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[blodeuedd]

Day 11 - What did you find most overrated and underrated about Japan?

(I was discussing generalisations with Eda tonight, and that got me thinking...)

Most overrated: the Japanese people themselves, and by this I mean the stereotypes about Japanese people that exist in other countries. You hear things like, "Japanese people are all super polite!" or "Japanese people are all really xenophobic and racist!" I've never liked gross generalisations, so I didn't expect either of those things to be true, though I did expect that there must be some reason for the stereotype to exist. While it's true that people who work in customer service here are pretty much exceedingly polite, people in general are just like people everywhere else; there are many wonderfully kind people here, and there are also jerks (and if you've ever been elbowed aside by a little old lady who's trying to get a closer look at something at a quilt festival, you'll wonder where on earth the image of the kindly old obaa-san comes from! XDDD). As for racism, yes, there's plenty of that, and it tends to be much more overt than what we see in Western countries. I haven't had any really bad experiences here, but I'm a white, fair-skinned and blue-eyed -- probably not the main target of the "Let's protect the Japanese way of life!" diatribes blasting from those black vans. On the other hand, let's not forget that the concept of racism being a bad thing is a fairly recent one back home -- watch any old movie, you'll see some pretty surprising stuff. It's not as though the West is a racism-free fairyland today, anyway -- if you think so, I'll assume that you're white and you haven't ever gotten out much. It hasn't disappeared, though it's diminished.

On the subject of discrimination, I knew a woman back in Canada who'd been a lawyer, and had lived in Japan for several years. I asked her once if she'd found Japan to be as sexist as it's said to be (this was before I came here) and she said that yes, it was very sexist, especially in her field of work; however, she said she preferred the honesty of people telling her outright that she couldn't do so and so or get whatever job because she was a woman. It was frustrating, sure, but in Canada, she'd been turned down for jobs because of sexism, but of course they'd found other excuses to pretend that it wasn't because she was a woman in a man's world.

Most underrated: plum blossoms. Cherry blossoms are lovely, yes, and for visual impact, there's no beating them, but plum blossoms have a delicate beauty that belies their heady scent. Seriously, can anyone honestly say that sakura have a particular smell, apart from "vaguely sweet"? Plum blossoms smell heavenly, and I think it's kind of magical, how they start blooming while winter still hangs in the air.

Day 01 - A picture of you "in Japan". (doing or wearing something "Japanese")
Day 02 - Describe your neighbourhood in Japan.
Day 03 - Most interesting person you've met.
Day 04 - What's your favourite place that's not in any of the guidebooks/lists of places to visit?
Day 05 - Which, if any, Japanese mannerisms or expressions have you adopted?
Day 06 - Food that you swore you would never eat but now love (or tolerate).
Day 07 - Which Japanese words do you use in English? (hanami, shinkansen, etc.)
Day 08 - Are you a Herbivore or Carnivore? S or M?
Day 09 - Favourite stores/shopping centers.
Day 10 - Something about Japan that sets it apart from anywhere else.
Day 11 - What did you find most overrated and underrated about Japan?
Day 12 - Describe a fail!gaijin moment. (Where you did something wrong or completely misunderstood because you couldn't ~read the air~ or just plain had no idea what you were supposed to do because you weren't born and raised here) Describe a gaijin!smash moment (Where your foreignness was to your benefit)
Day 13 - How is daily life in Japan different from how it was back in your home country?
Day 14 - What is the hardest thing about living in Japan versus your home country?
Day 15 - Weirdest food item you've seen, and weirdest food item you've actually eaten.
Day 16 - How you realised you'd acclimated to Japan. (if you have)
Day 17 - Your karaoke top 5, your sushi top 5, your conbini top 5.
Day 18 - Post some amusing/cute/faily purikura.
Day 19 - Your favourite Japanese character(s) and Gachapon/UFO Catcher toys
Day 20 - Favourite Japanese festival or folklore.
Day 21 - Favourite and least favorite Japanese fashion trends.
Day 22 - Your favourite Japanese saying or kotowaza (proverb).
Day 23 - What is something you have/do in Japan that you wish you had/could do in your home country?
Day 24 - Your favourite Japanese slang or borrow-word (外来語), e.g. セフレ "sex friend"
Day 25 - Most interesting vending machine find.
Day 26 - What's your favourite/least favourite train line?
Day 27 - Place you avoid going to if at all possible.
Day 28 - A picture of you looking like a weaboo/A picture of you trying to blend in and failing.
Day 29 - What's the thing you [will] miss the most about Japan when you leave (either on vacation, or move away)?
Day 30 - Did Japan meet your expectations, both good and bad? What has been the most surprising thing about Japan for you, or the thing you least expected?


Day 11 – Your siblings

I'm the eldest of three, and the only girl, which meant special priviledges (I always got my own bedroom, while my brothers had to share) and also more restrictions, in some way, since I was the first (my brothers had later bedtimes than I did at the same age, for example). We squabbled as kids, of course, but we never really hated one another. Since we've started our own separate lives, it's always a joy to hang out with them and think that my brothers are pretty cool guys, and that I'd be glad for their friendship even if we weren't related by blood.

B1 is two and a half years younger than me. He's always been active, because he always has lots of energy to burn, and did karate for a very long time. He has some OCD tendencies, which mostly translate as a love for things to be tidy; he recently helped our father do a thorough cleaning and reorganising of his basement workshop. He is quite the joker, though of the straight-faced variety, and delights in coming up with silly ways to make me laugh. One of his all-time favourite shows is the anime Monster (which we plan on marathoning together when I'm home at Christmastime), and he enjoys watching action movies with his buddies. He likes woodworking, Radiohead, and lobsters.

B2 is almost six years younger than I am. He's the rebel of the three of us, the artist; he plays the guitar. He's never been that good at managing money, mostly because what he has, he spends right away. He loves travelling, and for the past couple of years, has been doing contract work until he has enough money to go somewhere. Last year, he went on a long roadtrip with two friends of his, across Canada and around the U.S. In a few weeks, he's going to Germany for a month, and plans to move there next year to work for a while. He's been studying German since the spring. He likes music, meeting new people, and reading.

I think (and hope!) that they're both happy with their lives right now, though of course I worry about them sometimes. But I trust them to get it right. ^_^

Day 01 - Introduce yourself
Day 02 - Your first love
Day 03 - Your parents
Day 04 - What you ate today
Day 05 - Your definition of love
Day 06 – Your day
Day 07 – Your best friend
Day 08 – A moment
Day 09 – Your beliefs
Day 10 – What you wore today
Day 11 – Your siblings
Day 12 – What's in your bag
Day 13 – This week
Day 14 – What you wore today
Day 15 – Your dreams
Day 16 – Your first kiss
Day 17 – Your favourite memory
Day 18 – Your favourite birthday
Day 19 – Something you regret
Day 20 – This month
Day 21 – Another moment
Day 22 – Something that upsets you
Day 23 – Something that makes you feel better
Day 24 – Something that makes you cry
Day 25 – A first
Day 26 – Your fears
Day 27 – Your favourite place
Day 28 – Something that you miss
Day 29 – Your aspirations
Day 30 – One last moment