Arigato from Japan: Emirati guides win fans at Expo 2025 Osaka

Under tall columns that replicate palm trees, beaming Emirati guides invite millions of Japanese visitors to the popular UAE pavilion at the Expo 2025 Osaka.

Emiratis who have mastered the Japanese language strike up long conversations with Japanese residents in Osaka that go well beyond warm greetings of konnichiwa (hello), yokoso (welcome) and arigato (thank you).

The UAE pavilion at the world’s fair has welcomed more than two million visitors since it opened in the Japanese port city in April.

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A small team of Emiratis are the driving energy behind the pavilion and represent the country as youth ambassadors through the six-month global event that ends in October.

Meznah Al Ansaari, 24, said immersing herself in Japanese culture connects her with the country.

She learnt the language in 2019 when she spent more than a year in Tokyo and went on to study for a bachelor’s degree in international relations.

“Japanese is one of the most difficult languages in the world but very fun to learn which eases the process,” said the Emirati who graduated from Tokyo’s Waseda university a few weeks before the Expo opened in Japan.

“The reason I chose Japanese is because, growing up like many Middle Eastern children, I watched a famous Japanese channel called Spacetoon. For people who want to speak on a more advanced level, I suggest a technique called immersion which is basically immersing yourself in the language through listening. One of the ways I did that was by re-watching the Spacetoon cartoons in Japanese.”

She enjoys bringing the UAE pavilion to life by talking to visitors from all across Japan about traditional architecture, food and culture.

“This pavilion is a multisensory experience. When you enter, you see towering pillars, you also smell a pleasing scent bakhoor and smell the palm trees. You can touch sand and taste Emirati food in the restaurant. I tell people welcome, we are waiting for you.”

Japanese fans

The guides wear the traditional Emirati kandura or abaya and are a crowd favourite with many Japanese families asking them to be part of group photographs.

Visitors are often surprised to hear Emirati guides speak fluent Japanese.

They ask detailed questions about hand-carved incense burners, listen intently and ask for more information about exhibits from a black and white traditional loom to the UAE’s space programme.

“I like their enthusiastic energy and confidence in speaking Japanese,” said Hayase Okuhira, an accountant from Kyoto. “We took lots of photos with them and we do want to visit UAE now.”

“It’s really cool that they are so young and speak Japanese so well,” Eri Sachi, a Tokyo mother of three. “My children asked so many questions and they learnt a lot because the guides could explain in Japanese with so much description.”

Emirati Alia Aleissaee, 29, enjoys expanding people's knowledge about the Emirates.

“When we mention the UAE, some people have an image that it's all desert, but actually we also have oases like we show in the pavilion. The theme is ‘From earth to ether’ and that represents how we aim for the sky while we are rooted in our culture and traditions,” said the sales engineer who works in a Japanese company in the UAE.

She taught herself Japanese in the UAE and is upgrading her skills at the Expo.

“I never had the opportunity to talk with native Japanese speakers before I came to Osaka. I always wanted to live in Japan so this is a learning experience and I’m excited,” Ms Aleissaee said.

“Every day at the Expo I meet new people, learn new stories, share our culture and tradition.”

Ties with Japan

Many Emirati guides have deep educational ties with Japan having studied in the country. Ahmed Al Darei completed his bachelor and master’s degrees at the Tokyo University of Technology.

“When I was young, I got really interested in Japanese culture, especially things connected to manga, ninja, samurai. I knew when I finished high school, I would go to Japan to study. This was my dream and I made it came true – now I’m speaking Japanese to the Japanese,” said Mr Al Darei, on a sabbatical from work at the UAE Space Agency.

The question he gets asked most is about the 90 columns that replicate towering date palm trees spread across the glass-encased UAE pavilion.

“They ask, ‘what is this made out of?’ I tell them in Japanese how these beautiful columns are made out of date palm tree waste. I'm really lucky to be able to speak in Japanese and introduce our people, beautiful country and the amazing projects to visitors.”

His advice to is for people to learn a few words of the language when visiting Japan.

“Even if you speak a little Japanese, the people are very warm and will open up to you. Start with greetings like – hello or konnechiwa and the magical thank you which is arigato.

“Learn to say your name or ask how much is this? Once the Japanese people see you are doing your best, they are happy and you will have a good time.”