Foreigners Blending into Japan

Posted by Kyle Yates in Japan Related

I am a foreigner and I have to admit after living in Japan for over 10 years, I am sometimes surprised when I see another foreigner nearby. My surprise from seeing a foreigner is basically because there is one…other than myself. Japan is still in this day and age a pretty much a homogenous nation. 99.999999999999999999% of the people are Japanese, black or brown hair and brown eyes.

Many Japanese still have never laid eyes on a foreigner in person except for on TV or in history books. So when they see a foreigner for the first time in person, usually on a train or in the street while one is sightseeing Japan, they are often set back a bit in surprise; sometimes scared by them. Seriously, some people are really frightened by foreigners. But it’s not because they look scary. It’s because Japanese people are so shy and they don’t know what to expect from one. And because most Japanese don’t know English at all, they are especially nervous around foreigners because they are afraid that the foreigner might try and spark up a conversation with them. In order to avoid confrontation, most Japanese veer away and sit on the opposite side of the train or down the car away from the foreigner.

Whenever I see a foreigner, I just go about my business as usual and find any open seat on the train. If I happen to sit by one, I most likely say “Hello” or something just to be courteous, since I am also a gaijin. I think it is rude to sit beside another foreigner and not acknowledge their presence in homogenous Japan.

I have been in Japan for 10 years now. In that time, I have seen the country change quite a bit. Many more Japanese are starting to speak English, however, most don’t speak well enough to carry on a conversation with a 5-year-old English-speaking child. But that will change in time if Japanese continue with the current trend of learning English…and begin teaching their kids English at earlier ages that junior high school.

One day, hopefully within my lifetime, Japanese people won’t be surprised by seeing a foreigner in their presence, feel the need to point their finger at one and say, “Hey, look Mom, a gaijin.” Gaijin will be blend in with the rest of Japan.

Okay, maybe it would take a few hundred years, lots of hamburgers and milk and many hours of language exchange for blending to occur. But it’s a nice thought that at least people can strive for.