Discoveries, part 2

Hello! It's been a while. I've been somewhat busy lately. My last post was written when I had just moved from a hotel to a youth hostel, and I've been living with my relatives since this past Saturday. On Monday, I had my first day of training for my job, and in between everything, I've been doing various things with the relatives I'm living with.

I've found a few more interesting things about Japan that I thought I'd share. This list will no doubt keep growing and growing as long as I'm here, haha:

• Produce in Japan, especially fruit, is pretty expensive. I bought a bag of three apples a while back for about US$3. A dollar an apple! My aunt bought a bag of oranges today for about US$5. I'm pretty sure there were less than six oranges in the bag. Small salads at convenience stores are generally more expensive than a decently sized bento meal too. I'm not really sure why this is.
• Japanese TV is some of the most entertaining stuff ever! I often watched variety shows and j-dramas on the Asian channels or the Internet back in California, but having access to it on a real TV has been a really great experience. Because of the recent disasters, a lot of the regular scheduled programming has been substituted with [often depressing] news (which I want to watch but have a bit of trouble understanding sometimes) so when I get the chance to watch an uplifting variety show, I'm never disappointed. It's been pretty helpful with my Japanese learning too.
• Squat toilets. Freaking. SUCK! If you don't know what I'm talking about, check out this video (note: subtitles are totally inaccurate but still pretty funny). My legs are pretty strong from working out and doing ballet so the squatting part doesn't bother me. What I hate the most about these is that I have no idea how I'm supposed to avoid getting "stuff" on my pants after I pull 'em down. My solution has been to completely remove them before squatting. This, however, is very troublesome and apparently unnecessary. These toilets are usually the only kind available publicly at train stations and other such places, so in an emergency, I have no choice. Suggestions on how to properly use these (from the ladies especially!) are most welcome.
• You really don't need to know much or any Japanese to get by in Japan, especially if you're in a super metro or touristy area like Tokyo. One of the big reasons why it took me a while to finally get to Japan is because I wasn't sure that my Japanese ability would be sufficient, particularly since I'm mistaken as a native Japanese person from time to time. A good number of Japanese people know English. The train station names are written and announced in English. Most of the menus in restaurants have photos that you can point to if you can't read Japanese. Even taxi drivers with no knowledge of the English language have "point here" cards for riders to easily let the driver know where they need to go. So if the language barrier is something that's holding you back from visiting Japan, don't let it!
• Not everyone here is super fashionable. I think it's a pretty widespread stereotype that Japanese people, especially the youngsters, are oshare. Now that I'm living here, I find this quite untrue! I still feel super bumpkin walking around places like Shinjuku or Shibuya in my old jeans and favorite tee (I'll definitely buy some clothes from 109 when I have the money though, haha), but I do encounter a similarly dressed person from time to time. Some things that are "in fashion" right now in Japan are kinda dumb anyway. One example is glasses frames with no lenses. Really, Japan? Really?

That should do it for now. Thanks for reading, and see you next time!

Discoveries

My actual trip to Japan was ridiculously crazy in itself, but that'll wait until another post. Here are a few fascinating things I've found since being in Japan though:

• There are drink vending machines just about everywhere! You can get hot or cold stuff too, and most are only about ¥100 (around US$1).
• Japanese toilets are amazing. I'm not talking about the squat toilets though....screw those! Haha. The Western-styled kind with a Japanese twist have all sorts of gadgets like a seat warmer (really amazing in cold weather!), butt spray (not personally recommended), and the ability to make a fake flushing sound to cover up the noise you make when you go number two (apparently developed just for the ladies). The stalls in most of the public bathrooms I've been in also have sanitizing solution available so you can directly put your bottom on the toilet seat after cleaning it.
• The trains here are incredibly efficient and totally clean. Because of the earthquake, they apparently haven't been quite on schedule and some aren't even running, but they still seem very reliable to me. The stops and transfer stations are all announced (in both Japanese and English), and even when it's super duper crowded (as seen in this viral video) people will actually move out of the way for you when you need to disembark.
• There are no garbage cans anywhere! A friend told me that most Japanese people hold on to their garbage to deal with at home because they sort it according to whether or not it's flammable. But there's very little, if any, litter on the streets or sidewalk, surprisingly enough. My inner-hippie loves it!
• Convenience stores are convenient. Not only do they sell snacks, cosmetics, and toiletries, you can get full on meals that are affordable and delicious. What's more, if it needs heating, the store clerk will do it for you! Most, if not all, are open 24 hours too.

For those who have been to Japan before, these things are probably no surprise. And yes, I read a lot about these sort of things before coming here, but experiencing it first hand and seeing it all for the first time with my own eyes is rather thrilling. And there's much more to be added later, I'm sure :)