Traveling

It would seem a good idea to gather some information if you are traveling to the United States from another country. The items listed below are from a Japanese site that advises visitors or customs in the U. S.

1. Dinner Plates. Be prepared to be disappointed. In Japan a person eating gets as many individual plates as needed for the meal. In America a large bowl may be placed in the middle of the table and you take as much as you want from there and place it on a big dish called a dinner plate. In Japan you eat because you are hungry. In America it is a time to build relationships. There may be decorative tableware that has been handed down generations especially at holiday meals. American food is flat in taste. There are no little secret ingredients. There is no U.S. cuisine and almost nothing special to eat based on the season. Americans like food that is sweet, high in fat, and high in calories.

2. Rough Areas. In Japan hip hop clothes are considered stylish. In America it is wise to avoid them as you may be mistaken for a street gang member. Rough areas are where there are less people on the street, lots of graffiti, windows and doors fitted with bars and young people wearing hip hop clothes.

3. Alcohol. Americans do not have a sense of superiority about how much you can drink or how much you have to drink to get drunk. If you drink a lot there is a sense that you cannot control yourself. Non-smokers are also thought superior to smokers.

4. Free time. Americans make room for leisure time on weekdays and weekends. During the week the time is used for activities like watching movies, bowling, reading or volunteering. They enjoy even more leisure on weekends. In Japan we believe there is no free time during the week, only the weekend.

5. Sarcasm. If you are going to communicate with Americans you must know how to use sarcasm.

6. Laugh. In Japan a woman covers her mouth when she laughs so she does not show her mouth. In America you do not turn away. You open your mouth and laugh in a loud voice.

7. Grocery shopping. Cashiers are slow. Very slow compared to Japan. Be prepared for things to be slow and talk to other shoppers in the line to pass the time.

8. Vending machines. Vending machines in America only dispense carbonated beverages. Even the things you think are juices are carbonated beverages.

9. Optimism. Americans are weirdly optimistic. In Japan there is a great fear of failure in front of other people. It is better to do nothing than to be criticized for failure. In America you can make mistakes and it doesn't matter. They feel it is better to try and see what happens.

Well the Japanese have some strange ideas about us. All I can say is that I have never met a foreigner who understood sarcasm. Humor is such a cultural thing and the language nuances in humor just fly by most who do not have a very strong background in American English and culture.