While going through my travel notes for my ‘11 quirky things in Japan‘ article, I stumbled upon a word cloud which I had created in Japan at the end of my trip. The word cloud consisted of words that had come to mind, while I was reflecting on some typical daily life Japanese things I encountered and observed during my trip.
And guess what? I challenge you to try every single one of them (including complaining about the weather) ;). So here it is, my ‘Do As The Japanese Do’ For Travelers list.
11 x Do as the Japanese Do for Travelers!
1. Read manga or sleep on the subway
Find more Manga and geeky Japan things to do in this article!
2. Eat sushi and drink sake
3. Go to an onsen (Japanese bathing house)
4. Do karaoke and sing as beautiful as you can
5. Say ‘itadakimasu’ before dinner (meaning ‘I receive’)
6. In summer, carry a small towel around your neck
8. Take off your shoes when entering a room
7. Sleep on the floor
9. Say -chan (child) or -san (adult) at the end of a name
10. Buy a bento box
11. Complain about the weather and say with a sigh ‘atsui’ (meaning it’s hot) or say with a brrr ‘samui’ (meaning it’s cold)
Have you been to Japan? Do you recognize any of the above things?
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Peace and quiet during a temple stay in Takayama
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Either saw or did most of these daily in Japan. Be careful with 9 though, -chan is used for a child or in children’s language, you’d be safer with -san to avoid offending anyone as a foreigner.
Hi Toni! Thank you so much for this tip. I was with Japanese friends who said -chan at the end of the names, but maybe this was some sort of ‘name between friends’. I will change this in the article!
I did the whole onsen thing. Very liberating experience.
Yes, loved it too Melissa! Wish they had onsens in the Netherlands :)!
Interesting and funny list. I’m keeping it for my anticipated travel in Japan. I probably won’t miss the Bento and I’m curious about the manga too though, I think I should learn to read Hiragana first. But sleeping on a subway?! Let me think about it.. =)….Enjoyed this post!
Haha sleeping on the subway is the best Vanessa! Distance in Tokyo are quite big, so I promise you: it will happen to you too! So, don’t forget to set an alarm!
Very nice list! I managed to do about six of them during my first visit to Japan, but I’ll try the rest in October. But I don’t think I could sleep on the subway though…don’t know how they manage that!
Early hours and long distances I guess Karlijn ;)! Thanks for reading :)!