tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post5193876472715342412..comments2023-12-23T06:06:24.347-05:00Comments on Just Another Day in Japan: Drifting, or finding a path...?Blue Shoehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08474339066187087545noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-4357226220961900362010-06-20T04:23:59.637-04:002010-06-20T04:23:59.637-04:00What I sometimes like to do is make as big a show ...What I sometimes like to do is make as big a show as possible of using my chopsticks badly. One in each hand, usually does the trick. The funny thing is, you might still hear the odd "hashi, jouzu da ne."<br />Honestly, though, I think the whole "my aren't you good with chopsticks" thing is simply one of many bland stock conversation pieces for foreigners. And we both know how much the Japanese language revolves around stock phrases.g dawghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07467496051544107837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-64939355069255134012010-06-14T09:51:52.475-04:002010-06-14T09:51:52.475-04:00About chopstick compliments; in one of the English...About chopstick compliments; in one of the English textbooks I teach from it specifically says not to compliment foreigners on their chopstick skills. Maybe textbooks should include more little pieces of advice like thisJoe4theRecordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05266035941155654417noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-72515480063814627742010-06-11T07:15:57.277-04:002010-06-11T07:15:57.277-04:00Lukas, that is true - there are bigoted people eve...Lukas, that is true - there are bigoted people everywhere. Most of what I've experienced in Japan, though, doesn't seem to be outright racism or ill-intentioned discrimination - it's just a lack of understanding or a lack of experience with foreign people. There has been some condescension and some a-holes, but by and large that's not what I've encountered here.Blue Shoehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08474339066187087545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-52573850121648587902010-06-10T14:46:26.327-04:002010-06-10T14:46:26.327-04:00There are bigoted and discriminatory people everyw...There are bigoted and discriminatory people everywhere in this world. Try not to pay much attention to their criticisms. However, you can think of it as a whetstone for character development and be grateful for the challenge they provide to keep living to your life utmost. Fitting in is fine, but it is far better to see the universals of all humans, and see yourself as belonging to our species than any trivial and arbitrary subdivision therein. 気をつけてね.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01386665529288400947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-89851233233776683302010-06-07T18:53:12.296-04:002010-06-07T18:53:12.296-04:00Jay - Yeah, you're right. In everyday life, I&...Jay - Yeah, you're right. In everyday life, I'm treated normally. Usually shop staff are well-disciplined enough to keep their "日本上手"'s to themselves. And with my friends and girlfriend it's not a problem. Hell, it's usually not a problem...just sometimes can build up and be quite frustrating.<br /><br />Anyway, thanks for your thoughts!Blue Shoehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08474339066187087545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-5711617729644406252010-06-07T14:27:08.841-04:002010-06-07T14:27:08.841-04:00I can definitely understand what you're talkin...I can definitely understand what you're talking about. The whole reverse culture shock hit me, too. I couldn't believe how many people in North America are overweight. I was surprised about airport staff in the USA and Canada being rather uptight and lacking in friendliness.<br /><br />I've been in Japan for more than 5 years now, but I've been enjoying it much more in the past year than the previous 4 years. I guess it's a change in attitude for myself, or it could be that I have some great friends right now. I still get the surprised looks when people see I can use chopsticks or eat sashimi. But you know what? I find that I'm treated the same as Japanese customers almost anywhere I go. There are some exceptions, though. Some staff try speaking English. However, in my neighbourhood, the local shop staff in stores I frequent never try English with me, because I always use Japanese with them. They're also quite friendly with me, as they are with other customers. Same with in the area I work in. I get the occasional "otsukaresama" or "konnichiwa" from others who work in the same building as me, just as they do with other people who work there.<br /><br />Sure, this all sounds positive, but I do understand your worries. I've felt them often, as well. ,But I've learned to get past that, and I feel very comfortable in Japan.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-38339163248648623102010-06-06T00:31:10.373-04:002010-06-06T00:31:10.373-04:00Was being sarcastic. Guess it doesn't work wel...Was being sarcastic. Guess it doesn't work well in text.Gobblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03949346405183981342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-12051875558666017882010-06-05T18:25:07.209-04:002010-06-05T18:25:07.209-04:00Orchid - Thanks for your thoughts. I agree, one mu...Orchid - Thanks for your thoughts. I agree, one must take the good with the bad and be careful not to judge either place unreasonably or overly harshly. <br /><br />Gobbler - Hey man, you looked good when I was back - you already lost a bunch of weight.<br /><br />Xamuel - It's not so much that I've been fighting it, trying to be Japanese. It's just that I'm trying to live my life and be "normal." I'm not sure which country you're from, but for example in America if you met someone who was from another country, I would consider if somewhat insulting and patronizing to fawn over them in such a manner. "Oh my, you can eat hot dogs? That's great!" That said, I know it's not done out of malice, and that's why I can tolerate it.Blue Shoehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08474339066187087545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-77360338226428540312010-06-05T13:22:21.553-04:002010-06-05T13:22:21.553-04:00If you can't fight it, embrace it: you'll ...If you can't fight it, embrace it: you'll never get rid of the amazed onlookers every time you whip out your chopsticks, so ham it up and become a mini-celebrity. Affect a cute foreign accent even if your mastery of Japanese is flawless. Have fun with it. The alternative is to fight it, and, as you've already pointed out, that's a fight you'll never ever win.Xamuelhttp://www.xamuel.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-23516444685984640552010-06-05T11:37:53.110-04:002010-06-05T11:37:53.110-04:00Sorry for shocking you. Will try to lose some wei...Sorry for shocking you. Will try to lose some weight before you come back next time :P <br /><br />Orchid's advice seems pretty solid.Gobblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03949346405183981342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-503203977655953303.post-17931417756132408112010-06-05T09:52:13.547-04:002010-06-05T09:52:13.547-04:00I've been here 20 years, and am actually afrai...I've been here 20 years, and am actually afraid to go home, yet find it increasingly hard to remain here as the environment for foreigners in Japan is growing less and less friendly. As the economy sinks continuously, the Japanese are becoming more hostile in general toward us (and each other). Somehow bad manners back home seem less bad than they are here because you know it's neither personal nor a manifestation of prejudice. Here, you know it's one or the other since people generally are polite to each other.<br /><br />Being here changes you such that you no longer belong anywhere. You've been here a lot shorter time than me, and I can tell you that it really doesn't get any better on either side of the Pacific. You're not going to fit in no matter what. <br /><br />Japanese people who live abroad ("returnees") suffer the same problems. They also have problems adapting to either environment after spending a substantial time in a Western culture. <br /><br />That all being said, I think that one can view this as a growth experience. You have to learn to be open-minded and flexible about both cultures, and try to take it all in stride. If not, you risk becoming too enamored of one culture and too antagonistic of the other, and that's not really a positive or mature response (it's more of a defensive one), so we can grow or we can cope in a destructive manner by developing skewed attitudes. It's okay to be unhappy with and pleased with aspects of both cultures though. I think that's not an unreasonable response so long as one has an educated and unbiased perspective on the whole, neither elevating nor deriding one culture or the other. <br /><br />Good luck.Orchid64https://www.blogger.com/profile/07132543155589881288noreply@blogger.com