Long - held stereotype aboutfood , samurai spirit , and an unyielding work ethic are all image that have contributed to theexoticizingof Japan in Western minds . During World War II , that went a step further , to outright demonisation , with demeaning caricatures and even density camp for Japanese Americans .
Today , we still tend to reckon of Japan astech - obsessed , crowded , and home base to some truly uncivilised game appearance . permit ’s break down some conjuring trick about this very influential , and often misunderstood , area , adapted from an installment ofMisconceptionson YouTube .
1. Misconception: Japanese people slurp their noodles loudly on purpose.
Misophoniais a condition in which citizenry can be annoyed by commonsounds — a screaming baby , for model , or someone smacking their food for thought , or perhaps a babe smacking their food while also screaming . If you have misophonia , you might have second intellection about a trip to Japan , where residentsreportedlyslurp aloud and purposefully during mealtimes to show their hold for deliciousnoodle bowls . Some citizenry conceive the body politic is practically a symphony of slurp and masticating , with eating place full of patron make as much randomness as potential as a way of compliment the chef .
In fact , the only matter rude about this scenario is assuming it exists at all . While it ’s true that Nipponese people do slurp without feeling ego - witting , it ’s not require or considered impolite to refrain from doing so . Slurping is done to facilitate draw in gentle wind to cool down red-hot noggin dishes and experience a retronasal smell , or sniffing through your mouth and gustatory perception buds . Slurping also maintain more of the broth on the noggin . It ’s more of a food scheme to maximize penchant than a cultural custom . You don’thaveto do it and no one will make you a dirty look for skim it . Some Japanese multitude even view slurping too aloud a shape ofnoodle torment , where foreigners can feel intimidated or even unwelcome by the volume of slurp .
2. Misconception: Japan is on the cutting edge of tech.
Since the days of theSony Walkmanin the 1980s , Americans have classify Japanese the great unwashed as being a acculturation obsessed with the late and great gadgets . Electronics selling help oneself reward that point . Sony televisions were dear ; most family gimmick , like VCRs and DVD players , had Nipponese origins . We bought Panasonic phones , listened to Duran Duran on Sanyo audio equipment , and sit in front of Hitachi big screen . It all give way to a common sense that a typical Japanese house must be living in the future , with automaton Butler andtoiletsthat sing to you .
While there are undoubtedly gadget - obsessed residents just like anywhere else , on the whole the Japan tech setting is n’t necessarily tripping years ahead of here or anywhere . And in sealed domain , it ’s really dawdle a bit behind . For example , flock of Nipponese business enterprise still usefax machines , where send off and receive message on paper is a common form of communicating .
What about streaming service ? In the States , about 85 percent of consumers have at leastonestreaming inspection and repair likeNetflix . In Japan , it ’s only about 46 per centum .
And , much like the U.S. preoccupation with collecting vintage records , Japan has a bustlingretromusic scene — but it ’s forcassette tape . In 2021 , Vice reported that Gen Z in Japan has become invested in the analog formatting , both for library titles and new medicine . Enthusiasts like making their own mix tape and takingcassetteplayers to the beach . tape recording manufacturing business Maxell still have 8 million of them per annum .
According to theBBC , matter like handwritten fax , tape , and out-of-date software are probable a Cartesian product of little independent byplay take in up most of the commercial-grade landscape painting in the state . Without major tummy mandating in high spirits - tech and extremist - efficient furtherance , many people in Japan are contented to keep things simple at work and at home .
One area where Japan may merit its future - forward report is in theirtoilets . The Toto brand is immensely pop there , with their privy greeting users and offer an regalia of conveniences , from bidet to medicine that helps mask the sounds of passage .
3. Misconception: Everyone eats sushi.
sensitive Pisces enfold in a gyre — what could go wrong ? If you bribe it at a gas station , a bunch of things . thing that may task your Toto toilet . But an even bigger lapse in opinion is in assuming Nipponese mass are obsessed with sushi , or even that it originated there .
While it ’s utterly honest that Japanpopularized sushi , arguably the firstmentionof it can be bump as far back as 1600 years ago in China and Thailand , where Pisces the Fishes was placed in Timothy Miles Bindon Rice for fermentation . Acid from the rice along with common salt helps to kill bacteria in the fish and allow for it to be hold on longer , a necessary life hack in a human race without refrigerators . Then , in the 1820s , a man named Hanaya Yohei market just - caught or marinated Pisces on top of script - crush rice , introducing a more modern concept of sushi to Japan and eventually the globe .
You might saysushi is to Japanwhat hamburgers are to America . But we do n’t consume hamburgers every day . In Japan , sushi is not an workaday part of dieting in the way , say , oatmeal or eggs might be for Americans . It ’s more of a special - occasion cup of tea , somethingorderedfor events like birthday . What ’s more , what we mean of sushi is n’t even what you ’d typically find in Japan . pop sushi looker in the U.S. , like spicy tuna , are n’t common there . The same give out for avocado pear or other supernumerary like mayo .
you’re able to also stop over practicing your chopstick plot . Most masses in Japan rust sushi with theirhands , not with any utensils , although it ’s certainly socially satisfactory to break out the stick .
So if they ’re not digging into the blue tuna , what is a coarse diet in Japan ? Like anywhere else , that can be a little difficult to generalise . you may get as much junk food as you like there . But when sticking to a respectable dieting , Nipponese peopletendto run through soybean Cartesian product , fresh fish and meat , Timothy Miles Bindon Rice , fruit , veggie , and yes , green tea .
One last misconception about sushi . It does n’t necessarily mean raw Pisces the Fishes . Sushitranslates to “ it is sour ” and consult to the taste . Of naturally , sushi can contain bare-ass Pisces the Fishes , acknowledge assashimi , but it does n’t have to . Nor does it have to contain Elmer Reizenstein .
4. Misconception: Japan is super expensive.
Listen to some of the hype surrounding Tokyo and you could quickly get the idea that it can be an impossibly expensive blank space to live , or even jaw — like New York City or Singapore .
trueness is , the cost of live in Japan is n’t as steep as you might think . While definitely more costly in term of food for thought , lodgment , and entertainment than some countries , Japan is actuallyless expensivethan Switzerland , England , or Australia . If you require to go the ultra - budget route , you canfinda hostel in Kyoto for as short as $ 25 a night . razz the power train or subway runs a few dollars per slip , and you’re able to get excellent meals to slurp for less than $ 15 . Local convenience shop box food is as picayune as $ 4 .
Obviously , you’re able to spend as much as you like on fine dining and five - star hotels , but it ’s not wholly necessary to explore the country .
What if you live there ? It ’s dead dead on target Tokyo is among the most expensive cities in the world , but that does n’t have in mind you do n’t have options . One blogger , Margherita Pitorri , recentlyestimateda studio apartment in Tokyo can be had for as little as $ 727 per month . That can go up or down depending on the area of the city you choose , but it ’s immensely cheaper than like rentals in major U.S. cities . Expenses like utilities and cyberspace are also reasonable .
Overall , Japan is certainly low-cost , particularly if you settle down in a more rural community and take advantage of the country ’s efficient public transportation system .
Like most anywhere , it depends on what luxury or amenities you want and which you may do without . It also depends on how close you desire to live to the major metropolitan areas , which brings us to our next misconception .
5. Misconception: Japan is crowded.
When the media overcompensate Japan , a wad of focus gets put on population concentration . Tokyo is the most populous metropolitan country with 37 million residents , and some story havehighlightedthe ultimate in tiny living — flat as small as 95 substantial feet that are scarce operative as anything but a place to catch some Z’s . That ’s on top of footage of bustling Tokyo intersections . If you go by that , living in Japan must feel like populate in an lift . But is Japan really that teeming with manhood ?
While it ’s rightful Tokyo is a hub of employment and gambling , most of Japan is n’t really like that . It would be like saying New York State is unacceptable to get around because Times Square is so packed . The true statement is , the desire to be near major metropolis like Tokyo , Osaka , or Nagoya has leave over one-half of Japan ’s municipalities in peril of being designated asunderpopulated . Millions of unoccupied homes sit down on the actual acres market place . According toCNN , the small small town of Nagoro has declined from 300 house physician just 30 , none under the age of 50 .
The problem of Tokyo being overpopulate and the rest of Japan being relatively thin has get so knockout that Japan ’s government activity is offer financial incentives for syndicate to move into more rural areas . Families will get about 1 million yen , or $ 7,700 , for each child if they move .
across the nation , Japan is also facing stagnant population growth . In 2017 , for exemplar , there were more deaths than parturition , with Tokyo residents producing a birth rate pace of 1.17 . It’spossiblethat by 2050 , Japan ’s entire universe could fall from 125 million today to under 100 million . Some experts believe career demands , like those seen in and around Tokyo , are partially to pick for fewer multitude want offspring . It ’s concern enough that in the town of Nagi , officialspaycouples about 100,000 hankering , or $ 900 , to have a youngster , with another $ 1300 for get a second child .
So could you feel cramped in Tokyo or another major city ? Sure . But on the whole , Japan is n’t overstuffed , and some places even desire to bribe residents into multiply .
6. Misconception: Masks are worn only to avoid getting sick.
While most of the world had a serious social blow in 2020 when mask became aregular part of the daytime , Japan did n’t want much adjustment . A strange and even controversial new protocol for Westerners , masking is Japan has been deemed socially satisfactory for decade . And while avoiding infectious diseases is part of the reason , there ’s a fleck more to it than that .
A number of Japanese masses don masks tominimize symptomsof hay fever and other allergic reaction to airborne thorn . In fact , use of the masks in the country can be traced back to the nineteenth century , when mineworker wear out them to reduce their pic to dust . After the 1918 grippe pandemic , they became an unremarkable supplement for many residents .
utilisation picked up substantially in 2011 , after theFukushima atomic reactor disaster , with some Japanese people believing the masks could prevent inhalation of radioactive debris [ PDF ] . All of this has contributed to a social acceptance of mask - wear .
It ’s not strictly about wellness . Sometimes a soul willput one onif they do n’t sense like bust make - up , or even to avoid social interactions . And fellow member of the notorious Bosozoku biker crew have been known to fag out them toavoidbeing name in caseful they sense like doing crime . So , yes , reducing chances of unfold or catching germ is a factor , but not the sole motivating . They might just be worried about allergies , or robbing an ATM .
7. Misconception: Japanese game shows are weird and dangerous.
Stunts in which contestants play human curling or get wrap up up like mummies are just a couple of the horrific challenges on Nipponese game shows . Some associate Japan ’s plot shows with straight-out sadism . But this is another instance of taking the most utmost sample distribution and applying it to an entire genre .
accord toThe Atlantic , Japanese televised game shows began in the 1950s , around the same time as their American counterpart , and were pretty benignant , with things like charades getting primetime treatment . Then , in the 1980s , a show calledTakeshi ’s Castlebegan airing . The show feature competitor trying to ramp a castle while make things tossed at them all while wearing unenviable costume . BecauseTakeshi ’s Castlewas syndicated around the humans , it became synonymous with the entire Japanese plot show culture . And in blondness , some manufacturer embraced the conceit , with a serial of shows feature plenty of titillating or humiliating components in the 1990s .
But these show were largely outliers , even in Japan . They often air by and by at dark and were far from appointment viewing . There was even a push for fresh broadcasting criterion to tone down their more sexual and extreme mental object , and by 2000 , many of these programs knuckle under to the public pressure to get off the atmosphere .
In the terminal , while a lot of seemingly absurd appearance have emerged from Japan , they suffer from a variety of excerption diagonal . recall of it this way . What if American networks determine to unload game shows likeFear Factorto other countries and nothing else ? NoSurvivororBachelor ? There ’s a good prospect outside viewers would think American audience only wanted to watch contestants eat bull testicles and spiders , and we would feel a groovy national disgrace .
As forTakeshi ’s Castle , it actuallycame backin 2022 on Amazon Prime .
8. Misconception: Tattoos are banned or illegal.
Our last misconception does have a large element of truth to it . In Japan , it ’s common for public establishment like gyms , pools , and bath houses tobanpeople with visibletattoos . The reason is that consistency artwork has often been synonymous with orchestrate crime , or theyakuza . According to anthropologist Margo DeMello , in the 19th century , tattoos were really banned so only people on the margins of society were get them — like mobster . When the proscription was lifted in 1948 , tattooing “ was so far underground that most decent Nipponese citizen would not consider becoming tattooed . ” Inonsen , or hot outpouring bathroom , proprietors who wanted to keepyakuzafrom the premisesdeclareda blanket proscription on anyone with a tattoo . It was easier than trying to undivided outyakuza , which might bring about some unpleasant reprisal .
But this is something that ’s been deepen , and quickly . In late years , a develop number of young Japanese people have been choose for organic structure art as a means of self - expression . accord toThe New York Times , the number of citizens with tattoos has nearly double since 2014 to 1.4 million today — represent a significant increase in acceptance . In 2020 , Japan ’s Supreme Court ruled that anyone with proper training could perform tattoo body of work , instead of strictly aesculapian professionals , which means more tattoo parlors are open up . And more bathing tub home andonsenare admitting those with tattoos .
Even though there ’s still a stigma link up with tattoos , with some employers lower upon them , aficionados are demanding that Nipponese society learn to live with ink . Call it a misconception in progress .
