Comments by "Jordan, inside-outsider in Japan" (@Jordan-inJapan) on "The Biggest LIE about Japan" video.

“The amount of foreigners I know who live in Tokyo and don’t have any Japanese friends is astonishing.” Maybe because they live in Tokyo?? 😆 There definitely is some variation around different areas of Japan in how much people actually ‘keep their thoughts to themselves’. And in my experience (20 years!) living in a rural community, people definitely will accept you as a full-fledged community member and even friend if you’re willing to play by the rules and put in the time. (Quite a LOT of time, I admit.) That said, this is excellent and surprisingly accurately cultural information from Chris. Nice work. 🍻
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Well, I’m admittedly not as entertaining as Chris, but I do make videos on a range of topics that you don’t see much in the ‘Japan vlogsphere’. Check some out if you’re interested. 🍻
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Interesting observation! One interesting thing about ‘social hierarchy’ here though is that it’s still very strong within organizations (ie schools or big companies) but mostly invisible in society-as-a-whole. I mean, you can be tempted to see Japan as a classless society when youre in public, or passing through as an outsider, since there are few observable signs of any social hierarchy. And interestingly, this is one of the reasons why Japanese people traditionally tend not to interact with people they don’t know in public…without a designed relationship, we don’t really know HOW to interact, how to refer to the other person, whether to use Keigo, etc. Probably another reason why Japanese people often come off as being ‘unfriendly’.
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@sarahwatts7152 interesting idea. Although I suspect the responses would be totally different in different areas of the country. People where I live (small-town, central Japan) tend to have a decent balance, and I often hear people say they feel sorry for Tokyoites.
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@browniebear9282 I recommend it too. That channel has great videos in general, offering an un-sensationalized and non-judgmental view of Japan.
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@xBINARYGODx Creepily vague? I meant like, join the neighborhood committees, fire bridge/garbage station upkeep when it’s your turn,, clean and weed the park with neighbors on the designated days etc. That stuff is a really a pain, but THATs how you become a real member of a Japanese community. (Outside of the big cities anyway.)
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@FlowerEmblem Absolutely true! I’ve recently been re-watching Star Trek (TNG, Voyager, etc) and man, the way a lot of those ‘aliens’ act/think seems so NorthAmerican to me…now that I’m not.
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@southcoastinventors6583 Agreed. Yeah, that’s a huge one. And given the amount of effort involved in mastering Japanese language (and culture), I guess it’s easier for foreign residents in Tokyo to just hang with other English speaking foreign residents. (OR find quirky culturally nonconforming Japanese friends… although most of them speak English too.) I’ve never had the option since I’ve always lived in real areas or small cities.
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@KyokujiFGC fair enough. It wasn’t my original plan either…but here I am. 😅
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@Karagoth444 Someone I would love to have a beer with. 🍻
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@southcoastinventors6583 cool, all the best!! 🍻
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