Thursday, June 14, 2012

Cultural Differences/headaches

When you live in a foreign country, especially one like Japan, you can't help but notice all the small cultural differences. A lot of them are harmless, but some of them either confuse you or drive you crazy. I intend to cover the peculiar facets of Japanese culture that I have noticed. I also intend to rant about how great America is because being away from the land of the free and the home of the brave makes you appreciate how great Americans have it. So if you're an American, appreciate the awesomeness of Ammerrrrica. I am going to sound like a typical stupid conceited American, but I can't help it. Ask anyone who has lived abroad and in America, no matter how hard you try, nothing can compare to the American lifestyle. You can easily obtain anything you want with ease. I decided to write about this topic because I was at a restaurant the other day and my friend and I were wondering if the waitress would bend the rules so we could get chicken in our salad. We thought about not even to bother asking because once something is decided or a rule is made, it is impossible to bend it. All I wanted was for them to add chicken to my salad and the waitress looked at me as if I was crazy. She said, 'we can't do that because it is not on the menu.' Hmm, in America, people bend the rules all the time. Sometimes it is great sometimes it makes thing fall apart. The fact that in the good ol US of A you have options! That brings me to another rant. At school, we have to teach what is in the textbook because it is going to be on the test. For example, last week we taught, 'I have lived in Japan for one year.' I said, we can also say, 'I have been living in Japan for one year.' The head teacher looked at me and said, oh we can't teach that because it is not in the book...hmm can we make a quick diversion to acknowledge that there is more than one way to say something....nope. I think a lot of that is because Japanese people are so set in their ways that change is so hard to accept. I'll admit that most Americans are the same way, I definitely don't like big changes, which is obvious because I'm writing about how I am failing to adapt completely to Japanese soceity. BUT, I think I am right in saying that Japanese people need to learn how to be more flexible. A funny thing that a lot of Americans who drive over here will notice is that Japanese people almost always back into parking spots. Even when it is completely unnecessary, they will do a 90 degree reverse into the spot. I asked a Japanese friend why they do it and they said, 'it is easier to get out.' I totally agree, but it is also 10 times harder to get in and backing out of a spot is a lot easier than backing into one. This is one of those small differences that are pretty funny to an outsider. I have refused to conform, so every time I go to the mall or a crowded parking lot, my car will be the ONLY one that has not backed into the spot. Another thing that I have come to really respect about America is all the space we have. I never thought that I would miss grass, but man, I miss grass. Space is limited here, so they don't have many grassy fields. Nobody has a lawn, I'm pretty sure they don't know what that is. If someone is rich enough to have a garden, they are Japanese style. I really like Japanese style gardens, but there isn't any room for kids to play. I can't imagine not having a backyard. The next thing I've noticed is that the portions here are so small. Maybe we should make our meals in America smaller, that might fix our current fatty problem. Americans have gotten used to devouring large portions and it shows when you go to a public event. I went to a baseball game here in Japan and I can confidently say that maybe 5% of the people were overweight. Compare that to America, where it seems like 50% of people are now overweight and 15% are obese. When I returned to the States last year, I was absolutely blown away by the fat people walking around. I left Osaka airport and arrived in Seattle, not only were people fat, but man they all seemed to be obese. Japanese people are smaller, but they don't develop the massive appetites that Americans do. I think we could learn from them and stop feeding our children like they are pigs at the trough. The funny thing is, in America, among my friends I probably eat the least. Here I by far eat more than everyone. I went out with some Japanese friends and had a typical American sized meal and they were shocked. I told them that I was a weak eater and I have friends who can eat 3 times as much. The next thing that I have talked about earlier and I'll approach again is the way people treat foreigners here. I get it, we are rare, and you don't see us every day. My American attitude makes me want to punch people in the face for staring. They don't glance, they stare for as long as you are in their peripheral. I was shopping the other day and a woman who was probably 50 did a full 360 degree turn as she stared at me. I don't care if you're intrigued, that is rude. I have gotten used to it and usually don't have a problem, but that was absurd. Aother thing that is great about America is the cultural diversity. There is a mixed girl in one of my friend Katyana's schools and she looks 100% Japanese to me, but she is half white. She lived in America with her family for 2 years and speaks both languages fluently. Because she lived in America and is half, she is not considered Japanese. Kids at school bully her and tell her, 'you're not even Japanese' shut up. She has told her mother that she wants to go back to America. People here need to teach their children not to be racist and be more accepting of 'outsiders.' It is 2012 and they act like it is 1850 sometimes. America is not perfect, but from my experience in public school I can safely say we were way more accepting of 'outsiders.' Lastly I would like to touch on the Japanese open discrimination of people who have tattoos. In the old days, only Japanese gangsters had tattoos. They have rules that don't allow tattoos to be visible when working and when you are swimming at a pool. When I joined the local gym, they asked me if I had any tattoos and I said yes. They grimaced and said I couldn't swim without a shirt on because my tattoo would show. I said, 'I'm not a Yakuza.' They responded by saying Japanese people don't like tattoos. Sometimes in Japan I feel like I am in the twilight zone. Recently I was watching the news and they said that in Osaka they are requiring all governmental employees to take a survey and say whether or not they have a tattoo or tattoos and to specify the exact location. People who have tattoos are going to get fired I would bet....This all happened because some guy who has a tattoo beat up some old woman. So once again, everyone who has a tattoo is a criminal.....deeeedeeeddeeeddeee (twilight zone music). So that is my rant for today, I'm sitting at work bored, watching the NBA finals game tracker on my computer. Not being able to watch sports is so hard sometimes. I need my crack!! ahhh. I went to a Firefly festival last night. It was pretty amazing. It was along this small river and it was completely dark with the exception of the fireflies. There had to be thousands of them flying around. sorry if there are any typos, I just write this without looking back. Miss you all, catch me on skype and let's talk:)

1 comment:

  1. I love the idea of a fire fly festival! Your dad would go nuts! You know how much he loves nature stuff!

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