Some Tips for Travelers to Japan

[JustinRossTso]

Originally Posted by diru1

Lol I don't know what to belive now, I guess its a persons personal opinion?

I guess it's super generalized general things! :S None of these things are written in stone, so don't worry haha. The most important thing is to not look right and cross the street eh? Haha.

[SCIFFIX]

It's something like a survival guide for visitors...

Japan for dummies ! haha

Very useful, I have some friends living in Japan and they related to me many things that you write on your tips.

thanks for the information RealJames.

[RealJames]

Originally Posted by MMM

j-walking is surprisingly uncommon, people will wait for the walk signal even if the road is absolutely empty..

Tell people in Osaka that. I see jay walking all the time there.

I'm not sure where you're from, but Osaka is where I was talking about.
Compared to Montreal and Vancouver there is practically no j-walking over here. A few people race ahead of the walk signal, but it's so rare to see people cross where there is no intersection or when the signal not about to change.
This was something that struck me strongly when I first came here, so clearly there's a huge contrast otherwise I wouldn't have thought anything of it.

Originally Posted by MMM

there's no button to push to trigger the cross-walk, it just happens on it's own and you wait for it.

Again, you say "Japan" but I think your scope is limited. In Nishinomiya there are buttons on some crosswalks.

Yeah, you're right, I should say "in general" before everyone of those points in that first point. intersections in big cities generally have no buttons in Japan, in general. Small towns may.

Originally Posted by MMM

if you look at someone in the eye's while walking in the opposite direction they'll think "what's his problem?" or "why's he looking at me?"

Is that not true anywhere?

In Canada, you look at someone, they smile back, say "good morning" or "what's up", but it certainly isn't strange.
I remember having to intentionally avoid looking at strangers to avoid unnerving them.

Originally Posted by MMM

eating in public is rude

Then how do restaurants stay in business?

I think you mean eating or drinking on the street or at a bus stop is considered rude, but this is becoming an outdated way of thinking held mostly by the very old.

Right, by "in public" I didn't mean to include restaurants. I felt that was a given.

Originally Posted by MMM

while on the train or subway, be quiet, i put my cellphone on vibrate, people generally either don't talk to each other or whisper inaudibly

It's not quite as bad as a library.

no it's not quite as bad as a library, but to someone from most other countries the contrast is shocking enough it might feel that way lol

Originally Posted by MMM

there are specific cars on the train and subway that are women-only for certain times of the day, it's marked in english on the ground and walls near them, this is because japanese men are perverted and grope young girls frequently.

I think you need to choose your words more carefully. Not all, most, or even many of Japanese men are perverts. Not all the perverts are Japanese. It only takes a few to ruin it for everyone.

edit: "enough Japanese men are perverted to cause a necessity for women-only trains" (I'll change the original post)

Originally Posted by MMM

many people in Japan have no idea how to deal with foreigners, less than 2% of Japans population is foreign, we have to be understanding of this. having said that, almost everybody in japan under 55yrs old has studied english grammar and vocabulary for 3 years in junior high, and 3 years in highschool, so if you speak slowly, and clearly, they'll actually understand a lot of what you say, just leave out prepositions and stick to 3 or 4 word phrases, and use body language

Again, your language is very judgmental and degrading.

I'm sorry you see it that way, to me this is a wonderfully amazing thing. I've traveled to so many places and this is one of the best things about Japan! I wish people back home could understand tourists in their native tongue if they spoke slowly and clearly and simply.
I think you misunderstood my tone.

Originally Posted by MMM

every time you enter and leave a store all the employees will utter some incomprehensible phrase that basically means welcome to the store, but they say it thousands of times a week so it bears no similarity to it's proper pronunciation. and you don't have to acknowledge it.

Do you like living in Japan?

That's as far as I can go for now.

I love living in Japan! Once again I think you're misunderstanding my tone and taking it as complaining but trust me it's not. To a tourist or first time visitor the いらっしゃいませ is impossible to make out. It sounds almost like ぃしゃっせ lol. And no one acknowledges it, tourist or native Japanese alike.



Edit:
I honestly hope no one else got the same idea that I'm complaining, MMM.
I think you're a little too attentive to detail and that most people could pick up the meaning of the things I sad without having to be so verbose. =/

[RealJames]

Originally Posted by SCIFFIX

It's something like a survival guide for visitors...

Japan for dummies ! haha

Very useful, I have some friends living in Japan and they related to me many things that you write on your tips.

thanks for the information RealJames.

Thanks for the comment! I'm glad you liked it!

[RealJames]

Originally Posted by Sitron

Nice post man. I'll print this out for my trip.

Thanks! Glad you like it!
I'm hoping for additions to it too!

[RealJames]

Originally Posted by diru1

This post has been a great help, but you mentioned some things ive never heard about.

• if you look at someone in the eye's while walking in the opposite direction they'll think "what's his problem?" or "why's he looking at me?"

Does this apply in general? like around Tokyo, because I have a problem where I tend to do that all the time here. Not stare but look at people walking past.

Yeah, that's what happened to me when I first got here. No staring, just the eye-ball wandering, when it meets eyes people don't really know how to respond. Buy if you're clearly a foreigner it's not to unexpected I suppose.
Just don't expect the same reactions as back home.

[steel]

Take your shoes off in the restaurant...

[Nyororin]

MMM certainly isn`t the only one cringing at a lot of your wording. Sure, there are a lot of helpful points, but there are quite a few that are (or at least sound) VERY skewed.

Compared to Montreal and Vancouver there is practically no j-walking over here. A few people race ahead of the walk signal, but it's so rare to see people cross where there is no intersection or when the signal not about to change.
This was something that struck me strongly when I first came here, so clearly there's a huge contrast otherwise I wouldn't have thought anything of it.

I will agree about the jaywalking... And point out the reason behind it.
In every situation where there is an accident involving car and pedestrian, the car is 100% at fault... Except for one - when jaywalking. Insurance that would normally cover the medical costs, funeral costs, family support, etc 100% if someone was hit doesn`t apply when someone is jaywalking.

This is honestly pounded into everyone`s head from a pretty young age. They go over it in all the safety lessons and make it very clear that not only might you be severely injured or die, but you will incur huge monetary costs on yourself or family. This is a fair deterrent for most people. (Obviously the people who don`t care just don`t care, but for the most part people DO care.)

Yeah, you're right, I should say "in general" before everyone of those points in that first point. intersections in big cities generally have no buttons in Japan, in general. Small towns may.

Really? There is a button at practically every intersection with a light in Nagoya - certainly not a small town. I think that it may be true for your area, but not for all or even most of Japan.

In Canada, you look at someone, they smile back, say "good morning" or "what's up", but it certainly isn't strange.
I remember having to intentionally avoid looking at strangers to avoid unnerving them.

If you look at someone in the eyes while walking in the US, chances are they are not going to be pleased... And at the very least be very uncomfortable.

Right, by "in public" I didn't mean to include restaurants. I felt that was a given.

I agree on this one. Walking and eating at the same time is a no-no, and I certainly do not think it`s old fashioned. It`s still something that features in school rule books, and students can be (and are) punished if caught by a teacher eating while out somewhere. (Other than a place designated for eating, obviously.) It`s just something you don`t do. You really never see people walking and eating - and if you do, it`s one of those internal cringe events.

edit: "enough Japanese men are perverted to cause a necessity for women-only trains" (I'll change the original post)

No more perverts exist in Japan than elsewhere. However, the inside of an EXTREMELY packed train is an excellent opportunity for the ones who DO exist to try and cop a feel.
A not so commonly known fact - men were some of the strongest supporters of the women only cars. Why? Because just shifting your bag could be misinterpreted as "rubbing" someone, which could lead to the end of a normal life. My husband is terrified of having someone call him a chikan when he`s not, so either uses his bag like a shield completely blocking his hands or holds the hand loop thing with both hands - so that there is no room for any misinterpretation. As there are more men than women riding, a women-only car is a more efficient way to make everyone more comfortable.

To a tourist or first time visitor the いらっしゃいませ is impossible to make out. It sounds almost like ぃしゃっせ lol. And no one acknowledges it, tourist or native Japanese alike.

The tone of the original could have been better, but I think it is an excellent point that people should know.
This is something that everyone who comes to Japan seems to be confused about ("what are they saying?" or "how should I respond?") - knowing that it is a normal greeting, has no deep meaning, and requires no response or even acknowledgement seems like something useful to a visitor.

japanese men generally have absolutely no chivalry what-so-ever, don't be shocked if a man takes the last seat and lets his girlfriend/wife stand beside him,

If this isn`t skewed and negative, then I don`t know what is.
How long have you been a woman in Japan to know this? Or is it what your Japanese girlfriends have told you? (I think we covered this in another thread...)
I don`t think Japanese men are any different in that department than western men. No better, no worse... And I can speak from firsthand experience on the receiving end of the "chivalry".

if you hold the door open for a woman she'll think you're a knight... ok not that bad, but it's still unexpected.

Despite the fact that people tend to hold the door for anyone? I`ll repeat the exact same thing I said above, and what I have said in the past about fitting reality with expectations.

make sure you don't try to stay at the wrong kind of hotel.... i'll leave it at that...

No, stay at the "wrong" type of hotel as much as you can - the rooms are nicer, cleaner, and night stays are much cheaper than the "right" type of hotel.

use this to clean your hands, and your face and neck if you want to also, keep it near for while you're eating and after, unless it's a nicer restaurant, it's the only one you'll get.

Using it to clean anything other than your hands (and around your mouth after eating) is impolite. VERY impolite if you`re a woman - but still not a good thing if you`re a guy. You will see guys doing it, but god forbid they do it when out eating with someone important. If a woman were to wipe her face and neck down... expect some serious shock and stares.

small-talk does not exist here at all, people will be pretty bewildered if you try to start up a conversation at any time anywhere, there is absolutely no such thing as an "awkward silence" in this culture, and anyways, you probably can't talk with them in the first place haha.

I don`t get this one at all as people small talk all the time, and there is indeed an "awkward silence". People will comment randomly to each other about the weather, etc. Normal "small talk" topics.

A decent list, but... Seriously, you have some issues about Japanese men.

[masaegu]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

　
A decent list, but... Seriously, you have some issues about Japanese men.

100% agreed. And so do many of the other male English teachers on JF and elsewhere to be honest. What they say is so ludicrously predictable. It consists of "opinions" based on hearsay knowledge, rather than reality, from other English-teacher types around them.

[Ronin4hire]

Originally Posted by masaegu

100% agreed. And so do many of the other male English teachers on JF and elsewhere to be honest. What they say is so ludicrously predictable. It consists of "opinions" based on hearsay knowledge, rather than reality, from other English-teacher types around them.

I agree.

It's just straight up racism which is ironic considering how they'll often accuse Japanese society of being racist. (Which is not what RealJames list claimed... but I've heard it being said by others.)

I have a theory regarding that too and it was kinda confirmed by an African American ryuugakesei friend I made while living in Japan.

What you'll get is a whole bunch of white people that are used to being in the majority and then all of a sudden they've become the minority and so to THEM Japan seems racist. To my African American friend, Japanese society is no more racist than American society and according to his experience was a much more pleasurable to be black in at least.