Interesting facts/distinctions about Japan:
- In Japan, the largest amount of money in a single coin is
about $6.50. Hence keeping track of
change is much more important.
- Perhaps you’ve heard that people take off their shoes
before entering houses and apartments.
People sometimes implement this rule in the US, but almost never to the
degree it is used in Japan. There is a
clear distinction between the small space near the entrance to a building where
people enter and the area where shoes are not allowed. Forgetting things before I leave in the
morning can be a chore since I have to remove my shoes, get whatever I need and
then put them on again, rather than thinking, “It’s okay if I just go in for a
little bit with my shoes on,” as I do in the US.
- Technology in Japan is in fact more advanced than in the
US. In general, there are more
automatic appliances and energy saving devices present, and safety features on
appliances are more common. In the
safety features department, this can be kind of annoying.
- A few cases where technology is less advanced, and
surprisingly so:
- I gather that having a clothes drier in one’s home is uncommon, and that most people hang their clothes out to dry, though to be fair, accommodations for clothes drying have been included with every house and apartment that I have seen thus far, usually in the form of a balcony with a clothes bar and a railing.
- Furthermore, washing machines are small and relatively ineffective.
- Here, washing one’s hands after using the toilet seems to be viewed as more of an option than a necessity. Frequently, I’ve run into bathrooms that are poorly equipped for hand washing, lacking paper towels, hot water, decent hand driers, and the liquid hand soap that Americans are so used to having. In addition, in people’s homes (including my apartment for example), the toilet may not be located in the same room as the hand washing sink, meaning at the very least that one has to touch a door knob or two before being able to properly wash one’s hands.
- Storm doors don’t seem to exist in Japan. As a consequence, my outer hall, where my kitchenette, bathroom, shower and sink are located, is perpetually cold.
- Deodorant is virtually absent in Japan. In Tsuru, I’ve been able to find spray deodorant for exorbitant prices, but for the effective, stick form that exists in the US I would apparently have to go to an import store in a major city.
- Japanese people are always complaining about how hot or cold it is. It seems to be a way of bonding people together; they can all complain about the same thing. It’s probably one of the most common things you’ll hear if you go to Japan and is a common conversation starter. A formal variant of this complaint is frequently used at the beginning of letters, saying more or less, “Every day is cold, but I haven’t caught a cold.” Note that the wordplay on “cold” does not exist in Japanese and is therefore not intentional.
- Many
things are smaller in Japan, cars included, though one thing that we both find
particularly striking is the size of the tires, as shown in comparison to my
foot.
Incidentally, these shoes are really comfortable.
- The two most popular potato chip flavors in Japan seem to be “seaweed” and “broth.” In addition, the only place I have seen corn chips thus far was at a party, and they were smaller and flavored with something I’ve never heard of.
- Despite that and my run in with Ribbon-chan, I can't deny that food is almost always higher quality here. I think in America we tend to compromise quality for price, a practice that I find highly unfortunate. While it is possible to find cheap, good food both here and in the US, I think overall the Japanese have the right idea here. You are what you eat. Apparently I'm a kilo of rice per week.
Stay tuned for my food entry! I wanted to write it this weekend, but I'm really sick of sitting at the computer, so I'm going to go say hello to the world now. じゃ、ね～
fascinating stuff, wish to hear more
ReplyDeleteOh good. Seaweed flavored chips, tiny cars, and small expensive portions of food. Sign me up -_-
ReplyDeleteSigned up~
DeleteWould you like your subscription with earthquakes or no earthquakes?
For what it's worth though, the broth chips are better than the seaweed chips, and I still manage to have leg room in any car I've been in, while in the US I frequently have trouble. I think it's because most of the cars I've been in thus far have been relatively tall. They're kind of like smart cars, but not usually quite that small actually.
As far as the food expense is concerned... it's hard to argue with. I do like America's prices, but I also hate it when I eat something that causes me to feel like shit afterward because that's what it's made of. It's usually avoidable, but it's nice not to have to think about it. I suppose by coming here I traded worrying about the quality of my food for worrying that some random thing I pick up will make my face contort into unpleasant shapes. I'm not complaining though. Japan got some tasty stuff.
Seems like a relatively good tradeoff, though I don't often have trouble with any American food, but thats just me really. Broth chips do sound interesting as well. Maybe you can sneak a bag of those back as well? I don't know Custom's rules on those kind of things.
ReplyDeleteYay for food quality! Let me know if you need me to mail you deodorant or whatever. :0)
ReplyDeleteHug Tina, eh? She seems to be having a hard moment, as of half an hour ago.
Love to you!
Wow. Very interesting, all of it. Yes, more of this would certainly be welcome.
ReplyDeleteNo deodorant, huh? That's unexpected; Yuki has like, six bottles of AXE sitting over the sink--all scented differently. But then again, he is somewhat eccentric.