Thursday 15 September 2011

Room 101 - Japan

Following the format of the popular BBC show Room 101, here are five irritating things I would happily see banished for good in Japan.

1. Elevators which only go up one floor

Many train stations have this, and yes I know there are disabled people and people pushing prams or carrying heavy luggage with legitimate reasons for using a lift. My annoyance is more with fit, healthy young people who will wait for an elevator rather than walk up or even DOWN a single flight of stairs. Even if the stairs are often actually quicker. And it's not just train stations - the local gym at my previous apartment had a lift which just went up the one floor between reception and the gym itself. It amazes me that people will go to a gym to do a one hour aerobics class, but heaven forbid they should walk up one flight of stairs.
*I will also add to this catagory people who stand still on "travalators" instead of walking on them, don't even get me started...*

2. Smoking regulations

The dangers of passive smoking are, I imagine, fairly globally recognised. More and more countries are banning smoking. In Japan, however, the concern seems to be with smoking outdoors. You'll see posters warning that a cigarette held by a standing adult is at the same height as a child's face. I've never seen or heard of anyone being burned by the cigarette of a passerby. However, go to any bar or restaurant and many coffee shops and the air will be thick with smoke. I think they've got it all the wrong way round.

3. The dress sense of mature Japanese women

Older Japanese women, or "obasan", have a definite and unique look, and it's not, shall we say, particulary feminine or attractive. The regulation uniform for most women over 50 here is a shapeless shirt, often too big, slacks, a pair of a trainers, and a bucket-shaped canvas hat. Gok Wan would most definitely not think these girls are fierce. They top of the look with backpacks. Backpacks! Why? Are they hiking? There are some other accessories, for example in summer time they can often be seen with massive black visors pulled down to cover the entire face like welders' masks, and kind of long sleeved gloves with just the tiops of the fingers exposed. This is to protect them from the sun, as obviously more than one second of exposure to sunlight is fatal.



4. Machines that talk to you.

Ticket machines here talk to you - even though you can see what you're doing. There's usually an option on train ticket machines to switch the on-screen instructions to English. When you press this button a loud voice then declares "ALL FARE INFORMATION WILL BE GIVEN IN ENGLISH" Yes, I know! Otherwise I wouldn't have pressed the button saying "English"! I don't need the fact pointed out to me to everyone within half a mile radius.

5. Masks.

Those annoying white surgical masks which are everywhere. Why? I can just about understand wearing one if you have a stinking cold and are coughing, spluttering and sneezing everywhere, but most people you see wearing them are fit as a fiddle - there's nothing wrong with them. Apart from how awful they look, I really can't believe they make much difference to whether or not you will get ill. I saw a girl the other day wearing a mask AND an eye patch. She might as well have been in a burka or put a bed sheet over her head. Awful, awful things. It's also very annoying trying to hold a conversation with someone when all you can see is their eyes.

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