日本人: japanese people.

august 29

one of the biggest complaints of JETs at all my orientations is that japanese people are gossips. that you will have no privacy as a foreigner in japan. that you can't go anywhere without being stared at. and your entire school will know ever ounce of your business. so much of this has to do with the fact the gaijin (foreigners) cannot integrate into society. the many government restrictions mean that not only is society specifically telling the people of japan to not accept outsiders, it also enforces the reality that any foreigner they will meet will not be able relate to japanese people on a local/communal level. in a more intimate space, at my school i had an epiphany: many of the teachers don't speak enough english to ask me questions, and i certainly don't speak enough japanese to answer anything beyond the 'yes, i'm from america' 'yes, i've been to japan before' 'no, i only speak a little japanese'. therefore any real details about me must be spread by rumor. for example almost every teacher now leans over to look at my foot and says 'cat! is that a tattoo? not sticker?'. of course there is a line that can be crossed. like today my embarrassment of getting on the wrong bus (shit) and having to call murata-sensei for a ride (double shit) doesn't need to be told to everyone at yasufuruichi high. i think that some 日本人 can respect this. of course, i think these are the teachers that either have been abroad for long periods of time or have empathy for making mistakes in a foreign country. we'll see how i feel after more personal things are exposed to the staff, for now i'll hold on to my understanding point of view and remember the excitement of meeting someone from a completely different culture.