Thoughts: Japan

Hihi, in Japan. The plane didn't crash or anything.

My observations on Japanese life:
- People are very polite here, for example:
It's very rude to blow your nose loudly in public
People just don't talk loudly on the train, or use mobile phones
People bow a lot to each other

- People are very law abiding, street crime is virtually non-existent. People don't even cross the road when the red man is showing.

- The roads are very people-friendly.

- It feels like a very Asian city to my mind, similar to India, in that:
The streets are very busy
There isn't a high priority on neatness, or symmetry, or balance - it's more a riot of colours and sounds (and smells!)

- People spend a lot of money here on fashion, and on consumer electronics. People's appearance matters a lot to them. Part of the reason I think that they spend so much on these things is that they HAVE a lot of money, and they can't invest it into their houses - people don't buy houses over here, because it costs so much - and they don't drive, in Tokyo at least, so they've got a limited amount of other things to spend it on.

- There are a LOT of gadgets. The house I'm staying in has an a toilet with a built in bidet and an automatic flush, all controlled by a little panel on the wall.

Those are my thoughts so far!

D