The Everything Japan Thread

Sapporo beer was always my favourite Japanese beer.

 

Sushi
Instant noodles
Noodle broth

Battle Royale
The Seven Samurai
Studio Ghibli

Ghost of Tsushima
Sleeping Dogs
Final Fantasy

Yamaha musical instruments

 

The darker side of Japan

Message to foreigners at Japanese convenience store sparks controversy online

By Oona McGee, SoraNews24




TOKYO
Japanese convenience stores are known for being wonderful havens, where you can get everything from cat breads to pancake steamed buns at any time of the day or night.

With such glowing reputations attached to them, it came as a bit of a shock to find one convenience store that wasn’t so amiable to its customers.

Twitter user @CHANGHAENG was visiting the convenience store, a branch of Lawson located in Osaka, when they came across a sign posted on the steamed bun display case at the counter.

The sign (above), despite being written entirely in Japanese, is addressed to foreigners, and reads:

“To foreign customers,

Kore is prohibited. Say nikuman kudasai."

To explain, kore means “this” and nikuman kudasai means “Can I have a steamed bun please”.

Reading between the lines, it appears that staff had had enough of “foreign customers” saying kore, and presumably pointing to the display case while doing so, as indicated by the illustration of a pointing finger (assuming that’s an index finger and not a middle finger). The tone of the message is remarkably curt, with the absence of “please” making it read as a command rather than a request, and far removed from the usual level of politeness expected in a customer service environment in Japan.

There are a lot of things wrong with a sign like this, and commenters online pointed them out, saying:

“I don’t think the word ‘foreigner’ should be used here.”

“If it’s a message for foreigners, shouldn’t it be written in English?”

“Does that mean Japanese people can say kore?”

“Well, they shouldn’t give their steamed buns such long names like ‘pizza bun with melty cheese and tomato.’”

“They should give the buns numbers instead [given there are so many].”

“It’s hard for staff to see which one people are pointing at from the other side of the counter.”

While it might be true that pointing at a small display case can make things difficult for staff to work out which item is being requested, it’s also true that convenience stores pack a wide variety of different steamed buns into those display cases, so simply saying nikuman kudasai isn’t necessarily going to solve the problem.

Of course, pointing the finger at “foreigners” and prohibiting them from saying kore when ordering is also problematic, given that a number of Japanese people themselves said they might use the point-and-request system. In any case, a sign written entirely in Japanese isn’t the best way to get your message across to people who might not read the language, so perhaps it’s time for convenience store chains to think about implementing a numbering system for the hot items sold in display cases.

As for the sign itself, it was taken down after people who’d seen it online contacted Lawson headquarters to lodge their complaints. Lawson said staff told them the sign was put up after a number of customers ended up receiving the wrong bun. The company has since apologized for the sign and its wording, saying they aim to be a store where all customers can shop comfortably.

 

Shot I took of Mt Fuji while on my way to Mt Myoko

 

That's a cracker!

I've been to Myoko Kogen..have no idea if that's anywhere near lol

 

yea same place. The big volcano mountain which I went to for snowboarding specifically.

 

Beautiful area

 

My Aussie mate ran this place. I stayed in it before it opened in 2014

 

Goldfish between the tracks at Myoko Kogen station

 

Stayed in Canadian lodge Taguchi Myoko an old man and wife. Great hosts

 

Snow monkey at hot spring

Yamanochi in Shimotaki district Nagano

 

Japanese joinery! how to build a house without any nails .. some absolultey mind blowing joints and woodworking skills.

 

Not forgetting of course the magnificent Godzilla!

 

Their attitude towards ‘gaijin’ and immigration is going to bite them in the * eventually. Rapidly aging population and not enough people to fill the workforce.

I admire that they’ve retained so much of their culture in an age where western brands and culture are so widespread, but there needs to be a change of attitudes and a bit of a balance struck, or Japan is in big trouble. At the moment they’re far too insular to the point where it borders on the racist.

 

I went in October. Best time of the year.

 

Oh, I didn't know this thread!.

はじめまして、こんにちは。わたしは、にほんじんです！


Random Japanese songs I was listening last night.

Songs of a Japanese singer songwriter milet



Ado's Ussewa (my Karaoke song)



Suddenly, Youtube recommended me this video. The girl is singing anime songs. I teach foreigners Japanese language too. Then, I noticed a lot of them got interested in Japan because of Japanese animes. So, whenever I go to Karaoke with them, they sing a lot of anime songs.



A music festival I went to last summer

 

That's typhoon season! I remember waiting to fly out of Tokyo and the third massive typhoon/hurricane was bearing in..I was cakking my pants! April is also a great time, warm and fresh and no typhoons!

 

Lol

 

You can also put music into this thread!
https://www.talkceltic.net/forums/threads/tc-jukebox-what-are-you-listening-to-now.31277/page-1676

I prefer this Japanese band - a bit more rockier!!

 

'I teach foreigners Japanese language'

ご注意する
The word foreigner in English can be a bit offensive. It can have a negative feeling. I know in Japan it is isn't offensive but it is better if you use another word like 'non-Japanese' or saying something like: I teach Japanese to students is better.
どういたしまして！