Gaijin

The word “gaijin” means foreigner in Japanese. Over the years, gaijins in Japan have obtained a certain stereotype and/or notoriety. As with most countries or places, outsiders can be generalized into separate categories. Since I am not Japanese, I can only assume how Japanese view foreigners. This is why I will mention three things I have noticed from being a foreigner in Japan from my perspective. I am not attempting to explain any possible point of view of how Japanese view foreigners in Japan but only how I have come to see them (and myself) as I have lived here for about a year and a half.

The other day while on the train, a group of about 10 Caucasians boarded the train.  They spoke English and Italian.  As I stood there, the group spoke loudly and took up a lot of space on the train.  Where these 10 people were standing, I bet about 15 Japanese could stand.  As I observed the group, I realized how much goofier the public demeanor of Westerners is when compared to most Japanese.  I found myself slightly annoyed that my normally quiet train ride was affected by this group unaware how their presence changed the atmosphere on the train.  Even though I am a foreigner, I realized how strange other foreigners look and how different they act in comparison to the Japanese norm of behavior.

If you are a foreigner in Japan, you must speak English.  I can’t number the amount of times when people have spoken to me hoping to practice their English.  Yet, I do the same thing.  When I see a non-Japanese person, I want to speak English to them.  I just assume since they look like me that we should have the same language.  Obviously, this not the case as I have meet Caucasians from all over the world in Japan.  I find it interesting though that while living in Japan, I have sometimes began to assume that the  world is divided into two worlds: Japanese-speaking and English-speaking.  I probably do this since my world is either spoken in Japanese and English.

Lastly, gaijins at times believe that they have some type of special power in Japan.  This power being defined as “I don’t have to follow the rules because I am special.”  Japanese are extremely polite to Westerners so much to the extent that foreigners often try to take advantage of their politeness and/or believe that they are a special exception.  I fell victim to this the other day when I accidentally boarded the wrong train.  As a result, I was going to have to pay extra money.  When the train people came to talk to me, I pretended to not understand what they were talking to me about hoping that I could avoid the extra fee.   Just when I thought they were going to leave me alone, the Japanese man sitting next to me said in perfect English, “You have to pay an extra fee for being on this type of train.”  I smiled as if to thank him for his translation and paid the fee.

So, being a gaijin in such an ethnically homogeneous society has been an eye-opening experience.  I don’t look to be the exception anymore in Japan but try to conform to the culture as much as possible.  But, no matter how much foreigners learn Japanese or know its culture, they will forever be known as gaijins or outsiders.