Things that still shock me about Japan

Two months ago I moved from Australia to Osaka, Japan to live with my Japanese husband K.
It has been the most amazing couple of months, meeting beautiful people, trying new foods, and adapting to a new culture and language.
But after two months, there are still many things that I haven't gotten used to yet, and things that puzzle me about my new life.
So I've put together a list of things from my everyday life that still shock me about Japan.
It's only been a short amount of time, but I hope you can either relate or find this list of things entertaining!

I'd love to hear your insights in the comments, and whether you've had any similar experiences, either in Japan, or experiencing culture shock somewhere else!

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:20 - Snack 1
1:10 - Thing 1
3:22 - Snack 2
3:32 - Thing 2
5:22 - Snack 3
5:53 - Thing 3
6:32 - Thing 4
7:20 - Snack 4
7:70 - Thing 5
8:43 - Snack 5
9:19 - Snack 6
10:22 - Thing 6
11:05 - Snack 7
11:39 - Thing 7
12:05 - Dessert
13:01 - Thing 8
14:07 - What are your thoughts?
14:24 - What you can expect from my channel + outtakes

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Join me on Instagram: @itssunnyinjapan

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[泊進之介-in]

「社会のために守る」ものではなく「自身のために行う」事
「決められて従う」ものではなく「自ら行動する」事
であれば、わかりやすいかな？ と思います。



そんな気持ちをまだ日本人の多くが持っているのでしょう。

[btormond]

What also impresses me most is watching school children, at very young ages, take the trains by themselves. When they get on and off they are very quiet and polite. Sometimes, on the train, they open books and read them. It reminds me very much of when I was growing up in America in the late 1950's & early 60's. I was able walk around without fear. I would very much agree that waiting in lines was one of my biggest adjustments along with not being able to walk in a straight line in train stations! I do love it here in Japan.

[JTHH_YouTube]

I’m half Japanese, raised with Japanese traditional values (morals and ethics as well, I hope to think), my wife is from Tokyo, and we raise our two boys to be thoughtful in the Japanese way. Although I was born and raised in the US, we live in Japan now, and I am glad to be in a country that has all of the points you’ve previously mentioned. So, it is so refreshing to see someone who respects and enjoys the Japanese culture and values when in Japan. Meaning, Japan is Japan for a reason, other countries are the way they are for a reason, and I am glad that Japan hasn’t been influenced by bad habits of other countries. Many things here just make sense, for a reason. Keep it up.

[karlrb]

I've been in Japan over 10 years and love many things about it, from cleanliness to the always courteous nature of everyone.

[raynicky]

I watched Sunny-san's video for the first time. As a Japanese person, I realized through the video that the everyday life in Japan, which I take for granted, is not so ordinary to us. The editing is also very meticulous and easy to watch! I subscribed to your channel! Thank you for the wonderful video! :)

[abn]

日本人も気づかない部分を沢山知れました！素晴らしい
動画をありがとうございます！

[onomeister]

RE: the open gutters are from pre-industrial era. They only started covering the gutters starting around the 1980s-1990s. But some areas, the municipalities haven't bothered.

The only times that people in Japan are allowed to be loud: Outdoor parties at a park/recreation area (but not at home/balcony as it's too close to neighbors); outdoor Hanami parties, all karaoke gatherings, large nomikai drinking parties held in banquet halls/hotels, cheap izakaya halls (but some quieter ones will shush you if you are too loud), sports events/music concerts.

[amadablam]

This is the first time I watched your channel. It has nothing to do with the content, but since I am learning English, I really like that you have subtitles in English and Japanese translation. I especially liked it because I can learn casual expressions and natural English phrases in daily life. I look forward to more videos from you in the future.

[sarpul-hv]

例えば「青春」や「青二才」など‥




青色信号機の謎は諸説ありますが
新聞記事によって日本中に広がった可能性は大いにあります😊

[Couldbeanything]

Thank you, my wife and I are going to holiday in Japan next year. We are enjoying your thoughts and insights into Japan.

[takashinishida]

The word 緑(みどり、midori) was used for meaning something new and young in old days in Japan. We still continue to use the word MIDORI(緑) meaning young or new in some cases. For example, 緑児(みどりご、midorigo ) meaning newly born baby. 緑の黒髪(みどりのくろかみ、midori no kurokami) meaning young woman's black hair.
But 青(あお、ao) meant green at that time, like 青葉(あおば、aoba ) that we still use today meaning geen leaves. Maybe, the meaning of midori みどりchanged to mean the color of newly developed leaves.

[Hendlefe]

Excellent job with the editing of this video!

[CullenTravels]

Thanks for fueling my desire to see the world and create unforgettable memories! 🌟✈

[chigitakazuhiro]

The place you can go and drink and be loud is Karaoke room. You can order beer and dinner,
and you can hang around and sing loud songs and party all night long.
The use of the word "blue" as the green light for traffic, the term came from news paper.

[brianchar-bow]

Even as time goes by and the surface of a town changes, nothing changes in the underlying foundation of the unique Japanese culture.
The common root of the creation of originality in Japanese culture is the uniqueness of its geopolitical location and the influence of its natural environment.
Even if they import culture and knowledge from abroad, they are not dominated by it, and after a certain period of time, they select the content, integrate it with their own culture, improve it, and eventually create a new style because of the influence of their unique natural environment.

Japan's original country name "NIPPON”means "the land under the sun", but another traditional country name is "YAMATO, （WA）”, meaning “Peacefull Harmony among People and Nature”.　So Japan's name means “the Land under the Sun” and” the Land of "Great Harmony of People and Nature, ”
The history of Japan is very old, about 2, 000 years since the Emperor's reign, but humans began to live in villages and communities in this island nation about 14, 000 years ago, during “the JOMON pottery” culture.　(That's 30, 000 years ago, if you count the Neolithic period.)

Surrounded on all sides by the sea and geographically isolated from the Eurasian continent in the Pacific Ocean, this island nation has a warm and humid climate, and because it is a volcanic island, mountains occupy about 80% of its land, it is rich in underground clear water resources through its natural filtration system, and is blessed with diverse vegetation and fishery resources.
For this reason, people have lived here for tens of thousands of years, enjoying the abundant nature and living in peace with nature.
Since ancient times, the people of this land have respected human harmony and have lived in peace by working together as a group.

However, while the natural environment of this island nation is rich to live, it is also harsh to live and has both light and dark sides.
They have shared and enjoyed the blessings of nature by pooling their wisdom and collectively overcoming numerous severe and harsh natural disasters, such as frequent volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunami, summer typhoons, and heavy snowfall in winter.
This is because this island nation has a harsh natural environment that cannot be overcome by a single person.
Individuals are too weak to face the fury of nature when natural disasters suddenly strike the wealth they have built up and can destroy their cities overnight.

That is why Japanese people believed that they should suppress their egos, avoid conflict among humans, cooperate with each other to create a livable environment and maintain public cleanliness, and join forces to prevent disasters before they occur and to restore the environment immediately after they have occurred.

They believed that this is the most wise, efficient, and rational way to maintain peace and freedom in each other's lives, this would bring about better results rather than to create more chaos and conflict by insisting on each other's selfishness.
because of the environment in which disasters frequently occur that cannot be resolved by individual power alone. And this thinkings have given rise to Japan's unique teachings, culture, and behavior.

For example, it is fundamentally connected to the Japanese mindset of "Behaving in a way that does not bother others in public places, " "Helping each other if someone is in trouble, " and "Not doing bad things even if no one is watching."
And one of the teachings of the ancient Shinto religion, "Purify yourself (kiyome) by getting rid of Defilement (kegare), " has been taken over today as a basic manner to "Not pollute even in public places, " to “Always keep the environment and yourself clean”, and to make everyone, regardless of status, gender, or age. feel comfortable equally.

The warm and humid island climate is a paradise for humans and animals, and it is also a paradise for bacteria and microorganisms to thrive. If they are not careful in maintaining cleanliness in their daily lives, bacteria can easily multiply and food can spoil.
It is obvious why the ancient Japanese Shinto religion taught the importance of "maintaining a clean environment on a daily basis.” They taught cleanliness strictly because they knew, even before the development of science, that laziness and filthiness could lead to invisible bacterial plagues that could kill or destroy a race of people.
This is the ancient wisdom to survive in the dangerous natural environment unique to this island nation.
Over the years, this wisdom has been formed into a unique Japanese behavior and culture that is different from that of other countries.

The ancient name of Japan, "YAMATO" or "WA" (peaceful harmony between people and nature), represents the wishes and reality of the people who have been trying to survive in the rich and at the same time harsh natural environment unique to island countries, which is different from the dry and stable land of the Eurasian continent.
And it is in this ancient Japanese country name "WA, YAMATO" that the essence of Japanese culture, the origin and secret of its unique culture, which is very different from the cultures of other Asian countries on the continent, is hidden.



As an aside, why do you think horror movies like Godzilla, which suddenly appears and destroys urban areas, originated in Japan and not in other countries? Godzilla is depicted in the form of a monster, but it is clearly the embodiment and metaphor for volcanic explosions, large earthquakes, tsunamis, and typhoons that suddenly destroy people's lives without warning.
Nature provides abundant blessings to human life, but one day it suddenly changes and becomes a destroyer, destroying and robbing people of their wealth. This latent fear of nature is expressed in the form of Godzilla.

[calvin]

Definitely refreshing to see the same things I thought and a good reminder of why I moved here. Definitely have normalized a lot of things, but every time I visit the US again I'm reminded of the contrast. Besides having to think about carrying garbage around, I don't get things to go as much since the trains and life is so predictable I don't feel rushed to eat/drink on the go.

I moved from California so weather was extreme at first, 2 years in though definitely more used to it. Somehow not sweating as much on the train in the winter even when wearing heat-tech. Summers are brutal! Get a UV blocking umbrella, 塩分チャージ, and Uniqlo dry-fit / airism clothes. My American clothes feel like a wet towel, but the dry-fit stuff now feels normal in the humidity.

[nexrei]

I think Karaoke is where people sing out loud to relieve themselves from staying quiet in their daily lives.

[AmbientWalking]

Thanks for sharing! Really had fun learning something about Japan from you!