Instead of writing about boogers, mystical Japanese remedies or plastic surgery (all very interesting subjects) I am going to write about the strange, passive-aggressive/aggressive side of Japan I never actually knew about. Then I'll give you a more interesting 'culture shock'.
I have two anecdotes I wish to relay onto you, my dear readers. The first concerns my Japanese teacher, Itou-sensei, and her fun culture lessons. Her first nugget of wisdom came in the warning of 'not to look at Japanese people in the eye'. You never know when someone is going to stab you. The next lesson we revieved, was a warning not to stand too close to the tracks when waiting for our trains. Why? Because someone might push us into them! But, Itou sensei, why would someone want to do that? Do they dislike foreigners? No, it's because sometimes, Japanese people do it. Who knows, maybe it's stress?
These are just warm-ups. The final Itou-ism concerns the lady, herself. As she tells it, she was on her morning train when the woman sitting next to her fell asleep, and her head dropped onto Itou sensei's shoulder. Naturally, Itou sensei did nothing, that is UNTIL she got off, when she gave the sleeping woman a nudge in the ribs. Ouch!
My next story is just as crazy as the last one. It happened after I crossed the big intersection in Shibuya (the one from the video). A lady had tripped and, from my standpoint, the culprit was her shoes catching on the textured part of the sidewalk (which helps blind people 'see'). When she gets up, she swings her plastic shopping bag (which has something in it) at a random girl. And by swing, I mean bases-loaded-gee-i-hope-i-get-a-home-run swing. Kapow! My only response was 'Whaa?' Seriously, the girl did not deserve to be attacked. I mean, seriously?
That was shocking to me...
Now, something a little more fun:
See? See? Seeee? The one with the pink hair! We call them 'Gyaru' or 'Gals' This is actually a whole range of the 'Gal' style, but my favorite is the ganguro-gyaru, aka the one with the pink hair and white war paint. (In Shibuya, in front of Shibuya 109)
<3<3<3
4 comments:
Dude, if anyone smacks you with a shopping bag, I hope you go Chuck Norris on their ass. That is really strange. That pink hair gal was intense. I hope life is well! I just got back from a hella long frisbee tournament and it was exhausting. I MISS YOU! I hope life is going well.
are those people or manikins?
Hahahaha that was great. If I could lift my backback, I'd totally hope for a homerun hit like that...
wow! i hope i don't get hit by a random lady with a full shopping bag! and people get pushed onto the tracks? woah man. that's intense. i'm glad your teacher told you these random facts! haha. i miss you! life here is kinda boring on weekends...and it's starting to suck. :( oh well...i can deal. talk to you soon!
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