Aggravating things....
To get my heater to work in the morning I have to open my porch door for 15-20 minutes and air out he kerosene smell. Then run it and when I'm finished I have to reopen the door for another 5 minutes to re-air out the room, otherwise it won't start next time. So after my place is nice and toasty, I have to let all the hot air out to air out the place. This falls into the ARRRGGGGHHHH category.
People constantly stare. But it's not a simple "hey he looks different" glance. It's as if I was 9 feet tall with 4 arms and green. It really gets annoying after a short while.
People knock on my door trying to sell things. I say I don't understand Japanese (in Japanese). They keep talking. I say it again. They keep talking.@I either say something completely random and stupid in English or just say "sorry to be rude" in Japanese and shut the door. When I say I don't understand, stop talking. I'm going to learn the phrase in perfect Japanese "I just said I don't speak Japanese, why are you still speaking?".
Shoes stop about 3 sizes below my size.
THERE ARE NO TOWELS BY SINKS ANYWHERE IN JAPAN. I have wiped my hands on my pants countless times. Many public restrooms don't have toilet paper.
So far, %99.9 of all Men's Rooms I have been in had the door in a way that people walking by could see directly in to the urinals. It's a tad hard to go with young girls staring at you.
Restaurants bring small cups of water out with meals. They are seriously smaller than coffee cups. They rarely check for refills and act surprised when we want more water. Sometimes the drinks come after the meal.
Everything is in Japanese and English except my utility bills and the ATMs. They are Japanese only.
Smoking is still socially cool here and everyone does it all the time everywhere.
more to come...
Contradictions...
The country is extremely safe. There are minimal crimes and even then they are tame compared to the US. At no point since I have been here, regardless of where I was or what time it was, have I even for a moment felt unsafe. It is by far a safer country than the US. However, all ATMs close at between 7pm and 11pm. I mean a metal door comes down and you can't even access them. Why why why? There is no crime so what is the point?
The country is highly technologically advanced, yet when they build houses there is no insulation in the walls. It's just sheetrock, some thin wood, and the outer wood. You freeze when it's cold.
It's more important to physically be at work than to actually do anything. Teachers frequently just put their heads on their desk for an hour or so. It's unheard of to head out early since there is nothing to do. You leave early, you take vacation hours. But sometimes I stay a few hours late? It doesn't matter. You don't leave early.
more on the way...
Things I really miss....
Mexican Food
Zaxby's Large Chicken Finger Plate, extra Fries no slaw, and a large Sweet tea.
The Mexican Place at CNN.
St Simons Island.
The Korean Sub Shop.
My little red truck with the hard bedcover.
Mindseye shows at the Dark Horse.
English Television, especially the Discovery Channel, Hometime, and Little House.
English Radio not always about learning English.
Furniture that is actually my size.
Not having to sit on the floor all the time.
High speed computer and internet access.
My lake house in Alabama.
Being able to drive.
Large size drinks.
The pizza/lasagna place on Broad street in ATL. Rita's or something
Sonic Hamburgers and Cherry Limeade with Large Tots
Oddities....
Not a specific Japan oddity, but i am at Hobara now. The school has a courtyard in the middle. There are four story buildings all around it. I see a small door maybe big enough for a small truck to drive through. But there is a huge crane right in the middle of the courtyard. I walked around the courtyard and I can see no logical way for it to be here. The walls are high so maybe a huge crane lifted it over, but the crane itself is massive so how did it get here.
The number four is bad luck here. Because it is pronounced Shi (She) and that is the same as Death (Shinu). There are 4 apartments on my block, #201,202,203,205. There is no bus stop #4. It just skips it. Many hotels skip room four, some buildings skip the 4th floor.
There is an open sewage system. It is cover but flows right along the street everywhere you go. In the hot summer, the smell gets bad. Often times you can hear it emptying from a house as you walk by.
We have no janitors at any of the schools. The students stop after the last period and clean for 30 minutes. They scrub everything. They empty the trash. They really clean. Some teachers even help. Once a month they get down and dirty and really scrub the school top to bottom.
Schoolgirls all wear the same type outfits. White button up shirt and a certain color skirt. The color of the skirt determines the school they go to. I have never seen one of my students wearing anything other than their school outfits. Ever. When it's cold they wear sweaters and the skirts. With nothing covering their legs. I can be freezing and wish I had thermal underwear long johns on, and there are the girls with a sweater and nothing on their legs. They wear these 6 foot socks bunched up around their legs, but they don't pull them up.
My favorite drink here is Pocari Sweat. The text on the bottle is "Pocari sweat is a healthy beverage that smoothly supply the lost water and electrolytes from perspiration. With appropriate density and electrolyte fluid that is close to that of human body fluid, it can be absorbed into the body." I can tell by your face you don't believe me. So look here: http://www.otsuka.co.jp/pocari_e/pocari1.htm
I have to bag my own groceries at the store. Not a big thing, but it looks like them bagging it has never been an option. I pay and then get shuffled to another island where I bag them myself.
I have to turn on the hot water every time I want to use it. I have no central hot water heater per se. I have to do this 1 minute song and dance to take a warm shower, and even then it's either a slightly too warm shower or an ice cold one. My place will be kickin' in the winter, but as for summer all I got is my remote control eya kon (air con - A/C ).
People actually strive to work at McDonald's here. Its a good job, and get this so is working at Denny's. They have Denny's here only difference is it is a really nice place, like maybe Red Lobster or even Ruth's Chris.
When I am crossing the road at an intersection, cars will stop and not cross my lane until I pass. This doesn't sound too strange but it is. Say I am on one side of a 4 lane road at a big intersection and the cross light says I can go, if I take a step into the road the traffic on the other side of the road will wait until I make it across. The odd thing is there is like at least a minute until I get to that side of the road, but they will just stop and wait, then I feel compelled to run across the road so as not to hold up traffic. Its a tad irritating.
When I ride with people I feel like we are going to die. Cars will drive straight at each other and then at the last minute move out of the way. Not sure if I want a car because of this. The roads are very thin and there are brick walls on each side. It's nerve racking to ride sometimes, much less drive a car. But if I get one I want a super tiny car, just for the irony. Plus they are cheaper.
I have a remote control fan and a remote control air conditioner. I can sit on my couch and make the room cooler or hotter, and then turn on the little fan, make it rotate or stop. I will add pictures when I get a computer I can use.
You cannot bow too much in Japan. Everyone bows to everyone. The news people bow to each other and then to us. Road crews bow as cars pass. Its insane.
Last time I was in Japan I took my American alarm clock, I knew the electricity would be different, but if it wasn't going to work I'd know right away, right? No. I plugged it in and it looked fine, so I set it and went to sleep. Well the electrical differences the hertz cycles are less than in the US, so it takes longer for the same amount of electricity to get to the clock, so 1 US minute was actually about 45 Japanese seconds, or maybe vice versa, but the point is when my clock went off at 7:30 for an 8am class, it was really 9:15 or so. Nice first impression, eh?
Japan is about 2 years ahead of us technology wise, specifically electronics and such. They have cell phones that are way more powerful than we have and cheaper in most cases. So clearly they are a highly technical society. But when it comes to houses, they are still about 500 years behind the times. The house, even in extremely cold areas, has no insulation. There will be a particle board inner wall, the 2x4 framing studs, and a thin paneling outside. But No Insulation. And of course I will live in an area that gets 7 feet of snow.
more on the way....
Oopsies....
Pretty or nice is kirei (key day ee)
Spicy food is karai (kah dah ee)
Hate is kirai (key dah ee)
Yea, I've screwed those up several times and I even know the difference. Just a slip of the tongue. Instead of this is spicy food, I have said I hate this food. When someone prepared it for me it's very rude of course.
Cute is kawaii (kah wah ee)
Scary is kowaii (ko wah ee)
Many people mess those up, and always at the perfect time. "awww, look at the scary little girl".
Ookii na koe de - in a loud voice
Ookii na koi de - in a big fish
Suwatte mo ii desu ka - is it ok to sit here?
Sawatte mo ii desu ka - is it ok to fondle you?