An Unsolicited Review of Japan: Everyone should Go. But also, Don’t.

Japan is a hell of a country. The food is amazing, and more varied than a critical foreigner might suspect. The people are typically polite and friendly, (particularly those in service industry jobs; worth noting because they do not have the incentive of tipping; there is virtually no tipping in Japan). Streets and parks and public spaces are clean, despite there being a counterintuitive dearth of public trash cans. Public bathrooms are generally more plentiful and are mostly in far better condition than in the US. Trains are reliable and fast. Even buses tend to be on time. I’d wanted to travel Japan since I was probably around four years old. Thirty years later, it fulfilled most of my expectations. It was an amazing trip, I’m so glad I went, and I want to go back.

Spending two weeks in Japan almost made me want to live there. Almost. I can’t imagine that I would actually move to Japan. The language would take a long time to learn, the cultural behaviors would take some practice to fully get used to, getting citizenship and a decent job there would be a real bitch, and I don’t think I could ever get fully accustomed to the crowding in most places. What spending two weeks in Japan really made me want to do was spend more time in Japan, as a tourist.

There is so much to do and see and experience in Japan. I doubt that any amount of time would be enough to enjoy it all. So much of it seems like it was designed for the benefit of tourists. Japan as a country seems almost made for tourists. Everywhere you go, there are stores selling everything from cliche and sometimes tacky souvenirs to artisan crafts and collectors items. Many stores in Japan advertise themselves as “tax free” shops, meaning that tourists, foreigners who have not been in the country for over six months, do not have to pay sales tax for items costing more than 5,500 yen (just under $40 usd). Given that the yen is also currently weak compared to the dollar, this means that products are generally considerably cheaper in Japan than if purchased in the US. English signs and menus abound. Many things, whether food or a product, have a photo and a clearly displayed price. A decent percentage of Japanese people, particularly those in service jobs dealing with foreigners, speak at least some English. And, when in doubt or difficulty, Google Translate has come a long way. Using it to translate text, voice, and photos, though imperfect, was a great help that made many things more accessible.

One problem with Japan, however, is that there are too many tourists. While my girlfriend and I were riding trains, visiting shrines, patronizing restaurants and stores, it didn’t escape my notice that there were a ton of Japanese people just trying to go about their days, get to school or work, pray, eat, whatever, and that we and other tourists were at times an impediment. For our part, we tried to stay out of people’s way, or behave in efficient, unobtrusive ways, but that’s not always possible. And, hey, not every foreigner was as sharp and conscientious as us. Japan could benefit from a sort of lottery system, a limited selection of entry dates. Given the order and efficiency with which many things are done in Japan, that’s not outside the realm of possibility. I just hope they don’t enforce that before the next time I’m able to visit.