A former Ambassador of India to Japan writes about his half a century of connections with Japan. His days as a student in Tokyo in the early sixties bring alive the flavour of Japan before the 1964 Olympics, the first big coming out party for Japan in the 20th century. The mystique associated with the Chrysanthemum Throne, the oldest monarchy as seen by an ambassador who knows the Japanese language, the people and many members of the Imperial Family. India Japan Relations in the early seventies as seen by a junior diplomat; the early years of the 21st Century when the foundations for the Strategic Partnership were laid as seen by an insider and key player. A frank portrayal of the highs and lows in the relationship across this entire period are narrated: the 1971 war, the May 1998 nuclear tests, economic sanctions and then the blossoming of the Global Partnership for the 21st Century. The extraordinary attempts to reach out to all sections of Japanese society through books, articles written and speeches made by the author, laying the groundwork for the many faceted relationship seen today. Beyond the world of diplomacy, the author gives an account of the years spent in Japan as a university professor. This last decade of the author's connections with Japan describe attempts to link academic institutions across many continents, the work of an NGO he founded and the many educational institutions with which the author is connected.