Signs

In my first days in Japan i really was surprised seing so many pannels, telling me what to do and what not. I recall someone telling me about a sign saying "stick to the rules". Of course there is no such sign, but that's the impression you get.
So i have been thinking about that. It's not that there are more or radically different things you are told to do/omit. So what's the fuzz about it?

As you can see on this page, japanese signs tend to be manga style. They're funny and most imortant of all, these images are real eyecatchers. (Who cares for all the "strictly forbidden"blabla to be seen in western countries anyway). It's just like advertisement. By the way mangas are rooted in early stage publishing business, where one-sheeted graphic stories for the (low educated) masses preceeded modern newspapers. So the imagry is something to be understood by everyone.

Of course rules and social order is something very very important in this country. That doesn't only mean you have to "stick to the rules" but also that the authority is responsible to provide and ensutre them, to never leave the subject without guidance.

Moreover, the concept of a soul, in that special case the notion of a good and or bad conciousness rooted in christianism, is not that important. Moral is something rather practical. It's achildrens phrase "If noone sees it, it's ok".
So the omnipresence of signs is also intended to remind you of the social framework you're alway in, even if "noone sees"...

Commonly told untruths about Japan

Some months have passed now since i returned home and there wasn't much time to look back. But i won't leave this blog behind unfinished, so here we go:

Japan is expensive
Of course that depends of current exchange rates, but as said before in general things of every day life are rather cheap and you always get good value for what you pay.

Everyone is in martial arts
Most people like Baseball and Soccer has become rather popular for watching as well as playing it themselves. Of course people do practice martial arts, expecially young people consider it as something folkloric though and prefer western things.

The 18 something ways of separating your waste
Basically you have two main categories, which are “burnable” and “unburnable waste. Then there is cans together with bottles and if you have a lot of it: paper. Confusion starts when time enters the calculation. You have to put out different kinds of garbage at different days of the week. Furthermore you're supposed to put the garbage-bag outside no more than one or two hours before the garbage truck arrives in the morning (most people nevertheless do it on the evening before). Eventually that means you either dispose bags half empty or you end up storing them in your flat.
In a land where everything is meant to be practical, waste separation probably is a most unnecessarily complicated matter.

Subway intervals of 1-2 minutes and subway stuffing people into subway cars
Notorious Marunouchi-Line knows intervals of about 2 minutes for a period of 10 minutes at around 8 o'clock, the rest of the day and on practically every other line you have intervals of about 5min or more.
I never experienced the stuffing staff myself, not even early in the morning, but I got reports on it. What's common: the last two (usually guys) entering a full car step in turned around, pushing the crowd further into the compartment with their backs. Only those are definitely not paid for their “service”.

Tokyo is not Japan
Certainly it's different from the countryside, just like every large town is to the province. Only, regarding word largest town, you expect something like internationality... Wrong! There might be a lot of foreigners, but what about some hundred thousand in between 20 millions? And no one is speaking english!

Japanese can't say no
In fact to be polite, you have to avoid a direct negation. Nonetheless there is a word for no and it is used. You even can express dissent. But only to weaken a compliment received.

Mangas are read from right to left
In fact this is correct: Only that any printed matter is read from right to left, including books and newspapers. So mangas aren't something special.

So what about Canada?

I am back home for some weeks now and all of my trip seems so distant and long ago somehow. But there's so much left to tell. Anywhay, no way just walking away leaving this blog unfinished. So i start with a swift report on my visit to Canada.

I spent some days together with Kathi in Ottawa, so glad to be reunited once again. We went around this not that well known capital and i liked all the garish neo-medieval architecture. As there's not enough space for two in the student's dormitory single room, and i hoped to see somewhat of the country after all, we soon hit the road!

Besides the somewhat calmer mood of Canadians over their southern neighbours, they prove to be real revolutioners concerning speed limits, which are as low as in the US, just that nobody cares.

Moreover if you leave the Toronto-Ottawa-Montreal axis, you quickly get to know the ambiguity of the term highway, which may not imply more than a paved strip through endless woods, one typical thing for Ontario.

As i recently had my temple-and-any-other-traditionall-stuff-hangover from Japan and still remember the corn-one along our way west in the US, it's the forest-and-lakes hangover you get up in the borealm. Nonetheless the mostly slight hilled landscape can be very impressive and we did some hiking tours in the provincial parks; at least as far as we got without snowhoes (we tried them only once at Mt.Tremblant).

Mid march in Ontario still proved to be mid winter, but temperatures weren't that bad anymore (people wearing t-shirts above 0°C). Nonetheless winter tourism isn't that develloped, and the "closed for season"-sign got our companion everywhere we went. The farther north you get, the less dense population gets and the heavier industries. Final leader was Timmins, a 50.000 soul logging town, stretching out 40km in every direction (The "Welcome to"-sign inmidst the taiga really was fun). All in all, from a visitor point of view, Canada turned out not to be that different from the States after all, an impression rehabilitated only by what we saw from Quebec and its own culutral touch, and me being so glad getting my hands on real food again, after having had to drop low from japanese delicacies to ever recurring burger or steak menus *puke*
Montreal with its multicultural flair and cool places to hang out, became our welcome back to civilication after having left behind 3000km of boreal forest.

And once again the day to say good bye came far to early. But from now it's only one more month until my love will come back too. Let's see about what adventures settling down rather than travelling foreign lands will bring along. Here the map of places we went:

Back from our tour

3000km through Ontarion and Quebec. Now we're back but no time so far for a recount, but there are plenty of fotos:

Ottawa and Ontario photos

Oh Canada....

I slept well in my in the basement room i got, spent my last money to get to Westminster, Elephant&Castle and for a steak pie with a half stout. I realize it has really been a long time since i have been the last time to London, and after so long a time in Tokyo this metropolis rather looks small as for the buildings as well as the dimension.
I am experiencing reverse culture shock, which isn't too surprising, but funny anyway to be enstranged by something you have known for your whole life. Here is a list:

• People are open and emotional.
• People are loud and noisy.
• People are dressed casually.
• Blond women catch my eye (especially my very own one...)
  
• There is so much more space, people blocking entrance/exit areas anywhay (just an international phenomenon)
  
• Eating with knife and spoon at every meal.
• Meals are large, and there is so much meat and no rice and I am having a hard time.
  
• Everyone speaks english.
• I have to think about how to do and say when I want to pay in a restaurant.
• You better tip.
• Waiters putting the change on the table rather carelessly. (Probably because off having forgot above)
• No shoes off/slippers on inside living spaces.
• So many really old houses..

The flight from London to Ottawa was very relaxed. Rather spacious seats, good meals, only no window at my seat, so i head to look out of the one to the front seat, and i could as there was now stupid shutting policy. More frozen landscapes. I saw the southern tip of Greenland, attached to an iceberg stiched polar sea, then the vast lands of New Foundland, patterned by frozen lakes, great, but couldnt take any pictures.

Now in Ottawa together with Kathi again. -4 degrees and lots of snow, and that where I just had welcomed spring temperatures.