Hi everyone, I'm a content writer for 九色视频 Magazine, and we're currently seeking testimonials for an upcoming article. If you are (or have ever been) an expat in a major Japanese city, what aspects of life there surprised you the most? Whether it’s the city's urban planning, traffic levels and parking spaces, public transport and use of technology, variety of cafés and restaurants, museums and art scene, green spaces/parks, how cosmopolitan (or not) the city felt, or anything else. Thank you in advance for sharing your experience with us, and we wish you a wonderful holiday season. - @Ameerah Arjanee
Ameerah, back in the day—some 30 years ago—there was this wildly popular Japanese TV show called Koko ga Hen da yo Nihonjin (ここが変だよ日本人), which basically gathered 100 foreigners and pitted them against Japanese guests in spirited debates about Japan’s quirks. Believe it or not, I used to be one of those foreigners! You can probably still find clips on YouTube if you search for it.
What fascinated me most was how one foreigner would find something utterly bizarre, while another wouldn’t bat an eye. It was a real-life sociology experiment playing out on TV! Of course, there were some universally strange things—like why Japanese people flush the toilet before using it (are they giving it a heads-up?), the whole hanko (seal) culture instead of signatures, or the obsession with wrapping things in layers of packaging as if they were delicate Fabergé eggs.
Back then, I found so many things strange, but guess what? Now they all feel completely normal to me. I mean, who doesn’t bow to their ATM after withdrawing money? Who doesn’t instinctively cover their mouth while laughing like a refined Edo-era noble? And let’s be honest—if you don’t feel slightly guilty jaywalking in Japan (even when there’s no car for miles), have you really lived here long enough?
But let’s not forget the good strange things. The unshakable dedication to punctuality, the unwavering honesty (lose your wallet here, and it’ll be returned with the cash still inside), and the almost sacred queuing culture. You could probably put a single vending machine in the middle of the desert, and if there were more than two people, they’d still form a perfectly orderly line.
And don’t even get me started on the trains. Imagine a packed subway so tight that you can’t even scratch your nose, yet… absolute silence. No one talking on the phone, no loud conversations—just a sea of neatly dressed commuters pretending they don’t exist. Meanwhile, in some other countries, public transport is practically a karaoke battle with bonus live wrestling matches.
Japanese people thrive in collective activities (dantai koudou), and oddly enough, once you adapt to their mannerisms, life actually becomes less stressful. Even driving here is a dream—no one honks, no one aggressively overtakes, and if a sign says “No Right Turn,” drivers will take a 5-minute detour rather than break the rule. Meanwhile, where I come from, that sign would be treated like a mere suggestion at best.
Looking back, I feel nostalgic about those debates on Koko ga Hen da yo Nihonjin. But if I were on the show today, I’d probably find myself defending all the things I once found strange. Japan has a way of rewiring you, and before you know it, you’re bowing to convenience store clerks, apologizing when someone else bumps into you, and—heaven forbid—eating a burger with chopsticks.?
