Ok, in this post I wanted to address a very odd…occurance I run into.  That would be Japanese people randomly talking to me, or striking up a conversation.  Wednesday, I was on my way home from school, and I skirted a lady walking a large dog, and all of a sudden she just says “Don’t worry, he doesn’t bite!”.  So of course, I’m just like “Ah, ok! *American-smile*”.  If it were America, I believe that would’ve ended the conversation.  I don’t see our country as so…outgoing to foriegners, even if you do speak their language.  This is Japan though, and in Japan if you see a foriegner…you either a) ignore them, b) avoid them, or c) start talking to them.

Now, I guess I wouldn’t have much of a story if she hadn’t been a c-sort of person.  She started off with “So…where are you from?” which is the line that tells you a Japanese person is going to talk to you for awhile.  Anyways, she just started talking to me ALL about her foriegn friends.  From Korea, Finland, China, US, I think a few other places too.  In Japan I believe there’s a ‘trophy’ feeling about getting friends from other countries, specifically non-Asian ones, probably an attempt to impress me with the global expansion of her social network.  She spoke English surprisingly well, and asked me some interesting questions on what I thought about Bush…and the war.  The conversation also went a little into religion, and apparently in Japan, the Iraq War is seen as a Christian vs Muslim thing.  She apparently believes in God and Jesus, but stopped going to church to do a little more research about ALL the religions, because the all claimed to be the only truth.  So yes, I got into somewhat of a philosphical discussion with a complete stranger.  That is life in Japan.

Most of the time I just get “Hello”s though.  Nothing as extensive as the above.  It’s always a bit surprising though, because people will say it at very random times, and you NEVER know who knows some English and who doesn’t.  Majority doesn’t, but there are those who look exactly the same as their uni-language counterparts.  High School students to people in their 70’s have spoken to me, so there’s a pretty wide age range.

However, you may be wondering about people who choose A or B.  Yes, it does feel a little akward being the only white person in most places.  I get A LOT of stares.  Seriously, I’ll turn around or something and at least one person will quickly shift their eyes so I couldn’t tell they were just examining the white person.  I don’t mind of course, I find it rather funny.  The United States is so international no one really cares that much about color [at least the people who are intelligent, the people that matter] so I don’t think you’d get the vice-versa reaction if a 100% Japanese person took a vacation to the US.  Today I did get an old guy who actually *did* avoid me, and that was kind of funny in its own right.  I was just browsing through the supermarket, alone, and this older man looked up, saw me, and totally did a 90 degree turn into the aisle at the last minute.  I’m also the last person Japanese people will sit next to on the train, usually I get a much bigger space around me than anyone else, unless the train is REALLY full.  Not that I mind breathing, it gets really crowded.

Ok, so second subject for today! 

I had to at least discuss Japanese guys for a moment.  From my experience at school and in Japan, Japanese guys are … more “girlish” than American guys I guess.  It’s not uncommon for them to be wearing a hairclip in the front, some popstar started it so it became a fad apparently.  The clothes here are also much tighter-fitting than America’s baggy style.

One of the most culture-ish shock things though, were guys and the bathroom.  In the US, girls go to the bathroom in groups, which is considered normal…and pretty much a mystery to males.  WE prefer the “No talking, just get in and get out” path, and I think talking is against unwritten rules.  HERE however, guys don’t go to the bathroom in groups less than two normally.  It’s like a social hub, and what I’d assume it is for girls in the US.  Yes, they fix their hair the mirrors too.  It’s just really really weird for me to see that.  Personally, I just wait outside the bathroom for my friends to finish.  I just find it a bit to awkward.  Talking…in a bathroom…it just seems to weird.

So yeah, it’s a bit different culture.  There is a lot more gender affiliation, at least that’s what I’d call it.  Guys stick together and Girls stick together.  Dating really isn’t a big thing in high school, and apparently starts more in University.  It’s very different than the US.

Hope you enjoyed it, I’ll update the Photo Gallery soon =]