We all know those people. Walking through Osaka Station on a crowded day? Walking down the street in Fukuoka? There’s always that one person who will inevitably cut you off and walk incredibly slow. They’re not a bad person, nor are their intentions nefarious; they’re simply oblivious to what they’ve just done.
My favorite is while trying to walk with my kids. Without fail someone will cut me off and walk slower, separating me from my kids in a crowded area. But then they give you the stare when you deliver your “sumi masen” with a hint of disappointed inflection or step back in front of them.
Bonus points to those people who walk-merge into you like Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen in turn 3 of the Australian Grand Prix.
31 comments
Agreed walking etiquette and spatial awareness here are fucked
Up your passive-aggresive game. Use their own weapon against them.
My big dilemma is that I walk too fast. Some times I realize that I’m just behind some one or at their side at the same speed (fast walk) so; or I slow down a lot , or I walk super fast to pass them and go back to my normal speed (but that is awkward as it will take some time to pass them coz we both going fast). What bother me more is that I constant think about this issue …
You’re not alone there… especially those who are on their phones….
It’s even better when they’re walking slower in front of you because they’re busy scrolling through Instagram or whatever
If they don’t realize what happened I can understand, but I have had people start running to cut in front of me and then start walking slowly afterwards. This has happened other times and I never understood it.
I lived in San Francisco, if I need to, I’ll just push past them and walk quickly lol
I love couples that walk slow in the middle of the path
I don’t mean to offend anyone, but people in Osaka generally have poor etiquette and spatial awareness. Driving in the city is always a nightmare because people cut you off or honk for the smallest reasons.
Totally Agree. Step on their heels and pretend you’re totally oblivious about what you just did. Just like them. Go full “main character”.
Do this in my home country as well.
YES!! Was actually JUST complaining about this with my husband yesterday as we were out and about for the day. SO obnoxious.
ZERO self, or spacial, -awareness.
Worst is when you are about to get on an escalator and plan to walk up, then somebody runs to butt in just ahead of you and just stands in the middle thewhole way up.
Lol, yes. Every day in Fukuoka. I’m a fast walker is it drives me nuts.
Supermarkets too, someone gets in front of me and turns their cart side-on to look at something, blocking the entire isle. I stop my cart like 1cm from their cart and kinda passive aggressively stare at them. They never acknowledge my presence unless I say something directly to them.
Isn’t it common sense to leave space for people to pass you when looking at something in a supermarket?
When I was a teenager, I started wearing big ass chains I bought in Harajuku just to make slow walkers in front of me aware of my presence if I wanted to… It worked wonders lol
Talked about this with my friend and we noticed that kids here don’t seem to get ‘punished’ by their parents for doing things like this, like walking in front of people and not paying attention. Our parents definitely would’ve scolded us for inconveniencing other people lol. Then it just carries over to adult life where they have no spatial awareness
One of those things that I personally don’t notice. Maybe I just move out of the way instinctively
Even worse is the people that cut you off and stand in front of the train gate entrance or exit. Like just stand there right in front of where you scan your IC card.
I have a baby at the moment so when I walk around with the stroller and people pull shit like that I just run into them, you still get the angry look but I have the baby so I win automatically.
Welcome to the world capital of obliviousness and zero space awareness. Hope you enjoy your stay.
The worst is when they squeeze in the small space between you and the train door when getting off, as if there is some inherent need to be the first off the train, only for them to walk slowly in front of you.
> Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen
So like 5 minutes later?
I like living in Osaka but at the same time it’s the worst. At this point in time I hate having to go to umeda or namba. People cannot walk.
middle/high school students walking in formations of 4 on a 3 person width sidewalk after school. I never budge but notice all the other people going into the street to go around them and it’s sad.
As I always say; “You’re only as fast as the お祖母さん in a kimono walking infront of you and refusing to get out of your way”..
Joking aside, I know what you mean. It drives me absolutely insane. Especially the people who just randomly stop and take up the whole damn sidewalk/path completely oblivious to people trying to pass.
Thankfully this doesn’t happen to me as much. But what really grinds my gears is when people stand still on the right side of the escalator. That just drives me up the goddamn wall.
I used to be annoyed too, but now if I walk too fast / take the stairs / walk uphill my heart rate skyrockets.. or I get dizzy for no reason because of my condition so I became one of the slow walkers myself. I can’t really help it
But those who launch themselves out of a train, run to the parallel platform, and abruptly stop before boarding the train.. I don’t know what’s going on in their minds
Primary school aged kids blocking aisles and running around obnoxiously around the supermarket in groups with no parents in sight is a regular occurrence here these day. Thank Goodness for the obachans working at the supermarket who tell them in no uncertain terms to behave.
Just do the same. Walk in front of them, and then stop abruptly while looking at your phone, like you got an important message. Passive aggressiveness is best aggressiveness.
That すみませんannoys the shit out of me. You wouldn’t need to apologize if you’d a grain of sense and looked before you walked straight out of shop without looking, or moved your eyes from the game/video/JAV for just a second in order not to annoy others.
Let’s not forget the true enemy: grocery shoppers with spatial awareness so far into the negative it could be harnessed for power
I have a specific mf during my morning commute who, on multiple occasions, on a very wide and open sidewalk, comes JOGGING from behind only to cut me off and immediately slow down. Literally a walking break-check. There’s no way someone can be that oblivious, right? It has to be on purpose, right??