Negative Experiences in Japan
Japan is a great country, with a lot to offer both short-term visitors and tourists as well as people like me, who like the place so much we put down permanent roots. But still, Japan is far from perfect, and there are various sources of stress for gaijin living here, for example (if your language skills are still improving) not being able to talk freely to people or even to read what’s written on some signs, not being able to understand local customs that might be taken for granted by everyone but you, or (if you live in a rural city like I do) having kids occasionally stare at you because you’re different. (I just say hello to them in English.)
I’ve lived in Japan for 17 years and have traveled quite extensively throughout most of the country, meeting a lot of people along the way. It has happened, so infrequently it’s almost statistically insignificant, that not every experience I had here was a good one, and not every person I met was 100% happy to be dealing with an overly-exuberant American like myself.
Like an old farmer who, when in his cups, asked me why “big America” had to beat up on “little Japan” during the war, or the scary yakuza gangsters I found myself surrounded by when I stupidly stayed at a 24-hour sauna in Kyoto, or the one time I tried to enter a bar in Roppongi and was told politely that they didn’t accept foreign customers. (I should have worn our “No Gaijin” T-shirt.)
Whenever I encounter some minor inconvenience I shrug and move on, reciting that useful Japanese mantra shikata ga nai (or more colloquially, sho ga nai), which means “it can’t be helped,” the main way the Japanese maintain their happy, largely confrontation-free society.
I know that everyone is human, and for every minor negative experience I may encounter here in Japan, there are a few hundred positive ones.
I lived in Okinawa for three and a half years and my interactions with the locals there have been largely positive. There are a few negatives; bars in Naha are about 90% ‘no Gaijin’ and weekly protests. However, one on one interaction with Okinawans shows they are extremely warm and generous. Same goes for my time in Tokyo, though the same social dynamics apply in Japan as they do in the States (such as New York and Arkansas).
July 22nd, 2008 at 2:40 amI’ve never been to Okinawa, but I expect some of this is like an American or Brit going to France. If you have the right attitude, try to speak French, the people can be quite nice, but if you have a chip on your shoulder because “the French hate us” then you’ll have problems.
July 22nd, 2008 at 2:52 amThe Japanese are pretty much like most people around the world. You have good and bad types there. For the most part the Japanese are a polite people but they have their assholes too.
July 22nd, 2008 at 2:59 amI almost got kicked out of a spa once because a lady who worked there spotted one of my tattoos. My mother-in-law freaked out and told her to leave me alone. I ended up with a flesh-coloured bandage covering it up. I’ve never been refused entry anywhere else, but when I go out on the town I’m always with Japanese friends or my husband. I think foreign women are treated differently than men, and I agree that those of us who can speak the language are given more of a break. But I can’t count how many times I’ve been ignored by people in public who prefer speaking to my hubby, even if the situation pertains to me (ie. Kyoto city hall, changing my address on my foreigner’s card). It’s a little humiliating, to say the least.
July 22nd, 2008 at 4:15 am..yes Peter, I sympathise with your sentiments.
this Average White Banned syndrome must be stomped out.
remora.
July 23rd, 2008 at 5:34 am