How the Japanese Islands are Viewed by the Japanese
14 August 2006
A friend of mine once told me that when he was in Japan, everyone was saying to him “So, when are you leaving?”
You may all be wondering where I got the name of my blog, Japanda. Well its from my friend. He said to me that if you’re from the West, you are viewed in at least a little way as somethng like a bear. Hence the name JaPANDA.
You are a curiosity, a pet. Obviously, Japan did a lot to immunize itself from the West from many centuries, granting only trading rights to the Dutch who had to live on a small island connected to the mainland and who werent allowed to trade on Japan’s mainland itself.
My question is – how do the Japanese regard their land. Something that shouldnt be trodden upon or occupied by gaijin? Does it have a special significance?
This question is increasingly important as Japan’s population ages and Japan is looking for youthful energetic and able workers to support its economy,sometimes from overseas. Further, as other nations struggle with issues of multiculturalism and terrorism, Japan seems to be one of the few countries in the world that has a relatively homogenous population.
Your thoughts?
The Japanese find their islands are their homes and they treasure them deeply. My wife is Japanese and her family made me feel warm and welcome when we were married in her hometown. There are some Japanese that may feel outsiders are just that, outsiders but my overall perception of the Japanese is that if you take an interest in their society and culture, they are delighted at that. It is an amazingly complex culture and civilization. Heck, there are some things I knew about my wife’s hometown that she didn’t even know and she grew up there. What that means is there is no one expert or view of Japan, there are many diverse ones. I remember waiting outside my wife’s parents apartment (for my wife), standing in the lobby. School was letting out and a little girl, must have been five or six, cute as a button, came running in the lobby. I know I’m a westerner and I did not want to frighten her, so I had my back to the door. She walked by me and out of curiousity, came back and stared at me. So I turned and we bowed to each other and I smiled. She smiled back. Well, she came back about five or six times to see if I was real but she was so adorable. The Japanese are really a friendly and warm people when you get to know them. Hospitable and kind.
Yes Mr T interesting comments and thank you for your contribution – welcome to Japanda!
I suppose that I am getting at a more basic issue, and that is historically how the Japanese have managed very successfully to keep foreigners out of Japan at least up until the Black Ships arrived. Even now my friends who travel there are asked frequently, “So when are you leaving?”. I think that it is interesting if the Japanese regard their islands as special. They are a very homogeneous people with a distinct culture and language that has developed largely because of the isolation from mainland asia.
Very interesting comments and keep them up.
GGDeluxe
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