Some Things I Found Very Curious, In Japan…

Visiting a country like Japan from a Western country was always going to be a culture shock of sorts. But some things I think deserve a mention as being very curious if not downright odd. In a nice way though. Here are some things that I thought were particularly interesting in Japan.

First of all I want to dispel a myth about Japan. One that I had long believed to be true. Many probably believe that Japan is an expensive place. It is not expensive. I am sure the cost of buying an apartment is quite high, what with land being at a premium and all that. But the general cost of living does not seem to be. Eating out was fairly cheap. Public transport was as fairly priced as anywhere I have been. Drinks (alcohol) are not too expensive. If you smoke, cigarettes are cheaper than anywhere in Europe I have been – including Spain. (More on this below.)

Hotel prices were as cheap or cheaper than Australia (my only guide this past few years). Yes, Australia is expensive, particularly Sydney (which is a f**king absolute rip off to be exact) but Japan is definitely not an expensive place to visit.

And on the subject of money, here is my first curious observation…

Cash Only! 

I am very pleased to shout about this: Cash is still king in Japan.

Oh yes; you see at least as many people paying with cash as you do using the plastic. And I love it! In fact I find it both sad and annoying that in places like Australia, people now use their cards (and even their mobile phones FFS!) far too much to make payments.

So what makes the Japanese favour good old fashioned cash? I believe it’s quite simple. They value their own currency. Forget exchange rates. They even keep and offer in change, the 1 Yen coins (1¥). One single Yen equates to half a penny (UK) or 1 Australian cent. Actually they are plastic tokens rather than copper or other metal coins.

Quite a few countries have dropped the small change coins (1 & 2) and use a system of rounding small change up or down to the five cent mark. Australia, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, Ireland and Sweden for example. But, unlike these countries,  the Japanese seem intent on keeping their currency and using it in the manner it was intended.

All of the vending machines – and they are everywhere; see below – take coins and/or notes. Including ticket machines at stations.

In the western world where cash is seemingly being driven out of fashion, and there is talk of moving towards a digital currency system, Japan is defying the trend completely. And I have to say I agree fully and applaud them for doing what they are doing.

So why is cash very much King in Japan? Truth is I don’t know, but I do have a theory.

I believe it is largely because of their distrust of China. A long term enemy or competitor (at least). The Chinese system makes it difficult for certain individuals to manage if their digital currency is (effectively) switched off. And the Chinese government can do just that. In fact this is the main argument (in the West) against moving to a centrally driven digital currency. It gives governments or even unelected bodies the chance to totally control your money and hence your life. Well that’s the case against a centralised digital currency – and I for one agree.

Vending Machines – Everywhere!

This one almost ties in with the use of cash. It seems that everywhere you look in the city streets you see vending machines. All kinds selling all sorts. Not only food and drink. In some places, whole blocks are lined with several layers of small machines selling cheap plastic (supposedly collectable?) toys. Clearly aimed at kids who are saving up their coins. As stated above, every Yen counts!

In busy commercial districts these little white machines sell all kind of crappy little (usually) plastic collectibles. The range is incredible. Some streets are literally lined with these things. But never stacked more than 3 high. The kids have to be able to reach their favourite collectibles, right? Plus of course you can buy all kinds of drinks, food and cigarettes (see below) from vending machines in Japan.

While vending machines still exist elsewhere in the world, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find them accepting coins.

Smoking – Bucking The Trend

While on the subject of vending machines… For less than 500 yen (¥) you can buy a pack of cigarettes from vending machines. In the street !! (Imagine how long those machines would last in Europe etc.) That equates to $5 (Australia), about £2.60 or just over €3. That’s cheap! A fair bit less for the cheapest brands as well. Zoom in on the prices below.

They used to have cigarette machines on walls outside cinemas and such like in the UK when I was very young. Can anyone remember when they stopped doing that? Please let us know with a comment.

Maybe that’s why smoking is still fairly common in Japan. It is not allowed in most areas but they do have smoke rooms in many indoor places. They even have them on the high speed “bullet” trains. And when you pass a smoking area in a city it is usually crowded. No doubt the very cheap price of smokes is the main reason that Japan seems to be bucking the trend for reducing the number of smokers? Japan is one of the world’s largest tobacco markets.

Trains

This may seem and odd subject to add to a discussion about curious things in Japan. Well, I suppose it is more of a compliment really.

The trains are spotlessly clean when you get on them. Then when you arrive and everyone disembarks they still look completely clean! It’s incredible. That says a lot about the way people in Japan behave of course and generally respect their locale.

How do they run such an amazing and extensive high speed railway network?

It all began a surprisingly long time ago. Japan had its first high speed trains way back in 1964 (the year I was born). Around that time the UK was going through what can only be described as one of the most reckless and savage demolitions of infrastructure in history!!
(I intend to write a bit more about trains in Japan, as we visited the Railway Museum in Kyoto. So please look out for that one in the near future.)

For reference the TGV system in France (Europe’s first) started in 1981 (17 years behind Japan) and Spain’s AVE network of high speed trains first operated in 1992. China only jumped on the high speed train bandwagon as recently as 2008 – a full 44 years after Japan. So running such a network is nothing new to the Japanese.

More “curious Japan” to come in Part 2…

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