Why Japanese Don't Like Foreigners Living in Japan

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I’m a Japanese. Those manners and rules are stressful even for Japanese people. Sometimes, Japanese are feel weird about the rules and manners. I believe, I respect the rules but we don’t have to be too much strict. If someone had mistake, just forgive and explain for them. It is the most important thing. Big love for world.

Japan: telling someone to their face is rude. My culture: talking behind someone's back instead of saying it to their face is extremely rude.

When my wife and I moved into our new home in Gakugei we bought and made a gift package for everyone on our floor. The reaction we got was mostly the look of 'why are you knocking on my door' Only one family accepted the gift. It was definitely odd.....even in Canada people were more welcoming.

How interesting! Thank you for sharing these important customs. Learning the customs of a country is not only interesting, but definitely necessary so that we can show respect.for what the people value.

"Why japanese don't like foreigners" Everyone else: gets Logan Paul flashbacks

"Get a wedding present usually starting around 300$" Step 1: Don't make friends who are not married.

This is interesting. I can appreciate the culture based around respect & honor. It seems counter productive to not tell people if they're making impasses though. If I was doing something wrong, I would want my friends & neighbors to tell me I am. I think it's important that people do their best to fit in & show respect for the communities they're in & videos like this help give us windows into seeing how to do so. Thank you

I came back to Japan for 6-7 weeks after I traveled the US, lived in Australia, Canada, and Germany now. After 5 years, even though I left Japan like "Too many rules, conservative, I can't be myself" and thought "Never come back", now came back and I am just moved and surprised, how people are so friendly, kind and helpful and polite and everywhere is perfectly clean.(cleaner) I am glad that I see my country from a new perspective. But if you LIVE (not just travel) in this country as a person from a foreign countries, you will confront lots of things and will struggle, feel frustrated. Also if you don't speak good Japanese, not so many people are good at speaking English. So you will have a hard time. Good technology and good services, clean environment, people's politeness, good manners comes with the decipline, hardworking and many rules that they are taught to follow since their childhood. But again, if you don't grow up here, you will struggle with culture shock that I have been dealing with in foreign countries.

I am a Japanese high school girl. I am sorry for my poor English due to lack of study. It is true that such implicit rules exist, but we do not ask foreigners for them. Some of the rules introduced here are not so important because even Japanese people find it annoying. Japanese people are strict with Japanese people, but they are very tolerant when dealing with foreigners. You don't have to be so scared of the rules.

Now I understand why many Japanese migrate to Australia. I remember asking a Japanese friend why he moved because I had this idea that japan was this magical place of anime, good food, etc but then he always said "it's just easier " .

A Japanese colleague (who had lived abroad and had acquired the very un-Japanese habit of being candid if asked) told me that it wasn’t so much that the Japanese don’t like foreigners or think they’re rude and more that they find the presence of foreigners stressful because foreigners are so unpredictable (almost the definition of being Japanese is that other Japanese know how you are going to behave because you follow the same rules as they do). Why is that stressful? Because if you do something very strange and un-Japanese you will by definition humiliate yourself publicly (just about the worst thing imaginable for a Japanese) but because you are not Japanese you will not realise that you have humiliated yourself which will make the Japanese feel shame on your behalf and they will resent you for that. Worse, if you are with THEM when you do it, you will also humiliate them in front of other Japanese people so they will have to take the shame for you because you don’t realise what you have done. The key words are “shame”, “humiliation” and “in public” - those things spell loss of face and to avoid that, many Japanese will avoid the loss-of-face-risk that foreigners (by definition) represent. The same guy once told me, only half jokingly, “Japan isn’t another country, it’s another planet”.

Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience. I like how cultures think and behave differently and undestanding (not judging) is the best way to deal with it.

No.9 is actually rude in my country because gifting should be sincere and you aren't supposed to expect something in return.

Me : Broke gets invited to a wedding in Japan Me: nervous sweating

Absolutely love your videos. They are very well presented and give amazing insights into Japanese life and culture. Please keep making them. Regards Pana (from Australia.)

This is fascinating! The part about talking with your colleagues before taking time off from work should be common sense everywhere if you work as part of a team. At my former job here in Germany it was actually mandatory. Sure, you have a certain number of holiday/vacation days (pretty many here, actually) per year, but you have to plan them together with your team and be ready to compromise if need be, so that everyone gets their fair share of time off when they need it, and the work doesn't suffer. It's just common courtesy. Too many people ignore that unless the boss requires it, though. The office gift giving upon return from your holiday is a nice idea. I usually just sent thankyou emails, but my very closest colleagues sometimes got little souveniers. Sadly, what a lot of people do instead is brag excessively about where they went and how much fun they had. That can come across as obnoxious if your colleagues had to slave away to cover for you in your absence. The gift giving to neighbours when you move into a new place is a very nice idea. I can see where it might get complicated if you live in a big apartment complex, though. Do you give to just the neighbours across from and on either side of you? To everyone on your floor? About reciprocal gifts, is there a time limit, or can you wait till, say, Christmas or the person's birthday to give them their gift? When you receive a gift, is it polite to open the package right away, or should you wait till the guests are gone? Do you send thankyou cards? Have a wonderful day, and keep up the great work!

Paolo has a hotline for foreigners who run into problems in japan. he offers translation services too.

I think I've just offended every Japanese person with my very existence.

The one about taking holiday is probably the one I would have the most trouble with. Purely because of mindset. You plan your holiday and need that period off. Opposite, I'd have no issue covering someone elses work while they take a much deserved holiday and I certainly wouldn't expect something in return. It's both funny and so interesting to see this difference in culture and mindset. Great video!