Reflections on Japan

On yesterday's bullet train back to Tokyo the train was nearly full, so we needed to split up to get seats. John sat between two business men with Elizabeth sitting one row back. Catheleen and I were further back. I guess John and Elizabeth made an impression since the business men struck up a conversation with John, much to his embarrassment, with Elizabeth piping in to correct his responses. They fed him chips and wanted to know where he was from and his age, etc. One man showed him pictures of his daughter and said John's sister is pretty too, no? John's response was "Meh" which got a good laugh from them.

On our way back via the subway from the train station, we needed to cross paths with a seemingly endless sea of commuters at least ten people abreast, all packed in like a parade. We just walked directly across this traffic without so much as a break in stride, all without bumping into anyone. It's amazing to me, in this largest city in the world, that so many people can get around efficiently, all without running into each other.

Catheleen and the kids went to the shopping district this morning while I cooled my heels at the hotel. For lunch I went back to the first restaurant we visited upon our arrival and enjoyed the same meal - pork on rice, miso soup and salad. It's almost like I was a local taking in some comfort food.

So on our last day in Japan, with lunch over, it's a time for reflection. I wasn't big on the thought of coming to Japan, truth be told. My preconception of Japan and Tokyo in particular was that it's too different, too inaccessible to tourists, too expensive. I would say now that these preconceptions are all wrong - Japan is accessible and interesting, and things cost about what they would in a large Western city. While English is not well spoken here, you can still get by well enough. You don't even need to know what you're ordering at a restaurant - just point at a picture. It's all tasty even if you're not sure what you've ordered until you taste it.

What struck me most about Japan were more the similarities than the differences. The Japanese seem to have the same standard of living as the West, and they seem to value the same things in broad strokes. People go about their business caring for their kids, making a living, spending time with friends, enjoying life. It reinforces the point (to me at least) that we are all basically the same, and we should all make every effort to get along - be it locally or internationally. That's my plug for world peace by the way.

As for some differences, these seem minor to me but just for fun I'll list a few I've observed: driving on the left, no tipping, taxes included, poorly branded soft drinks, tiny restaurants holding a half dozen patrons, queuing up for the latest trendy chocolate store, no smoking in the streets but smoking allowed in restaurants, tissue boxes under the restaurant tables, seat belts on buses, Buddhist monks blessing BMWs for 50,000 yen a pop, perhaps excessive use of skin whitening products and cartoon characters, and public access to the best toilets I've ever used.


Sayonara!