You just have to be patient and open to it.

Posted on June 10, 2007 by sonny

Let’s face it, there are times when living in Japan can be pretty lonely for a foreigner. Japanese people are generally reserved around both GaijinJapanese word meaning "outsider" commonly used to describe foreigners. Considered somewhat impolite. and fellow Japanese, so don’t worry, you are not being singled out. But unless you have family here, are very wealthy, or are a super model in a club in RoppongiAn area of Tokyo very famous for its high concentration of nightlife and popularity among the foreign population. , there are going to be times when you may feel the need to check the mirror just to make sure you exist.

Again, don’t despair. When the time is right and when you least expect it, you will find yourself on the receiving end of a great deal of friendliness. You just have to be patient and open to it.

We all have our stories; here is my most recent one.

Last month while returning home to Japan from a four month stay in Thailand, I took a bus from Narita to Takasaki (in GunmaOne of Japan's 47 prefectures. It forms the Northwest corner of the Kanto area. Prefecture). To my surprise, a Japanese man who was deaf struck up a "conversation" with me. He first taught me how to adjust my seat so that I could be more comfortable. From there we started our “chat”. Although I know no sign language, we were able to communicate using hiraganaOne of the three types of characters used in written Japanese. It consists of 48 characters, each representing a syllable. by way of his paper and pen. We also gestured and smiled a lot.

He showed me how the basic Japanese alphabet was expressed in sign language and gave me some candy (I had some candy made in Thailand that I shared with him). I showed him a photograph of my family; he gave me a very poorly rendered sketch of himself that someone made in Tokyo. Apparently he had been doing some volunteer work there and was given this drawing in return. I gave him loose change from Taiwan and Thailand I had in my pocket - he gave me 1000 Yen, 500 Yen for each child. Refusing this gift was out of the question, he insisted I keep it. I also gave him my E-mail address, but could not make him understand what it was used for. He thanked me anyway and placed it carefully in his pocket. He exited the bus before me and it is doubtful that I will have the chance to interact with him again. Over the course of 45 minutes or so he gave me much to enjoy and think about. I am happy I met this lonely, friendly man.