Japanese for everyone- Lesson 3

Or as we would pronounce it in English, 

CULTURE SHOCK! 

We've dedicated this lesson to culture shock as it will be the first thing you realize when you step off the plane in Japan.

Most Japanese people study English for a minimum of 6 years during middle school and high school. After that, most will even take another 2 years in college. This however does not necessarily guarantee that they can speak it! When entering an English conversation school, the average person will start at an upper beginner level.

What's my point? Most people actually can understand what you are basically saying if you speak slowly, they may not be able to carry on a conversation with you, but they can help you get what you are looking for in most cases.

Also, most important signs in Japan are written in both Japanese AND English, so you will have little trouble finding a restroom or your stop on the train. If you are planning a trip to Japan, it would be wiser to prepare yourself for the cultural differences than to try to learn the whole language for a short trip!

 文化
That said, let's get into some bunka (culture). I've put together a list of the TOP 10 things you will want to be aware of when you get to Japan, here they are:

I. Take your shoes off!

Whenever you enter someone's house you MUST take off your shoes! You will feel uncomfortable doing it at first, but you'll get used to it. Actually, when Japanese go to America and walk into a house, they hesitate to walk in with shoes on.

Reason being? Most houses or apartments have "tatami" floors. These are kinds of mats made out of woven straw, which coincedentaly smells like grass when new. It actually feels nice to sit on tatami in the summer, rather than carpet, which gets warm in the sun. You will not see much carpet while you are in Japan as a lot of floors are going to be wood in the kitchen and tatami in the rooms.

Shoes would damage the tatami (which isn't cheap) and make the floors dirty.

There will be a small area just inside the front door to leave your shoes when you come in. Usually, there will be a small assortment of slippers for you to choose from also (don't expect your feet to fit!).

HINT: Bring your nice socks and change them daily!

II. Where'd the toilet go?!

Ah, the toilet, everyone needs one, but the thought of holding it until you get back to the States might cross your mind a few times if you are staying less than 2 weeks!

Why? Traditional Japanese toilets are nothing more than a porcelain hole in the ground! Old houses might have the inside-Out house (as I like to call it.) These are like what you might find when camping, except without the seat. Newer houses have "western style toilets" which are like what you might have in your house (at least in the USA). However, in general, hotels, restaurants and other public buildings will supply you with a Japanese toilet a bit more modern than the above mentioned "hole in the ground." It's comparable to a urinal turned on it's side and set into the floor. At least it flushes though!

HINT: Find a handicap toilet as they will always have seats!

III. No showers / Scalding baths!

The Japanese usually do not take a shower in the morning before going to work. Don't get me wrong, they do clean themselves.....

Traditionally, would take a hot (literally steaming) bath, at about 6 pm. Now it's not as simple as it sounds. You must not enter the bath if you are not already clean! First, you sit outside the bath, soap up get nice and clean, rinse off and finally, if all the required steps have been followed, you may enter the bath tub.

WHY? The water must remain clean as all members of the household will use the same bath water as a means of conserving water and energy (to heat the tub after every bath would get costly by the end of the month.)

Speaking of the tub, you might realize that it is nothing like the ones you are used to. They are twice as deep and half as long!

Reason being? Well, first Japanese have smaller bodies. Also the living space is smaller. The rest remains a mystery.

I refused to take a bath- MUST have my shower every morning! - when I first got here. However after a while of everyone telling my I've got to try a Japanese bath, I finally gave in. They were right! It feels so relaxing to just soak in a hot bath for about 5 minutes after a long day's work. Though you WILL have doubts, when offered, take the bath!

HINT: Your host will take pleasure in preparing a bath for you. Enjoy it!

IV. Apartment or closet, which is it?

You will not believe how small EVERYTHING is in Japan! Since Japan is a very small country (smaller than the state of California) everything IN it is made small to conserve space. Easiest to notice would be the houses. Actually there are quite a bit more appartments than houses, arranged in what could be towering buildings the Japanese like to call "mansions"! The average "mansion apartment" is pretty small and the rooms are measured by how many tatami mats will fit in them. Most tatami is about 2 1/2 feet wide by almost 6 feet long. The average room is "6 tatami" - you can do the math.

Apartments in general have a kitchen and 3 rooms. That's right, you didn't see "living room" or "dining room"! One of the rooms may be turned into a living room if you wish and the dining room is usually part of the kitchen, which is a little bigger than a bedroom if you are lucky.

HINT: Go outside and walk around, you won't feel as cramped in.

V. Toy cars, narrow streets- Stay off the right side of the road!

You will never see a smaller car in your life once you leave Japan! Space being limitted in Japan, the roads are about the size of a backstreet alley. It is not uncommon to have to pull over or back up to let someone pass you in your neighborhood areas. Of course in bigger cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto and Hiroshima, the major roads will be up to 2 or 3 (4 if you're lucky) lanes wide. But everywhere you go, you will find be sure to find small villages and housing areas called "bed towns" (more on those in the future.)

With small roads, common sense says - build small cars! So they did. The average car is no bigger than a Toyota corrola. Don't be suprised when you find out that many cars are even smaller than a Yugo!

Streets are wound in circles around the mountainous terrain and the Japanese are so used to driving on them, they can easily speed past each other with only a few centimeters between cars.

HINT: If you get carsick easily, suggest walking or taking a train. Otherwise, carry a small bag with you at all times! :-)

VI. Trains, trains and more trains!

Again, the subject of no space comes up. This leads to packed roads, which leads to traffic jams. It also leads indirectly to high prices on cars and extremely high yearly taxes and smog checks (the bigger the engine, the more cash you fork out!)

Alternative? Trains! Every city has a train route going through it, it's inevitable (except for places located way out in the country- otherwise known as the "boondocks!") There are local commuter trains and there are long distance trains.

Commuter trains are always cram-packed during rush hours. You can literally be shoved in, in order to get the doors closed (NO JOKE!). Half the people on the train will be reading a book or newspaper and the other half will be sleeping! This is because, some people commute from 20 minutes to 2 hours to work or school everyday. Oddly enough, they can wake up at the exact moment the doors open at their stop, quite amazing if you ask me.

HINT: Avoid rush hour trains at all costs.

THE BULLET TRAIN- SHINKANSEN

Japan is widely known for its bullet train, the "shinkansen". The newest one travels about about 300 kilometers an hour. It's a nice ride, not so expensive, but not cheap by any means. It'll get you from Hiroshima to Tokyo in about 5 hours. (See the map)

You can reserve a seat or get a non-reserved ticket. For non-reserved, there are still seats, but if they're all taken, you have to stand up the whole way!

HINT: Get a reserved seat. If you have a lot of money to spare, get a "green car" seat, it's like first class.

Please keep in mind the following:

This page was written by me, an American living in Japan for 3 years, based on the experiences I've had.

It is VERY easy to whine and complain about everything that doesn't make sense to you as a foreigner in Japan. DO NOT get caught in that rutt! You will not enjoy the time you spend here. You're time is most likely limited here so get out and do some crazy stuff (but not stupid stuff that makes all foreigners look like jerks!) Nobody will recognize you afterward and you'll have a blast doing it. Try out the culture related things and learn some traditional background so that you can see Japan and make some sense out of the way things are built and run here.

Be a little daring and don't be afraid to make mistakes. Talk to people you see around you. Interact with as many people as you can. If you don't, you'll regret it when you return to your home country.

I included this in the middle of the Japanese lessons because having some background about how people live and act everyday will help you to understand why they speak the way they do.

Lastly, the best way to improve your Japanese is to use it in Japan, with the professionals themselves!

 Now, find your way to lesson 4!