My notes of Japan:
- Japanese wear masks if they’re sick to prevent spreading disease in public.
- There are sometimes different slippers for around the house and inside the bathroom.
- Koreans in Seoul tend to dress sharper.
- The Tokyo subway is similar to that in Seoul, although more complicated and extensive.
- Most people are silent on the subway. It’s taboo to talk, eat, or drink.
- Lots of people ride bicycles on the sidewalks.
- Drive on the left.
- When on foot, stand and walk on the left and pass on the right.
- Most mobile phones are dumb phones. I saw few Japanese using touch screens. I was surprised by this. I assumed Japanese were way ahead of Americans on mobile tech. Maybe I’m missing something.
- Most of the Japanese I interacted with (waitresses, retailers, etc.) could speak some or a lot of English.
- Formality in Japanese is “sprinkled” at the end of phrases. Just add “gozaimasu” (pronounced go-zah-ee-moss) to the end. Different from Korean, where you seem to add a -yo suffix to words to be formal.
- Kimonos everywhere.
- When you check out of a hostel, you have to bring your pillowcase to reception. Just the pillowcase, not the sheets. Weird.
- Sandwiches are either triangular or rectilinear.
- The character ‘~’ is used for ranges, e.g. 1~4, 2:00~4:00.
- Military time.
- The pillowcases are just sheets, not actual cases that encase the pillow.
- VAT prices. Yes!
- As in Korea, it’s difficult to gauge the age of Japanese. They tend to look 5–10 years younger.
- Bathrooms rarely have hand towels, even in hostels. Bring a handkerchief.
- Toilet paper is usually in public toilet stalls.
- You can see Yakuza on the streets of Kyoto. They dress in nice suits, sort of an American 1940s look, and are known for arm tattoos. It’s not good to have arm tattoos of your own.
- Arabic numerals, thankfully.
- I met lots of fellow travelers who were there for a conference.
- US electrical plugs. Yes!
- Restaurants usually give you wet hand towels or napkins before the meal.
- Slurping noodles is common and not impolite.
- Cross your forearms to signify ’no’.
- There’s a McDonald’s on virtually every block in Tokyo.