Impressions of Japan

When I arrived in Japan on September 11, it was a hot and steamy summer day. Now, eight weeks later, it’s cool and crisp autumn. The fall colors that Japan is famous for are dazzling. I feel nostalgic as I prepare to leave tomorrow. Japan has gotten a hold on me, and yet it’s time to move on.

I’m so impressed with Japan. The people are industrious, hard-working, both conventional, yet at the same time outrageous. Of course I can’t generalize about a whole nation. They are a nation of individuals, yet I see a sea of black suits of the businessmen and women along side those with red hair and plaid pants, and the fur-cuffed short shorts, black tights and knee-high boots of the fashionistas, the little old ladies carrying umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun, the little kids in their school uniforms and caps, and all of them riding heavy-duty bicycles in the most haphazard kamakazi way. That’s one thing I certainly haven’t gotten used to yet – the game of chicken that all the bicyclists play, heading right for the only tiny open space, and not dodging until the last possible second. I’m afraid I am a woos when it comes to this game, and I’m constantly giving way to all these fearless devil riders! Somehow everyone gets to where they are going without too many collisions.

Most everything WORKS here in Japan. It’s an incredibly efficient country, a very civilized country where people take pride in what they do and do it very well. The gas company sends someone out periodically just to inspect the gas in the house and make sure it’s all working right. The school children and teachers are given full health examinations each year by the Ministry of Education at virtually no cost. You can set your watch by the trains arrivals and departures. Postal workers climb to the top of mountains to deliver the mail.

I love the Japanese way of bathing – washing first outside the tub, and then soaking in a hot tub and relaxing in clean water. The Japanese toilets are great. The toilet seats are heated, and they spray warm water on your butt and some even blow you dry! All homes have an entryway where all outdoor shoes are removed and left. You wear slippers indoors, and even different slippers in the toilet room/wc. Another feature I love is having a drain board above the sink allowing the rinse water from the dishes to drip into the sink as they are drying. And just about all houses use drying porches for drying clothes outdoors.

There is so much attention to and appreciation of details, to display of food, of packaging, of decoration, of architecture, of gardens. It heightens my appreciation of all aspects of life here. I’ve found the people I have met and even those I’ve connected with on the street to be welcoming and very generous towards me as a guest in their homes and in their country. I’ve really loved being here in Japan and leave reluctantly. I look forward to returning some day.

Additional observations of Japan written after three weeks in Thailand

I keep thinking about Japan। I miss it and the friends I met there। I miss the beautifully presented meals of many small dishes and many different and complimentary flavors served on a variety of beautiful small plates or bowls. I miss soaking in the deep tubs of steamy clean water after washing. Cleanliness is a hallmark of Japan - almost no litter or graffiti anywhere. I was continually impressed with the totally efficient use of space both inside the houses with multi-use rooms, and externally in the gardens and land plots neatly and closely placed together. There is no such thing as a vacant lot that I saw in Japan. All available land is turned into a vegetable garden or rice paddy. And I was continually amazed by the ability of most all the Japanese people I saw on the trains and subways to SLEEP, from the minute they got on, right up until their destination, even standing up!!!

On the other hand, there were a few things that were difficult for me, the major one was the language barrier. I didn't feel Japan catered too well to non-Japanese speakers. Outside of the major tourist areas, there are few signs that are transliterated in Roman characters. Luckily, many restaurants, even in the non-tourist areas have photos or plastic models of their dishes in the window or on the menu, so I could point to a dish that looked appealing. It was not too easy to find organic produce there. Hopefully that is changing with time. They still haven't done much to disguise the massive webs of electric wires hovering above most streets in the cities. Unless you can view it as an art form, it's pretty ugly. And lastly, while the major public parks and gardens are exquisite, the neighborhood parks are pretty dismal, with just a few benches and maybe some play equipment on a dirt plot. So Japan isn't perfect. Is there any place that is?

Aside from these few not-so-positive impressions, I still love Japan and hope to return there someday soon.

I keep thinking of this nebulous metaphor for the difference I feel between Japan and Thailand - in Japan the toilet paper (at least some that I saw) is in a large roll wound very tightly around a very small hole through which a very small tube holds it in place. It lasts about a week or more. In Thailand the rolls I've seen are small, very loosly wound over a large cardboard tube. It lasts about a day in a female household. Hhhmmmmmmm....................