Changing Impressions

I wrote in my initial post that my biggest impression of Japan was how different it initially appeared. I then ended with the statement that I was starting to see more similarities; I could see myself settling into a routine in Japan.

And that is exactly what happened. Sometimes, I stop biking, look up to the sky, and think, “Wow. I’m in Japan. I’m on an island, in the Pacific, miles from home, in the country I have aimed to visit since my High School days.” It boggles my mind and it’s sometimes hard to believe.

            In the beginning, I would look at the differences and exclaim, “Wow! Look at the differences! The culture and history is so different, exciting, and alive!” But now, I look at the temples, I look at the old style buildings, the tourist areas, and it sometimes seems forced. In certain areas, the old-style buildings and small temples flow into the cityscape. Certain events, like the koto concert I attended, feel natural. In a way, I’ve become so accustomed to things that aren’t ‘American’ that it feels natural. So when I see those temples blocked off for display, such as the golden temple at Hiraizumi, or the relics in a museum, it feels detached. It doesn’t feel like ‘Japan.’ It feels like those photos I can pick up at home.

            And that is where I feel my impression has changed the most. In America, my view of Japan was those old-style buildings, the temples, the tourist attractions, the sites that were unique and a blast from the past. Now… Now, Japan to me is where the past streams seamlessly into the present so it becomes indistinguishable. I bike down the street in the morning, company employees sweeping leaves off the sidewalk, old wooden buildings with a shrine nestled in between as cars fly by it, students running by with yellow hats or matching backpacks… And I don’t bat an eyelash. It’s natural; it isn’t given a second look. I go to the World Heritage sites and it’s so detached because of seeing so many pictures in America; it strikes me as feeling more like home or ‘international.’

Politics

I have never been a big fan of politics, but it is impossible to avoid. In Japan, it’s easier because the lack of the vocabulary required makes it hard to know when it’s being discussed. But even then, politics becomes hard to avoid.

The biggest example of politics I have experienced during my stay was when prefectural elections were happening. There are specified boards with areas for politicians to pin their campaign ads. These quickly filled during election week. There were also election ‘vehicles.’ These cars, vans, and other modes of transportation made their way through the city, waving with their white gloves to passerby, announcing over loudspeakers mounted on the top various campaign slogans. This, I did not understand. I found it to be annoying. The Japanese I talked with always called it annoying and to be quiet. Why would you vote for someone you found annoying? I asked my host mother, but my response was laughter and, “I don’t know.”

I did learn from my host mother that she liked the American system of elections. She said that though Japanese get to vote for local offices, the heads are picked by those in office and the general public gets little say in who leads them. When she asked if it was true that everyone in America got to vote for the president, her response was a sigh and an いいな〜. And honestly, with the information that their constitution was heavily based off ours, I was surprised that Japan didn’t have this; I guess I was naïve. I would like to sometime view farther into their constitution.

It is also interesting to see politics from different countries on Japanese news. In America, besides some local news and the latest upheaval over the president or congress, it’s rare to see another country unless it’s dealing directly with ours. And then, it’s dealing with our presence in that country. In Japan, it’s not uncommon to see Obama on TV, interviews with those participating in ‘Occupy Wall Street,’ the riots in Greece, the slow fall of the Euro and others. I was really surprised when I learned that South Korea’s president had visited the U.S. in late October. Where did I hear it? Not the American news (online or visual media), but from Japanese TV when they showed the two leaders shaking hands. Then I had to look for it and find it. On CNN, it was just a few small articles on the matter. I wonder if it was broadcast at all on the American news channels.

Sports

During my stay in Japan, I haven’t been able to see much on sports. There’s not much free space that we can use (schedules and reservations constrain it as well), I don’t enjoy watching sports, so there hasn’t been very much time to pursue it.

The biggest exposure to sports during my stay was attending Morioka’s Junior High Sports Festival. All the Junior Highs in the city gathered at a park (in this awesome coliseum looking structure) and competed in various track and field events in a friendly fashion. They prepared for this for at least three weeks seeing as they had been practicing the cheering at school during the length of my stay. The cheering almost outshone the events themselves with various kanji, school names, and chants being formed by the student bodies like electronic led signs. They seemed to use it more as a community building activity rather than a rivalry based event.

This falls into what I seen it used as by Japanese before. During my stay at college, the Japanese exchange students could almost always be found at the gym and is how we became friends with them previous years: by playing sports. It’s also how we attempted and found our first friends here at Gandai. 

Lastly, the only other experience with sports in Japan is what I’ve watched on tv with my family. The new stations seemed to religiously broadcast the World Track & Field event in Daegu last month, and gave the same treatment to World Gymnastics in Japan after that. Interesting, not only did they follow Japanese participants, but they would follow individuals from select countries: usually an American, a Chinese, and shockingly young or old participants. A lot of the commercials, especially around these events, show Japan’s women soccer team which won earlier this year as well. Between this fervor to follow sporting events and how they use it to build relationships, I would say it’s a pretty big part of there culture; but I believe this same sense of pride and friendship is something to be found in other countries as well.

Gender

Gender in Japan is often a topic of that I find problems navigating through within Japan. There are multiple instances where I have problems with it, and some gender-related issues are so ingrained, that it’s not considered an issue at all (see confusion with isshin denshin hahaha).

One instance, I do feel comfortable discussing about gender issues is the one time it became most apparent for me. We were on a conservation outing in the woods with a group of college students when on the last day, they held a party for local residents. In the beginning, it seemed to go swimmingly. Everyone worked together and did their part to get ready; nothing at this point hinted at what would happen. But once the guests started rolling in (all male mind you), the atmosphere and roles instantly switched. Where once the roles were simply leadership, it switched to gender. Men were ushered in the freshly tatami’d room, and women, without any word, somehow ended up in the kitchen. And that’s where it began. The women served and cooked. The only time I saw them partake in the festivities, they moved from groups of men to another to entertain (talk and occupy) and pour drinks.

Now, my breaking point was when a friend from earlier came to talk to us, and she had a completely different air and demeanor. It was like talking to a stranger again. Did gender roles really have that huge of an impact? So I moved to change it: I excused myself to use the bathroom and headed afterwards to the kitchen to see if they wanted a chance to rest or help. This in itself was apparently a big no-no or at least unprecedented. Except for one adult supervisor (who steadily put me to work), the girls became uncomfortable. “Why is a guy here? Why is he washing dishes,” I constantly heard behind my back. When guys came to hit on them they asked without tact, “Why is he here? He’s a guy right?”

This was greatly depressing. I tried to help or at least close the gender gap to be shot down. Doing so not only made them question my reasoning, but also made them uncomfortable. Since it is a different culture, am I to just sit by the wayside and accept it with a grim smile? Or do I push myself into a situation trying to alleviate my own discomfort (being served or lack of responsibility), causing them discomfort? It is an answer I have still not yet come to find.

Globalization is defined as: “the act or process of globalizing: the state of being globalized; especially: the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets (http://www.merriam-webster.com).” Now when I first read this I thought to myself, “Oh crap. I know nothing of Japan and America’s actual economic ties; just the ties existing between pop culture, customs, and traditions. Luckily enough, the term globalization can also be applied to the spreading of ideas, languages, and pop culture.

Now that is something I can work with. I experience this cultural globalization in Japan in my everyday life here in Japan and back home. It’s kind of interesting to see how cultural aspects of both countries have become a norm in the other. For a really loose example in language, the Japanese word samurai has entered the English lexicon as well familiar terms such as sumo, tofu, and otaku. Japan has done the same adopting and modifying words to create examples such as apaato (apartment), konbini (convenience store), and suupaa (supermarket). 

Globalization in Stations?

As far as pop culture goes, my teacher a while back brought to light a great example of how globalization has increased (or at least changed) within the past few decades. In a previous post I mentioned popular icons in America from Japan: Mario, Pikachu, and Goku to name a few big ones. “That’s not the Japan I know,” she exclaimed, rebutting my remark. But with the rise of Nintendo in America during the 90’s, coinciding with the rise in popularity of anime, these have become household names. Another fellow peer also remarked (paraphrased), “It took me forever to realize Digimon was from Japan as a kid,” furthering just how globalized Japanese media has become to the point where we don’t even recognize it as being ‘different’ or having separate origins.

In contrast, in Japan it’s easy to spot a McDonald’s on the corner of a street. Ask a student their favorite American singer and you’ll usually hear Lady Gaga mentioned at some point. On a more subtle level, it’s interesting to see how food has also become integrated to the point where when visiting a class of students, I was asked if I had ever had the Japanese snack, caramel popcorn.

Of course, a lot of this does tie into economics. As our ties between the two countries grow, so will the amount of imports and exports. In a way, this in itself is an exchange of cultures increasing the amount of globalization.

Religion

On the issue of experiencing religion in Japan, I haven’t encountered much at all. In fact, I’ve rarely heard religion discussed, if at all, during the past two months.

The biggest show of religion here, that I have experienced, is the amount of shrines littered throughout the eastern and northeastern side of Morioka. People participate in the festivals held by shrines, offer their prayers, and enjoy the festivities. But that’s it. When it’s happening, it feels more like ritual and tradition than due to religious beliefs in a higher power: Perhaps superstition more so than faith? I sometimes wonder if they’re doing it out of tradition, with the hope that there is potentially something out there, or because they actually believe in the legends/myths/religion of the visited shrine.

Surprisingly, there are a few churches in Morioka of the Christian faith. The majorities are Catholic and I think the one Protestant church is Methodist. Either way, I’ve never seen people exit or enter said buildings. This may be in part due to wrong timing and I hope to attend one by the end of the year. I would like to see how a Japanese service is structured. 

Interesting to note, I thought there were two huge cathedrals downtown and assumed , ‘wow, there a LOT of Christians here!” But my host mother later informed me these structures were simply for marrying and had no religious connotations whatsoever.

Pop Culture

There’s a lot to be said about pop culture in Japan: and a lot of people will say it’s the pop culture that helped make Japan such a driving force in the world market. In some cases, such as the game market, Japan was the only contender for a long period of time. And nowadays, with manga and anime being household names, it’s obvious Japan’s pop-culture is wide spread. Who hasn’t heard of Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, DragonBall, Inuyasha, Sailor Moon, AKB48, Perfume, Pokemon, Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Game Boy, and so on just to name a few.

This past week upon a trip across the southern half of Honshu, we ended up in Tokyo (where else?). And when you visit Tokyo, nerd or not, you have to visit the technology, pop-culture hub, Akihabara. Toted as nerd and geek heaven back home (rural Pennsylvania), I was surprised at how… uniform it was. All the buildings seem to have familiar layouts and similar attractions. I don’t know how many times I was asked to see a maid-café. Were the Japanese we went with that eager to show off something usually portrayed as embarrassing?

It was nice to relax and play some games after running around on trains all day. Found some similar games to Rock Band and Guitar Hero. I would’ve liked to explore more (only saw stores from the front and entrance and entered 3), to get a more rounded view of the area. I only got see game centers, really (and forced purikura). 

People

During my stay in Japan, I have met a variety of different people. This is only natural; human beings are unique and given the brand new culture presented to me here, I’m going to encounter an even more diverse set of people than what I’m used to experiencing.

My first impression of Japanese people was a neutral. I know I should not judge a whole group of people on stereotypes and that one person doesn’t represent the whole; but when that is your basis without any experience to disprove or support it, it’s hard not to go on that information.

At one point, I thought I saw the racist and intolerant side of Japan that is often stereo-typed. When I told Japanese in Touhoku I was going to Yokohama (housing Japan’s largest China Town), I was told that the Japanese were fine and dandy. BUT I had to be careful with my goods because the Chinese might try to steal them. This honestly made me laugh. It seemed so petty. I had encountered other resentment with Asia in past conversations with Touhoku residents. When asked about the island between Japan and Korea (Dokdo to the Koreans and Takeshima to the Japanese) they claimed Koreans might live there now, but since Japanese originally lived on it, it was theirs. I was unable to get an answer beyond that. And I still don’t know which is true in that matter. Not to mention while we were in Hiroshima, one Japanese called America cowards and destroyers b/c we fought with technology. 

But I’ve also encountered a lot of people in Japan that have proved stereotype s wrong as well as the idea that you can’t base people off of assumptions. Twice while traveling, a stranger came up, asked us our destination, and proceeded to take us directly to where we needed to go; sometimes even when it was out of their way. I overheard conversations after Hiroshima about understanding a country’s crimes, looking past the hate, and understanding the humans behind the country’s face. When we needed to get to the bus station, our Japanese friends went out of their way late at night, to run off and try to find where we needed to go to board our bus home.

Community. When looking at my community in the nearby vicinity in Morioka, it's a bit hard. There's not much interaction between my host mother and the neighbor at least in what she includes me in, so it's hard to say.

Here's what I do know. It's quite beautiful; despite being near a major road with businesses lining the sides, it's fairly quiet (except for those annoying government vans and the dog living around the corner). The neighbors all seem to know each other on an acquaintance basis; it's not rare to see two passerby stop for a quick chat, and my host mom is often sidetracked by fellow neighbors when seen with a foreigner. For the eighth or ninth time too, haha.

So people seem to mind their own business with a cheery disposition towards others. I wonder if this is because of the business setting right in their backyards, or if this is uniform throughout Morioka or even Japan.



But the best part of the community in my opinion is that of the park being simply in the middle of it. The trees seem to split it up giving enough space and area for relaxtion whether it's older school kids biking, someone taking a quick bite during a breather, or kids playing on the equipment. In fact, green seems a very common theme with plants shoved in almost nook and cranny not road, house, or parking.

Impressions

As with all traveling experiences, I guess the biggest thing that sticks out for people is the differences. For me, there was no difference. I think it all started with the plane where English wasn't the 1st option, or even the 2rd, but the 3rd.

Finally English! After three screens of Chinese and Japanese only for it to be in... the metric system! This eventually changed as once we hit Narita, you get to add Korean to the mix. It does make for shortcuts if you know Kanji or Hangeul; otherwise you're stuck waiting for English to know where you are. Not a gripe, but was definitely the first sense of culture shock.

After that it was, 'Look at this! Look at that! It's so different!' I don't think it helped we stayed in a traditional looking inn for the first few nights either...

Either way, after the initial shock, the differences seem to give way to the similarities. Hopefully, as someone wiser advised me, that will help highlight what makes Japan so special.