Let’s avoid
1. Negative police interactions
2. People avoiding the seat next to
you
The above fit the description, but they’ve been repeated here far too often they’re corny.
My answers:
1. Pushy salespeople: I regularly read stories here of people getting harassed or salespeople putting their foot in their front door when they try to close it. Whenever I’ve said “no/not interested”, they always just thank me for my time and leave.
2. ‘Did you know that Japan has four seasons??’ people: I’ve heard it from friends and frequently see it here. I’ve had other variations of did you know Japan has…and they list some basic things found everywhere but never the seasons lol. I always wonder in what situations are people being informed about the seasons here.
P.S. you can talk about racism, but try to be respectful to people who’ve had a hard time with all that. So no “I’ve never experienced racism here, so it doesn’t exist!” Type of bs.
Let’s hear ‘em!
32 comments
– No one forcibly talked to me in English exclusively.
– Never felt racism towards me or have been discriminated against.
– Never been rejected from getting a credit card.
– Never had a shitty employer.
Those are what I could think of right now.
Long overtime work and power harassment. Even when i was making peanut, my peers still respected my opinions, and my bosses were still reasonable.
Any kind of racism
I’ve never seen a no foreigners sign or been told I cannot dine anywhere. Maybe it’s mostly around military bases? No idea.
On a side note, I’ve been told Japan has four seasons by 5+ people.
I have also been told that I wouldn’t like the shoyu ramen place the group was chatting about because tonkotsu is much more similar to fatty western food.
I have never been stared at. Or if I have been, then I didn’t notice because I was looking at my phone.
All the people who complain about getting stared at, where your eyes at to even be noticing?
I’ve never experienced chikan before.
I’m a decently attractive woman, been in the midst of jam packed morning/ night rush hour trains crushed between people, hundreds of times and nothing. Maybe I give off a don’t fuck with me expression or something.
The pushy sales person thing for me too.
The other day a sales man came to my door and he explained what he was. I gave him a confused look and repeated whatever he was selling in a confused tone and he just looked at me and said “外国から?” and that was basically the end of it. He apologized and went to the next door.
Crazy girlfriend/wife
I think Japanese are socially normal but just less likely to care about foreigners. I find that the types who complain about Japanese people not being friendly don’t actually care about Japanese culture and expect to be waited on, or usually came to Japan for a small reason and then found the cultural difference too vast.
Being oppressed by the police
Being oppressed by being a foreigner
‘it’s the principle of it’ complaints about things that have minimal actual significance. Like data protection stuff
Many people on this sub carry the indignant North American mentality of ‘muh civil rights, how dare they’, when life here is so cushy it’s mostly absurd to complain about being oppressed (unless you’re abused racially or sexually, obviously).
There are some fucked up points, but the amount of energy people devote to them is absurd. Not to mention, people here jerk each other into a frenzy over shit they didn’t know existed 10 seconds ago. The post about ‘naturalised people have their addresses published’ was a massive circlejerk of outrage, when basically nobody ever gets naturalised, and even if they do, who gives a shit? Nobody even knew about it until one person concern trolled.
Geez, I’ve hit bingo on so many things (except the negative police interactions, but we’re not talking about that). What *haven’t* I experienced?… I’d have to say, the freezing house/apartment that’s so bad a person can’t sleep even though they have electric heaters and whatever. I always feel bad for those people but I just haven’t experienced that. Lucky me, I know.
Other foreigners who simply must be lying about their life experiences just because they are different than mine.
I lived in Kyoto for three years. I’ve never experienced that special level of dishonesty or bush-beating that is supposedly unique to Kyotoites.
I’ve had more than my fair share of tatemae bollocks but it doesn’t seem to change based on city much (although I am curious as to whether Osakans are really more honest).
My wife is pretty awesome. Really supportive, funny, and accepting of my never ending photography trips. Based on posts I see here on a weekly basis, it would appear I found a real keeper.
>Pushy salespeople:
I’ve never experienced this, too – as long as we don’t count the NHK guy as a salesperson. He did stick his foot in my door and refused to leave in such an offensive way that I refuse to ever pay NHK a single yen, and I destroyed my BS card to make that legal.
>Did you know that Japan has four seasons??’
I can’t remember if I’ve *never* gotten this, but it certainly has been rarer in my experience than the gaijin internet makes it out to be. Instead, I get, “Is it hot/cold in your country?” which is less absurd, but not by a lot.
Apartment discrimination is something I’ve not once experienced since moving here (though I think being able to speak Japanese does help).
Never get Japanese people assuming I don’t speak Japanese, except in super touristic places when I’m with other foreigners. I actually wonder why sometimes, as I’m very obviously not Japanese. I do dress more Japanese than western I guess so that may have something to do with it.
I realized how frustrating this must be when I went out with a couple foreign friends recently. We went to an izakaya I’ve been to dozens of times that has a specific ordering system using a QR code. When we sat down the staff asked us through gestures and broken English to order a drink to start handed us English menus, no mention of the QR code. I asked him if they had changed the ordering system, and he awkwardly stammered then asked me to order my first drink from him at least. We realized afterwards that they’ve always ordered directly from the staff and thought that was normal and have never realized everyone else uses a QR code. I compared the menus and the physical English menu had only half as many items too. Granted my friends don’t speak much Japanese but like, I would be so pissed lol.
Over 30 years here in Kansai and Tokyo and have never been asked to leave an onsen because of tattoos – or anywhere for that matter – nor to cover up my tattoos.
Luckily I’ve never experienced any form of sexual harassment on the trains. Even on 満員電車 🙏🏻
Having been here since the 90s I can believe all of the usual experiences mentioned. The question is of frequency. E.g. I have had the aggressive sales guy 1x. The foreigner sign 1x. Chikan I saw once, possibly twice.
I think what I have encountered most in 20 years is getting randomly elbowed. That has happened maybe 6 times or so either on the train or by a passerby in the station.
The whole “Japanese have no spacial awareness” thing. Never understood it. I have way fewer awkward sidewalk run-ins here than I ever had in Europe, where people seem to just walk on random sides of the sidewalk with no rhyme or reason and I have no idea what I’m supposed to do to not run into people.
Haven’t experienced rush hour yet.
Work life balance is awesome, the best in my life.
I know you said to avoid them, but I have not experienced policy issues. I also never heard the four seasons thing. People are surprised at the climate differences in the US, but I think they all know the four seasons thing, at least from the people I have spoken too.
My work life is great, and I have gotten two apartments on the first try. I also may get another with ease. I have never experienced any of the renting issues people talk about.
I have many complaints and issues, but the common ones mentioned I don’t seem to have.
Crazy Hanakos at the Hub.
Being oppressed by NHK, I got away with it for about 5 years in various apartments more-or-less by accident, but then the nice man pointed out the antenna on top of the shiny new house, and it’s not like we don’t watch it, so meh, whatever. Though having acquired a small child since then, I sincerely believe there should be some sort of compensation for anyone forced to watch Eテレ in the morning.
I have never used a squat toilet
The sexless relationship with a Japanese woman is something I’ve heard a lot of guys bring up as their reason for cheating etc.
It’s kinda sad.
I’ve experienced almost none of the common foreigner myths. The one that 100% is true for me, people will be very quick to hit you with that “日本語上手”
I’ve never had the 4 seasons thing. I’ve had people say that Japan has a unique culture around celebrating the 4 seasons, but never the stereotypes believed by this sub.
I’ve never felt any kind of racism or discrimination. The closest was one time at the gym a guy started talking to me asking about my job and why I came to japan. Like why was I here making a low wage as an English teacher rather than a higher one in my country. But, this didn’t feel like coming from a negative place, rather just some old guy’s curiosity. He was pretty friendly
never been to an onsen/sento that turned me away for having tattoos, never got stopped by the police while cycling
On #2: The People Avoiding the seat next to you.I take the train most mornings into work if I’m not traveling and for about four years now every morning, a girl and her grandfather will sit beside me. First time I took the train they sat down beside me and the girl (Maybe six years old) Pulled out her Nintendo Switch and started to play Pokemon. So I pulled out mine and started to play Pokemon.
So we have been playing pokemon together for about four years now, trade pokemon, do battles together. Some amount of this is clearly her getting free English lessons, but after a week or so they figured out I speak perfectly good Japanese.
If I got on a business trip they will ask me were I went, I bring them Omiyage some times. I ask how the girls breaks go when shes not in school. Great time really passes the morning commute.
I’ve never had anything but good public transport interactions.
No that being said. I Have run across (In Hiroshima) some “No Australians” signs lol.I’m not Australian.
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Oh also.
I’ve always gotten apartments on the first try.
The Apartments are either cheap or not that small.
Them NHK missionaries.
I’m getting my own apartment next month so they could show up eventually
I’ve never had issues with filling out my name on any forms despite my first name having something like 2 kanjis and 5 katakana letters meshed together (i.e my foreign middle name attached to first), plus my surname of 2 kanji letters.
Also, about no one sitting next to you on trains, I’ve not experienced it either but that sounds like it would be a great ‘problem’ to have.