掲示板 Forums - Is this true?! 😱

The Japanese government/media has the habit of blaming a lot of problems on tourists/foreigners and this often gets blown out of proportion. You'll be fine.

There's some genuine discrimination against tourists/foreigners, but as far as I know it's not super common and if you encounter any you can usually work around it.

For example a restaurant or bar might turn you away because you're not Japanese, but you can just go to a different place.

For the record the main actual issue is concentrated Overtourism.

You don't really need to avoid popular spots, sure they get crowded, but that's just overtourism, not really something targeted at foreigners. If you don't do well with crowds you can try to go during off-season, off-hours and/or pick less popular destinations.

As for ぶつかり, it's been a problem for a long time (as far as I'm aware). It's just getting some media traction as of late.

I think it's more of a symptom of a society plagued by a toxic work culture and no real avenue for people to express their frustration.

From what I've heard it's mostly a problem in big cities, and mostly affects young women. I don't think it targets foreigners either. If you're still worried, just don't walk with your phone out and pay attention.

These things happen in many countries. We have a similar problem with groups of young teens causing trouble, but I've never ran into them myself.

The chance of you getting attacked, mugged or running into trouble is actually quite low.

I haven't personally been to Japan, but know a few people who have. None of them had any problems.

Anyway, if you doomscroll too much, you can run into some conformation bias and fake news issues.

huh, it doesn't matter now..my introvert mind and body WILL BE AT FULL POWER!! MAUWAHAH (jkk )
But, if I am learning japanese, and it is said that japanese people avoid foreigners then what is the use of me learning when it will not be applied in real life. How will I communicate then?

You don't really need to avoid popular spots, sure they get crowded, but that's just overtourism, not really so....nd fake news issues.

Not that I doomscroll..but am addicted to YouTube shorts...also what is in my mind is that why are there such high rents, people living in cafes(esp youths ). Why is the youth so affected there?

ギョルギ九十三 は 06月26日, 20:26に

You don't really need to avoid popular spots, sure they get crowded, but that's just overtourism, not really so....nd fake news issues.

と言いました。

Not that I doomscroll..but am addicted to YouTube shorts...also what is in my mind is that why are there such high rents, people living in cafes(esp youths ). Why is the youth so affected there?

I've heard that young people are in the situation they are in Japan because the government favors older people, as most of Japanese people I'm pretty sure are over 60.

Also, about the high rents, a lot of that I'm pretty sure applies only to the big cities, like Tokyo, though I've heard there are actually some affordable places in Osaka. That's one that's just a bit harder to find out without going to Japan, I guess.

huh, it doesn't matter now..my introvert mind and body WILL BE AT FULL POWER!! MAUWAHAH (jkk )
But, if I am learning japanese, and it is said that japanese people avoid foreigners then what is the use of me learning when it will not be applied in real life. How will I communicate then?

The whole "Japanese avoiding foreigners" yet again is what I think is more of a half-truth. YouTube videos definitely try to promote this kind of stuff, so that's why I just look at Japanese sources now. But first of all, in stores or restaurants you're going to definitely communicate, so you'll be able to use your Japanese there. I've also heard that people talking on trains or just suddenly introducing themselves to strangers is more uncommon in Japan, so I think this is where part of the idea that Japanese avoid foreigners comes from. I think Japanese people interact more with classmates or co-workers, not to mention online friends, than just strangers in general. It definitely makes it harder for foreigners, but definitely not impossible to interact.

Of course, as someone who's just been researching living in Japan for quite a while now this information is primarily from the Internet, but I've sourced what I can from Japanese sources. Hopefully you can feel more informed, I'm willing to answer more questions if I can, though of course if someone here has been to Japan already they'd be more reliable than me.

No it is called western culture, I mean, the people who spread that rumor

Then if other media is spreading not true information, then where should you suggest so that I can be up to date? What's your most trusted ones?
How do you make friends in Japan? Im thinking of making one too . Here, I thought that japanese waiters/ waitresses/ managers would speak in English to foreigners and in result learning japanese would not be useful. But I think most people in Japan don't know English.

I don't have the energy to respond to everything in here, so as someone who's been here for almost 20 years:

1. The internet is both a great and a terrible source of information. Hate/rage/fear gets the most attention, so you see it the most. Rarely is that the case in reality. I say this time and time again - Japan is just about the same as every other developed nation - it's got some good stuff and some bad stuff, so anything you see that makes it out to be TERRIBLE is probably not true.

2. All countries have prejudice, and Japan is no exception. Without going into too much detail, though, a lot of the prejudices are ones you will not even see (they might be the way someone thinks about you, but they keep it inside), compared to acts of racism/etc.

3. If you have basic manners and are able to look around and absorb how natives are acting (this is good in any country, really), the chances of you running into issues are extremely low. Just look at how most Japanese people are acting on the trains, shrines, etc., and mimic that, not the other tourists.

4. Japan is SO safe. As an American, it's almost impossible to compare how safe it is here compared to back "home".