SHOCK! CULTURE!! The most embarrassing thing just happened! But you’re confused, lost, and wondering, “Why?” I mean, where you’re from, what you just did was perfectly normal. Why so much shock from your recent behavior??

I don't think a Tylonel can help here...

I don't think a Tylenol can help here...

Then again, oh no! What the heck are they doing? Surely they know that their behavior is unforgivable? So why is everyone else joining in?

This is what one may worry about before even stepping onto the airplane for the 10 hour journey. Yes, it will happen. You can’t avoid it. But how to deal? What to do to try to avoid it and make a bad situation better?

Go beyond the basics of putting a business card in your back pocket and understanding the “collective” society. What if you’re staying with a host family?

For those who are totally clueless, inside a person’s home is shoes off. In your own home too. If you’re going to place your feet on furniture, take off your slippers. When you go to the bathroom, switch to the toilet slippers and put your own slippers back on when you leave. If you enter a straw mat room (tatami) remove your slippers and go with socks. That is big rule number one. Feet touch the ground and are therefore dirty. The home is reserved to be a clean area.

If your host mom is doing house chores, always offer to help. You are temporarily are part of the family and you’re her guest child. Also, keep in mind that in Japan, inviting people to their own homes is very rare. Usually, they meet outside the house. So be very grateful every night you sleep in their bed and eat their food.

For those who have heard something like, “The Japanese don’t like spicy food,” you may be shocked to find that this isn’t always true. This is because the sentences that begin, “The Japanese do…” is NOT a rule to apply to every individual. Remember, they aren’t robots! As alien and far away the country may seem, they’re not too different from you. So relax, and be yourself.

Another common mistake is putting Japan on a pedestal. The whole country might as well be a god. “Oh the Japanese are the best race! They have the neatest technologies and anime! They have the best fashion! Everything so kawaii! The language sounds so nice! Their culture is so awesome!! Why does my culture suck so much?”etc etc etc… If that’s what your think, and just by those standards you want to someday live in Japan, don’t. You’re just an outsider looking in the window of a large mansion. (Maybe Bill Gates’s?) Yes, is it good to enjoy another culture. It opens up eyes and creates a more worldly mind. But arriving in Japan with that mindset will only disappoint and create culture complications. Be ready for extreme humiliation. Since most usually get the majority of their information from books, movies, anime etc, they’ll believe almost anything they read. It’s better to just drop the preassumptions and make the godly country more equal to your own; then when you arrive you won’t be blinded by love… so to speak.

Finally, stop worrying so much about your actions! If you’re constantly worrying, you’re ruining the experience. If culture shock does happen to you, just breathe. You’re given some leeway since you’re not Japanese and you’re not expected to know all the rules. If you make a mistake, a friend will correct you. If you seem something you’re not used to then ask a friend why, how, what. The biggest thing is to just be yourself. Make mistakes and learn!