[Paul11]

Ok, except the first couple posts, I didn't read the whole thread. But I have experienced all those things and so have the few other foreigners I knew in Japan. People just try to be considerate. I never got any of that stuff from people who met me more that a couple times.
I Japan, especialy in the country side, people can't imagine Japanese coming from a white face or the person practicing Japanese customs. Sometimes, people would e so polite I felt trapped into social situations. Most of this stuff came from people who never met a foreigner before or from "gai-jin" wh***s who just wanted to know a foreigner.