A short story from Japan
 

Well as part of the Japanese government’s new comer hazing, all foreigners are required to register with the local civic center. You have to do this within 90days of entering Japan. You also need this paper work if you wish to receive a cell phone, something that is required in Japan. The college I’m going to doesn’t offer to help with this kind of thing, so it was up to me to find this place on my own.

The first time I tried to go I thought “it doesn’t look that far, why not walk.”
This resulted in a 3 or 4 hour adventure in which I was lost in Tokyo. The roads in Japan have no real organizational system, and they don’t bother to name streets. Nothing like asking “what way is Mejiro?” only to be given a strange look then someone pointing way off in the distance “that way… far.”

After a few days I was ready to go again, I had since purchased a bike and was ready to ride to the office. This time it was already a cloudy day, and about the time I was an inconvenient distance the rain started to fall. It was a real nasty rain too. So I turned back. I was soaked but riding anymore in that rain couldn’t have been good for me.

Third time is the charm right? Well this time I was going to take the bus, it goes directly to the civic center (I didn’t know this before) and is really easy to find. So I find the bus stop, and board with no problems. I walk to take my seat. The person sitting across from me is an old Japanese man. He is staring at me, so I look out the window etc. After a few minutes I look back and he is still staring at me I decide I’ll try to help the situation. “Nice weather today isn’t it?”
His response was “Yeah.”
“Where From” he asked me in English.
“America”
“Japan” he said with a big smile.

I smile and look out the window; I’m worried about getting lost etc so trying to look at landmarks.

I turn back and he is staring at me again
“Where From” he asks
I pause, and then said
“America”
“Japan” he said with a big smile

I was not sure what to say, the man was staring me down, and I don’t know what kind of conversation to start.

“Here” he said
“Pen”
At this time he handed me a pen. I refused but he insisted, so I took the pen.

“Where from?”
“America”
“Japan” with the same big smile

At this time other people in the bus have noticed what is going on, I saw some small smiles of people pretending not to notice.

By now the bus has filled more and more, while most of the seats have room for two, no one wants to sit beside someone else. I move to sit next to the old man, so that another seat would be free.

When I sit down next to him I take my map (poorly drawn on a napkin) to re-read the place I need to get off. The old man looks, so I show him too. He looks at it for a while then makes me worried by not being sure of where this place is. I ask someone else on the bus if this was the right stop; she said it was 3 stops away.

Now, several school girls have since boarded this bus, elementary school kids. They are standing, and the old man notices and begins to call out.
“Hey, there is an empty seat right here” in Japanese of course
The girls were a little scared (of the old man, or maybe even me, or maybe they just wanted to stand), and they said
“No that’s alright.”

Again
“Where from”
“America”
“Japan”

Now he called out again to the girls
“Hey there is an empty seat here, come on and sit down.”
“No that’s alright” they say
“Don’t worry he is a good gaijin (foreigner), don’t be scared of him.”
When he said this several people on the bus were smiling despite trying their best not too.
I saw an older woman really enjoying it.

After a bit more coaxing, the old man has called the girls over. I didn’t understand some of the things he said I was still kind of shocked about the overall situation.

“He is from America” He remembered!
“He is a good gaijin” ugh
“What do you think?”
The girls didn’t respond.

There was a conversation about how hot it was, and the old man tried to give one of the girls a pack of tissues… twice. But she said he was fine, she had a handkerchief.

I didn’t speak much to the girls, I figured creepy old man was enough for them they didn’t need a creepy gaijin bothering them too. He went on about a few things, said I was a good gaijin again. This time he said something about white skin and maybe blond hair.

It came to my stop, I bolted, and that is where the interesting part of the story ends.

Now this isn’t the most interesting story ever, but it happened to me.
It is really long now that I read over it.

But I believe this portrays just how long it felt to be there.

-Vince in Tokyo

Where from?

thanks, Vincentt.
Hope there are bike paths in the big city.

Oh goody, I just finished a class on Japanese culture so I can act like I know what I am talking about!

The business with the "Where from" and the pen makes me thing you might have run into what my professor calls an "English leech". These are Japanese people who are desperate to practice their English and will latch on to any "American" (which they will often use with Canadians, Scottish, pretty much anyone from the west) in order to use the few English phrases they know. He probably knew very little English, enough to say "Where from" and "pen", so he just reused them. My professor related an identical experience where he was handed random objects by people who knew their English name and almost nothing else, smiling like an idiot the entire time.

As for their policy toward foreigners, it is really an interesting topic. In different cases outsiders can be considered literally "dangerous" or in other cases like particularly auspicious dates can be considered as "divine". You may never know for sure if the girls were shy or just not interested, but they were probably humoring their elders. Once you showed your obvious awkwardness the amusement probably stemmed from the old guy pestering you.

The comments about white skin and blond hair was most likely a compliment; most asians view light skin and hair as the ideal in beauty, much like Americans tend to view a good tan.

Very interesting story. I like reading about different cultures. and thanks Phage for explaining the reasons behind the behavior. Having never experience anything but America, it makes for a good story.

There are no bike paths, you use the sidewalk or road or whatever. Also there are no bike parking signs everywhere, but everyone parks their bikes everywhere. Some of the most full spots are directly around the sign.

I am thinking the man was old and he just totally forgot he asked me, but it might be that he just wanted to practice what he knew.

Many people will talk to you in english when they can, even when I respond in Japanese.
It can be annoying at times.

I have often asked for something or directions, in Japanese mind you, and been told "sorry no english."

man, i can totally picture that experience vincentt. mega wierd. so much stuff that happens over there just makes no sense. what i don't understand is how the hell do people get around without street names?!?! wtf? that's something that confused me the most about Japan. so, did you end up getting to register at the civic center? and what kind of cell phone are you going to get? when i was in Japan in '98, the cells over there were like the cells we have over here, now. i'm really interested to know what cell phones are like over there now.

I kept waiting for you to say you had something stuck to your shirt or something. Hehe.

interesting experience, and I'm inclined to agree with phage's theory on why he kept repeating himself. I'm counting down the days till i leave for my own adventure, 57 and counting :)

Unless you get a prepaid phone, which works out to be much much cheaper if you only use your phone for text messages, which most people do anyway.

Have fun in Japan. I sure miss it.

Japan...the place where you must ask 5 people for directions and take the one the majority agrees to.

I have been lost there so many times, I laugh about it now. They just can't say "Sorry, I don't know".

You will have many more "strange" stories to tell your friends by the time you finish your Japanese experiece. Enjoy.

I wouldn't really call the alien registration card foreign hazing. I had to do it when I studided abroad (just got back april 19th) and it was painless. But then again I also had an internship at city hall and I filled out my form in a large group at the college i was studying abroad at so it was a pretty painless process.

Of course you're in Tokyo though where things are a bit more crowded. I was in Hikone, near Kyoto.

Do speak any Japanese out of curiosity? People speak such horrible english pretty much all over Japan that if you don't know a usable level of Japanese its very hard to do much of anything :P

I'll post my own tokyo story sometime when I have the time to write it all down. It includes strippers and extecy, stay tuned.

The Japanese consider a straight "No" to be rude, and will often dance around a negative answer using non-verbal communication instead. Keep your eyes open for the cues and you will probably pick up on it pretty quickly.

Compared to the normal custom it is the very least you can do. If you really wanted to start off on the right foot you should introduce yourself to each of your neighbors and bring them a small gift. Japanese culture is based completely on hierarchy and group identity, and distancing yourself from the community is a recipe for a very uncomfortable stay in Japan.

We we harass our foreigner's here in the States too you know. I bet the Japanese visitors think my Japanese is horrible. You can't reallt expect them to know English there, it another country for cryin' out loud.

Yeah I speak Japanese, it is the main reason I went to Japan to further improve.

I'm at a college with no classes in english, and because there are so few exchange students they don't really help with problems like these.

Going in a group with lots of people to help fill out those forms etc... that is one thing.

Going solo is another, my japanese is having the hard shift from theory to practice.

And really... the national insurance was much much much harder because there was some problem on the application and I couldn't understand what the problem was. I still don't know, but after some rough conversation I was able to get my card...

I don't expect people to speak english. As I said before it is often for me to be in converstaion with someone where I am speaking Japanese and they are speaking english. I understand they want to practice, but hell I did fly halfway around the world to study Japanese...

Hiliarious reply. :lol:

Sounds like a weird experience, but not too surprising considering you're in Japan.

Well, at least you survived the dreaded pesky oyaji attack, which is far more unpleasant than a trip to the civic centre. (civic centres usually have good looking people working there...)
Question about the buses in Tokyo: (in my numerous trips there I have strangely never taken a bus. Subway? check. Taxi? check. Train? check. water taxi? check. Monorail? check. Bus? hmmm....) are the floors made of wood? I was shocked to get on a municipal bus once and see that the floors were made of wood (apparently, it's to better absorb the water from wet shoes during the rainy season). I was in a relatively small city, so I was wondering if Tokyo does the same thing or not.
I always thought the explanation they gave me was just something the guy I was with just pulled out of his ass, but he could have been right....

Ya know, I didn't really notice the floor. But I think I would have noticed if they were made out of wood. The bus is expensive for most trips, 200 yen per ride. I try to bike wherever I can but due to the string of bad luck I took the bus this time.

My school is about 25min walk from where I live, 10min bike ride, but when it rains... I don't know what i'm going to do during the rainy season.

Golden week now, I figure I'll check out Asakusa and Hamakura. I really don't know where to go in this country, I studied Japanese language but not much about culture or interesting places that would be worth seeing.

Asakusa is awesome, you should totally go there.
See if you can find these kinda wierd lollipop things, theyre like, transparent, sticky-ish, wound on a sick around some kinda fruit. Fuckin bizarre, and i have NO idea what it was composed of but certainly tasty.
If you do find them, please tell me what the hell they are. I'd love to know :D

Man I'm jealous. I want to visit Japan so bad! I get a 3-month sabbatical from work in about 6 years...hopefully I can take a long trip there then.

Wow.
"Ching Chang Ching Chong, i can't understand you, go back to your country...White Power."-Black/White Supremacist