Truthfully, I haven’t been dealing with a lot of culture shock. It turns out that researching and studying a country for three years will prepare you for the cultural differences and challenges you have to face. Who knew? But there are some things that even research cannot prepare you for and sometimes the influencers of social media are guilty of over exaggeration (who would have ever guessed).
A lot of the things that startled me weren’t the things that typically confuse people about Japan, living in a dorm full of “gaikokujin” has shown me that my preparation paid off, but after some time and daily life these are the things that really caught me off guard.
For one, how intense the trash sorting is here. It’s like an Olympic sport. Once you get the basics down it’s not too bad, but the first time you hear the explanation its dizzying. Every piece of trash is sorted into burnables, pura (recycle), plastic bottles, and cans/aluminum. Bottles and cans must be washed out before being thrown away and food residue must be completely removed from plastic recycling.
I never thought I’d meet anyone from Lithuania, now I know 5. I go to Japan to study Japanese and now I’m learning Lithuanian too? What is this?
Initially I wanted to join a club for my time at school, as one does for their free time, that was until I learned how serious the clubs are. They meet 4 times a week for 2 hours a day. Members are expected to dedicate a significant portion of their time to their club and people don’t typically join more than one for that reason. For a more chill club, join a circle. That’s the more relaxed version of a club, usually only meeting once or twice a week. There’s one circle I plan on investigating and joining once it’s meetings begin.
I think my stupidest “foreigner moments” have been due to the buses. I haven’t gotten on the wrong bus, or talked loudly, or anything like that. What I have done was not realize the tap to pay was at the end of the bus near the driver, resulting in him having to yell at me to get my attention to come back. Get off one stop too early, and on top of that, not realize that in order for the bus to make a stop (at all) you have to push the “request stop” button. All of which makes me cringe when I think about it.
The one yen coin is real. Why does it exist? It’s actually worthless.
The biggest stressor I have right now is that no store, restaurant, shop, or supermarket has a consistent check out procedure and there’s no instructions on how to check out. You just have to know. So I stand around (like a creep) staring at Japanese people like “go on, check out please” and copy what they do. I’m terrified to try new places for this reason, even in place I have been to I still panic at check out because I’m scared I’m doing something wrong. Have you ever seen a cashier-self check out hybrid? Because now you will and you’ll have no idea what’s going on.
Of course, there are also a lot of things that I DID prepare for, but they still managed to confuse or surprise me on some level.
The vending machines (specifically the hot drinks in this cold weather) – I am addicted. It’s just too convenient in this cold weather to run across this magical blessing on the street that will give you a hot tea or coffee for ￥100-150. What good thing did I do to deserve this? I knew vending machines were more common than in the US, but I didn’t expect so many and I didn’t expect them to be so cheap.
You may have heard of the store “Don Quijote .” This is like Super Walmart on steroids. I know some Americans fall in love with Donki, I did not. I thought I would like Donki, given that most Americans do, but I really hated it and have alternatives now for anything I need (shout out Welcia and Daiso). I will say though; “The Japanese are so quiet and withdrawn!” Go to a Don Quijote. Do it. Specifically one in Osaka Prefecture.
Most research and travel information is based around Tokyo and the Kanto region. This means that there’s a double culture shock in Osaka because the Kansai region is very different than the Kanto. Japanese people are quiet and reserved- Tokyo. Japanese people are loud and extraverted- Osaka. It’s rude to walk while eating or drinking- Tokyo. Street food capital of Japan, everyone is eating while walking- Osaka. I’ve started ignoring any advice from people who spent time in Tokyo, it’s wrong 90% of the time. To compare: imagine getting advice from a New Yorker on Atlanta.
It’s so quiet on the streets and I love it. Before coming here I had heard that many Japanese movies and shows will add background music when they send the work overseas, but for the Japanese audience they leave in the silence, because they are accustomed to silence where Westerners find it unsettling. I see why they are so accustomed to silence now. And I enjoy it very much. I also now know how disruptive a lot of J-drama scenes are, like why are you yelling this in a neighborhood at night? Shut up!
Did you know that every winter the Japanese government has to put out warnings about temperature shock because it becomes the 2nd leading cause of death? That’s how hot the showers get. And unlike the US were you’ll hit a point where the hot water runs out, it just doesn’t. So hypothetically you can cook yourself in the showers. The shower in my dorm shows it gets to 40 celsius (104 fahrenheit) at the “halfway” marker, which means it can get significantly hotter.
At this point even the culture shocks I mentioned above have begun to feel normal to me, I’m getting a little nervous about dealing with culture shock when returning to the US. Until then I’m throughly enjoying the travel every weekend and randomly seeing ancient building and architecture, it feels like everywhere I turn there is something fascinating to see.
皆さん、バイバイ！
