Japanese culture, their hospitality, their efficiency, their obsession for perfection, their mind-blowing courtesy and the way they expressed respect towards others and everything around them totally leave me in awe. Their practice of Omotenashi which is the mindset of politeness and hospitality, maintaining harmony, centering care rather than expectations, is simply their way of life.
Staff in shops greet you with irrasshaimase (welcome) . Bus drivers took time getting off their seats at final stations, stood up and bowed to every single passenger as they were getting off. Taxi drivers did the same, got out of their cars and bowed as a symbol of respect and gratitude.
On our epic snowboarding trip and exploring the metropolitan cities of Tokyo and Osaka, we experienced the true humankind of the amazing Japanese people, the kind of basic humanity and core values in life that is sadly long gone in rest of the world.
Arriving in Narita Airport was a good start. After the kids had their 11.30pm welcome to Japan ice-cream treat, we realised that we might miss the last express train into the city. We walked quickly to the train station and was directed by the train master to board the train without even getting the tickets! We just followed his directions without knowing which train we boarded and where it was heading for. LOL! We couldn’t stop laughing because we didn’t have a clue where to go! We figured out somehow on how to get to our hotel with the kind help of fellow travellers on the train. We paid for the tickets on our last stop, when we passed the ticket counter to exit. Epic arrival on day one in Japan!
We were very well taken care of by just any strangers even in the heart of Tokyo. Once it was raining and I was waiting to hail a taxi, a passer-by stopped to tell me that it wasn’t easy to get one on rainy days and suggested we walk to the other end of the road. He stood in the rain with me, pulled out his phone to show me on Google maps where to go. I held my tiny umbrella above him and he thanked me profusely even though I was the one who ought to thank him for his kind gesture! A kind soul in another situation walked with us for at least 300m in the rain when we were completely drenched just to show us where the taxi office is. Imagine experiencing these in a metropolitan city like Tokyo, so dense with over 37,000,000 population. By the way, Google maps worked wonders in Japan. It is our life saver!
In one incident when we took a taxi to Universal Studios in Osaka, the taxi driver realised that he drove to the wrong destination after 20 minutes travelling. He immediately stopped the car as soon as he noticed that, asked me to pay for the fare up to that time. I was so concerned when he stopped as I thought he was going to ask us to get off the taxi in the middle of a manufacturing area. He apologised numerous times and drove another 20 minutes towards and dropped us off at the main entrance of Universal studios without charging us. Where in the world can we find such honesty?
I shall never forget the incident when we nearly missed our flight because we arrived at the wrong airport in Osaka! The actual airport we were meant to depart from is 1 hour 15 minutes away on a taxi ride or 2.5 hours on a train! Without a shadow of a doubt, we opted for a taxi. The lady at the check-in desk abandoned her counter and ran in her 3 inch heels with us to help us hail a taxi. She managed to get us a taxi, explained to the taxi driver about our situation, bowed and waved until our taxi left. Bless her. I wrote to Japan Airline by the way to compliment her. We arrived at the correct airport just on time to get a celebratory Asahi. Thankfully we travelled with only cabin sized rucksacks. The beauty of travelling light. We wouldn’t have made it for the flight if we were to have check-in luggages.
I’m grateful for my well-travelled children despite these mishaps we went through. No one threw tantrums, no one whinged nor complained about these incidents. Everyone was calm, just picked-up their rucksacks when they needed to, ran if they have to and occasionally threw me a hug, with “That’s Okay Mummy.” Travelling has certainly helped developed the maturity in my children. They are adaptable to situations and remained calm even in stressful situations. At times, they made me laugh instead!
Once my son accidentally ordered a jumbo bowl of Ramen in a restaurant in a small village in Myoko. It was absolutely massive that it looked like a pot that feeds 4 people. My hungry teenager somehow finished the entire bowl with a little bit of help. He gave 2 thumbs up and said Oishii which means delicious in Japanese. The owner spotted that and everyone in the restaurant stood up and clapped their hands. What a beautiful moment! This very moment reminded me of gratitude, celebrating every little thing and even the smallest achievement in life. It was such a memorable moment that made my son smile even after weeks later. He said “Mummy, I love Japanese. They’re fun, polite, respectful and very caring.” Great point of view from my 14 year old. We’ve been to the restaurant 5 times in our 6 days staying in the village snowboarding, and on our last day, the 70 year-old owner surprisingly spoke to us in English. She said “Please come back next season” in the cutest Japanese accent. She must have learned that phrase to just speak to us. She walked us out of the restaurant and bowed until the hotel driver drove us off. I’m in awe just thinking about how much respect and gratitude expressed towards us.
There was another fun incident when we were in a bar in Osaka with our children one afternoon. My 10 year old son was playing a slot machine for fun. He suddenly hit the jackpot and won 2000 yen! Everyone in the bar surrounded him when they heard the ringing sound on the slot machine and clapped their hands. My son repeatedly bought a round of drinks for a few people in the bar and the locals were so impressed.
We hung out with the Hitaro, the bartender who tried so hard to have conversations with us through Google translator. So much effort by the locals that amazed us, just to communicate. Hitaro was so sweet. He gave my son a token from the slot machine as a souvenir. My son was really touched. He carries that token with him everywhere he goes until now.
Japan isn’t just a country so advanced when it comes to technology and public transportation. Its efficiency, accuracy and punctuality totally blew our mind. The politeness, discipline and compassion of its people really touched our hearts. All of these factors, coupled with the uniqueness of its culture and tradition made it stand out from any other countries around the world. And it is very, very beautiful.
We’ve had an absolutely amazing time. Japan, we will be back very soon!
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