to learn something. The amount of dirt you see in the pictures is about the most it could be, as the entire tunnel system is cleaned once a year, at November 1st. It took 13 years to complete building, our guide told us.