多文化主義 (最終)

The Senshu program has been over for almost a week now but I am still in Japan. I’ve experienced many hardships during the program but ultimately, it was a very enjoyable experience. I was able to make a lot of Japanese friends and enjoy what this amazing country has to offer. I am currently staying up near Sendai for a week and will return to Tokyo to explore some more with my friends. I intend on travelling to Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya and Nara before I fly to Hong Kong in July. Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya and Nara have amazing historical sites and I would love to see them against as it has been 10 years since I’ve been there. I am excited to see all the castles, shrines, bamboo forests and be able to pet deer in Nara. I hope I don’t get bitten or chased down by one.

My research has been a little on the stagnant side. I realize there are a lot of foreigners in Japan but from what I can hear as I walk past them on the street, they are fluent in Japanese unless they are tourists. I also noticed that it is pretty 50/50 when it comes to restaurants having English on their menu. Even in places like Shinjuku, there are some restaurants that don’t have English on their menu. Often times, you can also see the dissatisfaction on the servers face when they realize you aren’t Japanese. Whether that is because they are uncomfortable communicating in English with us or just a general dislike over foreigners, I do not know. I do have to say that behaviour is not shared at every restaurant I’ve walked in.

I have also noticed during my stay in Tokyo is that even American food chains cater to the Japanese taste rather than maintaining an American view. Like McDonalds for instance, sells Japanese styled burgers rather than your traditional American burgers like the Quarter Pounder. It is a smart marketing choice but also shows how Japanese are only interested in experiencing small part of different cultures rather than the whole thing. Even at Italian pasta place in Shinjuku, they mostly sold Italian-Japanese fusion udon dishes rather than just a regular pasta. Although I have yet to go to Yokohama to experience the Chinatown there, many of my Chinese friends have told me the food there aren’t Chinese food. The food is very Japanese styled and only applies a small amount of Chinese technique.

My overall experience here as a foreigner in Japan was good. I did find myself struggle a bit in Japan than I did in Korea even though I know more Japanese than I do Korean. Japanese people are more interested in experiencing a different culture in a different country than in Japan itself. Although they are to learn English since young, it still seems to be a big struggle when it comes to speaking and listening. They would much rather learn Chinese than English.

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