underage school kids don't have 10 dollars to pay for a pack of cigs.

10 dollars? A pack of cigs? Damn.

And then you can be arrested for contributing to the delinquency of a minor and be fined enough money to buy 50 console games, as well as spend a few days in jail, and get a few years of probation to boot.

Alright, expanding on the issue. I dont smoke cigarettes, I find them stinky and unsatisfying, but I do smoke cigars. If/when I go there, am I going to get any flack for it? I know some french people that smoke like fiends but when I lite up my Rocky Patel they get in my face about how bad it is. I love my hand rolled cigars and smoke at least 1 a week, I can go a long time without a good meal but the elegant aroma of a pefectly rolled bit of pure Hondurian tobacco leaf is a comfort well worth the price.

Smoking cigars is rare in Japan, so you will get some sideways looks. There are cigar bars in Tokyo, Kobe and Osaka, and I am sure other cities and there are high-end vendors, as well (Cubans!). Some international hotels have cigar bars (Think "Lost in Translation") as well.

Ok, now I'm excited. I managed to get my hands on one in the Caribbean and compared to that everything else is second rate (with the possible exception of the Rocky Patel Decade Torpedo).

Cigars in Tokyo - Japan | cigarjapan.com

The prices on the left are for Cubans.

I'm happy that they banned smoking out of restaurants and café's in Holland.
It used to spoil a lot of fun when i went out sins my body cant really handle smoke well.
I guess thats not the case in Japan?
And yeah you can spend your money way better on otter things then cigarettes.

It's moving that way in Japan, but they still have a long way to go.

Thanks for the link, the prices are a bit steep but hey, I can't complain. Its not like I can get them here anyway. But at those prices I can see why most Japanese dont indulge.

In reguards to banning smoking in restaurants, as a man who enjoys smoking in polite company I dread the day I will be forced to take up my hobby in overpriced Cigar Cafe's, but from an outside perspective I can understand why its happening. Despite the best attempts to control smoke with vents and filters our toxic smog will always find its way to the nonsmokers, ah well thats what balconies and storefronts are for :D .