Ohio! and Other Thoughts on Japan

Japan is technically a shorter flight from Los Angeles than to fly to Paris, but culturally it seems much further away. There are many rules to remember. Avoid blowing your nose in public, give and receive items using both hands, slurp your soup, and don't be caught dead (literally) wearing a kimono right over left. While we all know I try to blend in everywhere I go, I'm afraid I may stand out a bit more in Japan. It is a land that just seems "foreign." It is a place so different from the United States, yet possesses all the comforts of a modern society -- like fancy toilets.

I couldn't help but think that Japan had developed like a parallel universe to the United States. Like any modern nation, it has had to confront problems with the environment, urban planning, and efficiency, but has solved them in completely different ways. Some things may seem quirky, like these "smoking booths" at a park in Kyoto. Other quirks may include a hotel elevator in Kyoto that had a chair that doubled as a toilet in emergencies, or the ubiquity of vending machines in random back alleys. Why so many vending machines? And Nicole would be curious to know why all the toilet seats are heated. There are many questions. In many ways, Japan is superior to the United States. Just look at the efficiency of their train network. Without even understanding the signs at the train station, we could find the right platform just by looking at the departure time. If we were planning to board a 9:40 train from Tokyo to Osaka, we could go to the platform, look at our watches and board the correct train with 100% accuracy. Amtrak could only dream of that kind of reliability.

The food is . . . interesting, and certainly not made easier by the lack of english translation on products. Here Nicole is caught in a feeling of betrayal as she discovers there is more to her nori-wrapped rice ball than initially met the eye. As crazy as some of the food items may be, Japan surprised me with the availability of other types of cuisine. If you were craving kebabs, Italian, or perhaps a french boulangerie, you could find any of these things with relative ease and they would taste good too. This is in stark contrast to our European trip, where all we could find was ham. Despite the close proximity of European countries to each other, they have yet to master each others cuisine.

Communication, not surprisingly, was a bit of a challenge. Beyond not being able to read food labels, we discovered that virtually nobody in Japan can speak more than a few words in English. And I understand that we are the outsiders and cannot expect to be catered to, but doesn't everyone learn English in school? I mean, we are talking about airport employees and workers at tourist sites who probably know less English than I know Japanese. Nicole and I got very good at charades. Trying to sort out the coin locker fiasco in Tokyo topped the list of communication challenges, but we figured it out.

It is a feast for the senses from the bright neon lights of Shinjuku to the odors emanating from miso soup and ramen noodle shops. While one might compare Tokyo to New York City, there are several key differences between the way cities in U.S. function versus those in Japan. For one, most American cities have a central "downtown" area that acts as a hub. Tokyo, on the other hand, has numerous "downtowns." While the Imperial Palace may be seen as the geographical center around which the city was built, there are numerous centers -- each teeming with activity. While Tokyo station in the eastern part of the city is considered the primary train station for the city, Shinjuku station on the opposite side of the city sees more than 3.5 million passengers PER DAY.

While it is hard to imagine someone in Manhattan patiently waiting in an organized line to board a subway, it is commonplace in Tokyo. Nor would they be comfortable being inches from a stranger as rail workers use white gloves to prod passengers onto already crowded subway cars. When was the last time you stood on an escalator in such an organized fashion that everyone stationary stood on one side to give the other side space to walk up. It is a society that requires all members to follow the same unspoken rules. And this behavior gave me a theory about something we observed on Japanese TV.

Whether it was the news or a game show, we noticed these little circles or squares in the corner of the TV with the silently bobbing heads of other tv hosts or personas. These "reaction shots" smiled as the main screen showed cute cats, or shook their heads in disbelief at a recent robbery, or laughed at the humorous demise of a game show contestant. At first I didn't really understand why they were covering everything, but I theorized that this was to allow the audience to know how they are supposed to be reacting. Is it ok to laugh at this? Should I feel happy that Obama is coming? It's like a cue card to a society that is afraid to offend. Of course this is just my theory. Maybe there's some other reason, but this is just something you don't see elsewhere in the world.

Of the last few places that Nicole and I have visited, the Japanese were perhaps the most friendly. Despite language issues, they tried to be helpful in all circumstances. And just like the courtesies they extended to us, we tried to adhere to these often foreign rules so as to not offend the Japanese. We certainly were able to identify some other Americans by their boisterous behavior. As if to say, "Look at me! look at me!," Americans are often visible for miles. It is our nature to want to stand out as individuals, whereas the Japanese shy away from this.

Every businessman has the same color suit, every student the same uniform. Whether these factors contribute to or are a result of the culture are not known to me. All I know is that kids choose to wear their school uniforms even on weekends. The only part that stands out a bit are their cellphones. "Oh who can forget Ayuki with the giant watermelon next to her ear!" What makes Japan so interesting is how similar, yet different it can be. It is such an advanced nation yet feels so distinct from the U.S. It is both ancient and modern. Ambitious and reserved.

Having been in Japan for only a week, we were barely able to scratch the surface of everything this land has to offer. Since my last visit in 2001, it continues to fascinate me. While I had a more open mind about the food this time around, traveling Japan is still a challenge. Much like its history before commodore Perry arrived at its shores, it still seems a bit isolated from the rest of the world. While American pop culture has found its way onto cell phones and backpack tassels, it has not penetrated the day-to-day routine of this nation that can only be described as Japanese.