What a day
Yesterday I lost my wallet (which contained cash, two credit cards, two bank ATM cards, an electronic highway toll card, my gaijin card, my driver’s license, my health insurance card, and more) while on the way to Tokyo by train. Except for a prepaid train pass, all I had to my name when I got to Shinjuku was about 700 yen.
After doing my in-town business, I filed reports with the Shinjuku Station lost-and-found office and the police at the Shinjuku Station West Exit Koban (who were professional, kind, and courteous). Then I met Mr. Pink, who kindly took me to dinner and lent me a bit of cash to get me home.
As I rode home on the train, I was thinking of all the trouble it was going to be to replace the documents that I had lost. When I got home, however, Mrs. JP was waiting for me at the door with the news that my wallet had been found on the train and turned in at Yokohama Station with all of cash and documents intact. The Shinjuku Station lost-and-found office took the trouble to give us a call at 10:00 p.m. to inform us of the good news.
Yes, Japan is changing. Yes, there are some bad people here just as there are anywhere. But I really felt that yesterday was one of those days that I experienced some of the very best of Japan and its people.
Although some will point out other negative aspects of Japan, the fact is if this happened in the US, you would have had a much less chance of ever seeing your wallet or at least the money ever again.\
Yes, I hear of stories in the US where people return wallets or bags of money, but I think there is less chance of that happening in the US then in Japan.
August 27th, 2008 at 8:05 amReading the list of stuff in your wallet, that was one huge slice of luck.
August 27th, 2008 at 9:11 amWhy do comparisons always have to be made with the US? Why not with Spain, or with Taiwan, or New Zealand, Peru or Nigeria, just to give several examples? There were 204 countries and territories represented in the Beijing Olympics, yet on these pages the knee jerk country to compare with Japan is always the United States. Why?
Congratulations on getting your wallet returned. There will always be good people out there, no matter where you are and where you go.
August 27th, 2008 at 9:12 amIf one hasn’t lived in “Spain, or Taiwan, or New Zealand, Peru or Nigeria”, it’s a good deal more difficult to make the comparison than if one has lived in the US and Japan, I would imagine.
Plus, consider your audience. Plucking Bolivia out of the air for a comparison isn’t terribly relevant to the experience of the majority of Japundit’s readership.
August 27th, 2008 at 9:29 amYou filed a report AFTER completing your in-town business? Impressive…
August 27th, 2008 at 10:06 amActually, RYO, I called Mrs. JP as soon as I discovered that my wallet was missing and she contacted the JR (Japan Railroad) by phone while I was attending my meetings. I went to the station at the end of the day to file a formal report.
August 27th, 2008 at 10:12 amAs far as comparisons with other countries are concerned, I think it is only natural that people will make comparisons with countries where they have lived and those they are familiar with.
August 27th, 2008 at 10:14 amI see. Nice to hear that everything worked out at the end of the day (literally). (Were the credit card issuers immediately contacted as well?) I suggest you purchase a man-purse for yourself if you’re cool with that. (I wouldn’t be caught dead with one but to each his own…)
August 27th, 2008 at 10:35 amOn Sunday I got off the Shink forgetting two large bags containing lots of stuff I’d bought PLUS my wallet with lots of cash inside. It made it back to me safely though. I love Japan!
August 27th, 2008 at 10:38 amYes, RYO, we did kill the credit cards immediately.
Dittos on the man bag.
And dittos on Peter’s “I love Japan!”
August 27th, 2008 at 10:56 amA friend of mine got separated from our school group while making our way from Yokohama to Tokyo. Although he doesn’t know enough Japanese to get around the trains at all, my teacher was barely worried and all she said was “Thank god this is Japan”. My peers and I were dumbfounded by this, but sure enough my friend was back at the ryokan by the time we returned.
Not exactly about getting something as tempting as a wallet returned to you, but that experience pointed out some of the vast differences between the USA and Japan for me.
August 27th, 2008 at 10:59 amDamn, I have never gotten anything back that I lost on trains/in stations. And all I’ve lost are hats.
August 27th, 2008 at 4:41 pmJust the reverse happened to me a couple of weeks ago. Was sitting down resting outside a large mall, and watched as a young lady ran towards then past me. After a few minutes I noticed that there was a wallet/purse on the ground behind me. I took it to the mall security and handed it in. A few hours later received a call from a very grateful woman. I like to think that people would do the same for me if I ever lost mine. (This is in New Zealand btw).
August 27th, 2008 at 5:04 pmWay to go, maiko.
August 27th, 2008 at 6:17 pmI can’t count the number of times I’ve forgotten my bag somewhere - usually a train. Only once I didn’t get it back. And I’ve turned in several wallets and the like too.
August 27th, 2008 at 7:55 pmOnce I found a large case with an older woman’s entire life in it - all kinds of ID, bank, insurance and credit cards, and even with a handy hanko. Man oh, man. I bet she was glad to get that back.
I’ll admit Japan is changing but at a much slower rate than the west and overall, I find the Japanese people a kind and decent people. Not to mention the fact that Japan is the safest and healthiest place on earth. Glad to hear your had your wallet returned. May we all be honest people like that.
August 27th, 2008 at 10:09 pmWoah thats great mate. If that’d happened in Holland it would turn up anymore, or at least empty hehe.
August 27th, 2008 at 10:14 pmJust to share, a few months ago I left my purse on a subway in Manhattan. It had my wallet, cell phone, iPod, etc. I figured I’d never see it again. But within an hour, it had been returned to me completely intact due to some French tourists and a friendly New Yorker. So these things CAN happen anywhere, though I agree it’s definitely more likely to happen in Japan. I can’t tell you how many times I left something on a train in Kyoto only to have someone run after me to return it.
I also once dropped a wad of cash in a fast food restaurant in Madrid (smart, I know). A woman chased after me to return it. Perhaps I’m just really lucky? (Uh, not to mention a total klutz.)
August 28th, 2008 at 1:13 amEdward good to know you got your wallet back in tact but I bet the sumo wrestler Wakonoho had wished people weren’t so honest when someone handed in his lost wallet containing marijuana?
August 28th, 2008 at 6:23 amOn another note, if you lose your wallet you can go to a police box and ask for the money to buy a ticket to go home. You will have to repay it later. Or go to the station office of the train station and explain you have lost your wallet. They will give you a ticket, which again later you will have to repay. Japan is a good country.
Seeing as its apparently OK to make subjective comparative statements about entire countries based on singular experiences by individuals, let me say that if this had happened in Taiwan, your wallet (and its contents) would probably never be seen again.
August 28th, 2008 at 9:59 am