Good to see you here again!
It's been a few couple of days since I last posted, but I'm back again!
On the weekend I took a trip to Hamamatsu for a small drinking event and it was a very enriching experience! Hamamatsu is a medium-sized city located near the coast, between Shizuoka and Nagoya. I'm currently living in a place near Shizuoka called Yaizu, so it took me just over an hour and (1110 yen) to get to Hamamatsu by train. While I was living in Amagasaki and commuting around the Osaka area, I would say that the vast (VAST) majority of people were "native" Japanese. As such, I was usually the only foreign-looking person within my line of sight (Yes, I can see myself!). As a knock-on effect, I would usually get given the stares (I would say more curious stares rather than evil ones) but I eventually got used to it and it happened less and less as people saw me more often around town.
Before going to Hamamatsu, I had heard about a number of factories (Yamaha, Suzuki) that employ a large amount of Brazilian-Japanese (in some cases pretty much just Brazilian) workers. As a result of this, there has been, to some extent, intercultural breeding (for lack of a better phrase). There are a lot of foreign looking people in Hamamatsu but somehow it didn't make me feel at ease.
It might sound strange, but I tend to attribute Japanese people with safety and trust, knowing that they won't burgle my house even if I forget to lock the door. However, I tend to attribute non-Japanese people (including everybody so as not to unintentionally appear racist) with crime! I know it sounds like a horrible thing to say, but living in Japan has brought to my attention how dangerous and riddled with crime the UK actually is!
So, walking around Hamamatsu city, I no longer felt safe enough to carry my wallet in my back pocket (basically in plain view) as I would usually. I felt slightly uneasy and I wanted to go back to my bubble of all Japanese people. At that moment, it struck me: I wonder how the Japanese people in Amagasaki and Osaka felt when they saw me? If that's how I view my fellow "gaijin", how scared must the Japanese be of me?
Well, having said that, I'm only about 15cm tall and weigh less than a ton of feathers (get it?) so my scariness doesn't stretch very far. It was certainly an eye-opener and it made me consider the way I think about other people and other races. I think living in Japan has made me racist towards anyone other than Japanese people as I feel like they are the only ones whom I can trust.
Hopefully, when I return to the UK I will regain my trust in Britain. It probably doesn't help that I got my (locked) bike stolen after 3 days in Birmingham but still had my bike after leaving it unlocked in Amagasaki for 2 days. In any case, I will be back in the UK within 2 months, so we shall see how I cope with the reverse culture-shock.
That's all for now but I will update you with some details about my internship again very soon!
It's been a few couple of days since I last posted, but I'm back again!
On the weekend I took a trip to Hamamatsu for a small drinking event and it was a very enriching experience! Hamamatsu is a medium-sized city located near the coast, between Shizuoka and Nagoya. I'm currently living in a place near Shizuoka called Yaizu, so it took me just over an hour and (1110 yen) to get to Hamamatsu by train. While I was living in Amagasaki and commuting around the Osaka area, I would say that the vast (VAST) majority of people were "native" Japanese. As such, I was usually the only foreign-looking person within my line of sight (Yes, I can see myself!). As a knock-on effect, I would usually get given the stares (I would say more curious stares rather than evil ones) but I eventually got used to it and it happened less and less as people saw me more often around town.
Before going to Hamamatsu, I had heard about a number of factories (Yamaha, Suzuki) that employ a large amount of Brazilian-Japanese (in some cases pretty much just Brazilian) workers. As a result of this, there has been, to some extent, intercultural breeding (for lack of a better phrase). There are a lot of foreign looking people in Hamamatsu but somehow it didn't make me feel at ease.
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| You might be interested to Know that Tulio (a popular soccer player) is of Brazilian descent! |
It might sound strange, but I tend to attribute Japanese people with safety and trust, knowing that they won't burgle my house even if I forget to lock the door. However, I tend to attribute non-Japanese people (including everybody so as not to unintentionally appear racist) with crime! I know it sounds like a horrible thing to say, but living in Japan has brought to my attention how dangerous and riddled with crime the UK actually is!
So, walking around Hamamatsu city, I no longer felt safe enough to carry my wallet in my back pocket (basically in plain view) as I would usually. I felt slightly uneasy and I wanted to go back to my bubble of all Japanese people. At that moment, it struck me: I wonder how the Japanese people in Amagasaki and Osaka felt when they saw me? If that's how I view my fellow "gaijin", how scared must the Japanese be of me?
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| This author wants you to under the feelings of foreigners in Japan.. haha! |
Well, having said that, I'm only about 15cm tall and weigh less than a ton of feathers (get it?) so my scariness doesn't stretch very far. It was certainly an eye-opener and it made me consider the way I think about other people and other races. I think living in Japan has made me racist towards anyone other than Japanese people as I feel like they are the only ones whom I can trust.
Hopefully, when I return to the UK I will regain my trust in Britain. It probably doesn't help that I got my (locked) bike stolen after 3 days in Birmingham but still had my bike after leaving it unlocked in Amagasaki for 2 days. In any case, I will be back in the UK within 2 months, so we shall see how I cope with the reverse culture-shock.
That's all for now but I will update you with some details about my internship again very soon!
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