A few days have passed since I’ve landed. I could go on for pages about all that has happened the moment my plane left US soil. That would take more time to read then you’re probably willing to spend. Instead, I will share some thoughts on the Japanese people I’ve met since landing.
Upon landing in Japan, I followed the directions that Temple had provided to get through customs and then to exchange my currency. I wasn’t sure what to think at first. The airport staff for the most part knew basic English but most of what was said to me was in Japanese. Everyone was friendly enough and that put me somewhat at ease. However, not being able to communicate properly is a scary situation. I didn’t know what was being said to me most of the time and I wasn’t sure if I was following directions correctly. When I went to exchange money, I handed over $500 but I didn’t exactly know if what I got back was accurate (it probably was but the problem is I had no ability at the time to make sure). People spoke slower and with more gestures for my sake and I appreciated that courtesy. It also made me feel a little stupid. Here there were people who knew some English and the most Japanese I knew was how to say hello, excuse me, and thank you.
When it came to buying the train ticket, I was a bit lost. I didn’t know if where I was buying the ticket was the correct place. The lady I was talking to seemed to think so. I ended up getting a ticket for a train that was leaving in an hour. Getting this far without any general mishap made me super happy and proud of myself. Right before I was about to walk to the elevator to get downstairs, the lady at the ticket counter came running after me. I was worried that I had messed up but it turns out that she wanted to let me know that she made a mistake and that there was an earlier train. If I wanted to, she could switch the tickets, free of charge. I was very surprised. She did not have to come after me and do this because it’s not like it would have made much of a difference if I had ended up waiting a bit more. She went out of her way for me and that moment was when I truly felt welcome into the country.
Maybe it was an action that was reflective of solely the lady and not Japan as a whole, but it showed me that there are people out there who are willing to go the extra mile to accommodate my ignorance. Not to say that I plan on taking advantage of that. I do plan on learning Japanese and work on improving my communication. However, coming to a new country where almost nothing is familiar, knowing that people are willing to work extra hard to make sure you are comfortable is a huge weight off the shoulders.
