Ann and Chris in Japan: Odds and Ends

The Language Barrier

Languages don't come easy to me. At some level, I just don't get it. But when we travel, I do my best to pick up some useful phrases. Even knowing a little pays off, as people usually appreciate it when you try to speak their language. I worked hard to pick up some Japanese. Before we went, I knew approximately 60 words or phrases. Turns out that was more than I needed. In two weeks, I believe I used exactly 19 words. They included "good morning" and "excuse me" and the most important, "thank you." Everyone says "thank you" all the time; it's the social lubricant for Japanese society. I could order a meal by saying "good morning", pointing to the food I wanted, and saying "thank you" many, many times. People loved it.

Bamboo, the Japanese 2x4

Bamboo is a plant that grows very fast (it's a grass) and produces a straight, wood-like hollow tube that is incredibly useful. It's strong and light and is used to make furniture, handrails, poles and almost anything you can imagine. I call it the Japanese 2x4, but because it gets bigger as it grows, you can get any size you want.

Stacks of seasoned bamboo in a bamboo grove

Bamboo lumber yard

Smoking

Smoking is banned in many indoor places and a lot of outdoor places, especially near restaurants and shops...

No smoking on sidewalk

Do not touch doubtful things

...and yet smoking is allowed in most restaurants.

Traffic jams (or lack thereof)

Tokyo has lots of cars, but I never saw a real traffic jam. I'm guessing drivers are more polite than they are in Boston.

Loudspeakers

Tokyo has a number of outdoor loudspeakers. Luckily, they weren't used all that often. If announcements of some sort were made they were, of course, in Japanese, which I found very easy to ignore. In a couple of places they played music, thankfully not very loud. But what I thought was odd, was the choice of music, which included "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" mixed in with 70's rock music.

Train Turnaround

At the end of a train line, cleaners board the train before all the passengers have left. Because the front of the train is now the back, all the seats get turned around.