This is just a brief few tips, please comment on how it reads etc.  If it turns out to be relatively interessting i will write some more.

Thank you

Sophie

Gaijin; noun; Japanese – Foreigner

This term you may have heard before, gaijin, it’s short for gaikokujin and that means literally, foreign country person.  Some non-Japanese people who live there find it offensive, other people flaunt it with pride: ‘gaijin desu’.  I myself am neither.  No Japanese person needs to be told this, I am white, freckly, with verging on ginger hair never mind that I am twice the size of any Japanese person I have ever met, quite frankly I scream foreigner, so announcing it to the world would merely state the obvious.  As for being offended by it…well let’s see, like I have said already I am not Japanese therefore this term doesn’t bother me. 

On August the 19^th 2006 I set off on a Japanese embassy scholarship to go to high school in Japan for 6 months, probably the best thing I have done with my life so far.  Through out the experience I learnt a lot and most of it within my first two months so here are a few tips on culture and how to get by if you go as a tourist or for other reasons.

1)      Sneezing: Peculiar subject but thought I’d put this in, unlike in England where people may say ‘bless you’ or ‘bless me’ there is no response in Japanese to a sneeze and so instead sneezes are ignored.  Makes sense I think…if you are on a home stay in Japan and you are sneezing a lot your host mother may ask you if your ok, but this is merely because she is worried that you have a cold.  The Japanese in general as far as I can tell seem a lot more worried about colds etc. than people I have met in England. 

2)      Buses: In England you pay when you get on, certainly in the Tokyo area you often pay as you get off, and instead of asking the driver, you merely pop your coins or notes into the money machine that will then issue you with change if necessary.  However, I have been told that bus systems can change for region to region…

3)      Tipping:  Japan is a tip free country, you don’t give tips.  I am not sure if they would be offended but it’s just not done.  I think in Japan good service is expected not rewarded…I have certainly never received poor service…even in fast food restaurants.

4)      Privacy:  In Japanese as far as I am aware there is no word for privacy.  Why?  Because there isn’t room for it, it’s not a Japanese concept as far as I know.  Then again may be wrong.

5)      English in Japanese:  There is a lot of English in Japanese; you just have to know what you’re looking for.  Because Japanese is a language based on syllables there is only one way the can be consonant in a word and that is if it’s the letter ‘n’.  So when listening for English words, be aware that they often add numerous vowels.  Basketball for example becomes basuketoboru, swimming becomes suwimingu and so on…  So if you’re really stuck and have no idea what the Japanese is for something, try pronouncing the English abiding to the Japanese accent and vowels.  You never know.

6)      Legs not breast:  Fellow females in Japan you may show as much leg and bottom as you want and not an eyelash will flutter.  Japanese high school girls wear their skirts scarily short.  But chest, no!  Cover up, no low plunging necklines…As I was once told by a lady who was dressing me in a yukata (a lighter version of a kimono) when I didn’t have it folded right up to my neck, ‘we are not prostitutes’.  She then attempted to correct it, I say attempt, the reason it was like it was in the first place, can be blamed upon it’s size…or mine.  Either way it was too small.

7)      Saying no:  The Japanese don’t like and try to avoid saying no to someone at all costs.  They for the most part dislike conflict.  As a result a lot of what people say must be taken with a pinch of salt.  If someone seems to be trying to suggest you do something else, take that as his or her way of saying no to whatever you want to do. 

8)      Alzheimer’s:  The Japanese are terrified of it.  The popular brain training game for DS is a way to combat it.  If you forget something or can’t remember in Japan this sometimes leads to worry that you may be developing it.  As a whole it’s largely paranoia.

9)      Kawaii culture:  Kawaii in Japanese means cute and in Japan cute is desirable.  The 18 year olds I met might have Disney characters stuck to their bags and things because it’s cute.  One of the biggest compliments is to be called cute unlike in England when this may seem a bit derogatory.

10)   Natto:  Natto is fermented soybeans; it smells and looks to be quite honest like someone has just thrown up.  This is probably the national food of Japan.  Almost all foreigners hate it and for a good reasons.  It’s foul.  But try it, because if you like it and you’re foreign you become a legend.  The Japanese would like to tell you that all Japanese people love it.  This would be a lie; I have met a few who hate it.  The Japanese version of marmite I guess.  However there is worse, sea urchin…

11)  Dieting:  Dieting in Japan I am sure is a national past time.  The number of girls that claim to diet is untrue.  There seems to be a lot less taboo about it though.  A number of my host sister would skimp on rice and the parents didn’t seem to be worried.

12)  Respect: Japan is a culture built on respect, as a foreigner you are given a little leeway but…status is important and respect is paid when due.  Even within schools the days have not yet passed where senior students are quite within rights to demand that their juniors do everything for them from cleaning to fetching tennis balls if they are in the tennis club. Etc.  The seniors can and will punish the juniors although this is slowly becoming less regimented than it used to be.

I will stop here for now, there is a lot more and I will probably fish out my diary and actually write a little about my experiences later.  Any questions are more than welcome.