- Public space etiquette. Phone calls are prohibited in public transport. This makes for very quiet decent rides. It also means that everyone on the bus or train is on their phones with earphones plugged in, engrossed in their own entertainment. Announcements on the next train stops are audible and there is a level of discipline Contrast this with my recent train ride to the Coast where several people played loud tiktok videos or music from their phones, completely oblivious that their choice of entertainment was not everyone else’s. For the 15 days I took trains and buses in Japan, I did not see anyone answer or make phone calls.
- Cleanliness. When my friend who relocated to Japan mentioned that the streets look like they are scrubbed with soap, I thought she was exaggerating. She was not. One morning I sat at the bus stop waiting for the bus and marvelled at how clean the tarmac was. I mean, zero evidence that a spec of dust ever touched that road. The streets are palstic, paper and dust-free.
- The dressing is pretty modest generally. Some ladies did adorn very short skirts, but I noticed that upper bodies were always covered- arms, cleavage etc. I did see one or two old men in girls’ high school uniforms on the train- short skirts, heels and shirts- but no one I asked seemed to understand what that was about.
- Garbage separation- Garbage is separated everywhere- in homes, parks, stations. I went to a home that separated garbage into 6 separate bins, 3 of these being different types of paper. I found this very interesting.
- Smoking- This is so rampant in Japan. In most of the world, the dangers of this habit have made it less rampant (although vapes have taken over and we are largely unawares of it’s actual dangers) Traditional cigarettes are still very popular in Japan. One of the locals told me that offices offer breaks specifically for smoking.
- Gambling- Casinos are everywhere! There were mall walk-throughs that were as long as 500 metres, lined with casinos and attendants happily inviting guests in.
- Karaoke- A big surprise for me was how popular Karaoke is- to old men in Japan! There are many karaoke bars where older men frequent to sing after work. Surprisingly, I only saw very few women and barely any young people in these settings. A lot of these bars had glass doors and windows that allowed you to see the men seated at the bar, microphones in hand.
- The red light district- When my friend mentioned that there were red-light districts, I knew I had to experience those. The practice of prostitution is banned in my country and I was curious to see how it operates in countries where it’s legal. There was a very long street, lined with call girls who sat on red carpets together with their madams. I was informed that once the price was agreed on, the girl would take her client to a room upstairs. What was shocking to me was how old the madams looked, old enough to be the girls’ mothers or grandmothers- and I wondered how the money would be split
- A lot of Japanese are workaholics. I’d heard about some Asian countries having a somewhat unhealthy obsession with work. I saw lots of staff trying to catch the last trains homes. Somelocals informed me that that the system is set up to promote long work hours and it has just become a part of the culture.
- Japan is a largely quiet country. There are busy city centres that may be noisy but even those are relatively quiet. Residential areas and areas outside of malls etc have pin-drop silence.
akenyannomad 