Travelling with slob

[prekabreki]

Hi everybody, I'm completely new to these forums but I thought I'd just jump right in.

Well in six months time I'll be going to Japan, this is a life long dream come true for me (oh, but I'm so young), a childhood friend of mine suggested it out of the blue that we go. He was half-joking but I leapt at the chance to actually go.

My maternal grandfather was from Sapporo and he used to tell me stories to get me to go to sleep. So ever since I was a little boy I've been bombarded with tales of Japan, mythology, religion and good old-fashioned folk tales.
Whoa, I'm rambling here...anyways as I was saying

I'll be finally going over there and staying for three months (whoa!).
Iwasaki-ojiisan always stressed etiquette and proper respect, be it at the dinner table or just everyday mundane social gatherings.
(Oh man do I know better than to stick my chopsticks in the rice, *slap!*)

I'll be going to Japan with a friend who has been an Icelandic sailor almost all of his life. He's the kinda guy who would clean his toes with chopsticks and scream for a fork while he's at it. He's a nice guy, just a bit on the wild side.

So on to the actual question, will we be crucified for his insolence if we go out to eat and he continues his ways of burping whilst scratching and so on...

Prekabreki

[jasonbvr]

No one is going to crucify you, but you will get a lot of stares and probably find people to be a bit apprehensive about the two of you.

Let me give you a real example, I took some foreign friends to a darts bar one night and they were having a final round to their tournament. They shut the music off and everyone in the place was being quiet. I wasn't even sitting with my friends because I was trying to watch the game. My friends are your typical loud American types and were just talking the whole time. No one got mad or anything, in fact they were fairly well ignored, but I still felt embarrassed. Now if I go to a bar with these same friends and there is a group of extremely loud Japanese businessmen getting hammered sitting at the table next to us, no problem.

Point of the story is, Japanese are polite enough to tolerate your friend's ignorant behavior. The one who is likely to be embarassed or bothered by it is probably going to be you.

[MMM]

I know two guys in a very similar situation. One guy is Japanese and the other is American. The Japanese guy invited the American guy to travel and stay with him in Japan for summer break...about 3 months. The American guy had studied some Japanese, and was at least aware of some of the cultural basics.
I happened to be in Japan at the same time, and we had arranged to meet up a couple times (they were in Wakayama, and I was in Osaka, and they wanted to come to Osaka anyway. Anyway, before the trip I said "3 months is a damn long time to spend with ANYBODY. Are you sure this is a good idea?" They were sure...so I get a call in Osaka..."Can my friend stay with you a couple days?" (from the Japanese guy). By the end of the three months they were no longer friends, and I think it was about 2 years before they ever spoke to each other again.

I agree with Jason. The person who is going to be annoyed and embarrassed is you, and that gets old quick...so be careful.

[Powermad147]

Originally Posted by MMM

By the end of the three months they were no longer friends, and I think it was about 2 years before they ever spoke to each other again.
.

Ouch...2 years? Thats harsh. I can understand getting sick of each other, but two years is quite a bit of time to get over it. Anyhow, I would talk more, but unlike you guys, I get graded on what I do with my nights xD

[prekabreki]

Thanks for your replies guys, I thought as much.
I've actually created a powerpoint slideshow on Japanese table manners for him.

He responds well to visual stimulation Like a monkey really...

[zenit]

Originally Posted by prekabreki

Thanks for your replies guys, I thought as much.
I've actually created a powerpoint slideshow on Japanese table manners for him.

He responds well to visual stimulation Like a monkey really...

I hope he doesnt decide to learn about japan on the internet and finds this forum.. and then he would read some of this and would find this interesting story so similar to his... 1+1=... hehehe
Joking (unless he finds out.. in that case: told u so)

[prekabreki]

He's basically relying on me to know about eee-verything, and know the story about all he sees. I've been hitting the books pretty hard.
And I'm supposed to translate...!

He's paying!...for the flight, the food and everything.
So I really can't let him down...!

[Housetek]

I brought my friend who will remain nameless to japan with me for a month.

*yea mmm is right 3 months is WAAAY to long*

i ended up gettin into a fist fight with him during the stay =P

but were cool still

no ones gona crucify you like every one in the post above this said but its gona be really annoying after a while hanging around some one like that.

you really gotta pick who you travel with carefully.

i know some people wouldnt want to hang out with me cuz they knew every where i went he would be there also.

so it kinda F's things up when your trying to make friends and looking for people to hang out and to take you around.

they'll tolerate your friend but dont expect to many invites to go out and have a good time.

if hes gona be in another country you should tell him to be respectful of their customs.

i act very differently depending on what country im in..

just try to get him to act respectful

try to give him a lil talk b4 u go.

cuz if he starts up with that kinda attitude in the first month, the last 2 will be hell for you.

my other friend i brought to Tokyo for a month was great, he acted with respect and asked about etiquette and followed.

so every time i went to japan he was welcomed in my apartment for as long as he wanted.

I get a lot of emails when i was in japan from people asking me if they could hang me and have me show them around or if they can stay at my apartment for a few days while they visit Tokyo.

I stopped doin this due to a stalker... and also the fact that i dont live in japan any more.

but depending on how people act and their mentality, i either never want any thing to do with them again or i leave a open invitation to come stay at my apartment any time they want.



how he acts will greatly impact your experience in japan.

[Katura]

Normally, when I have a friend, and I really like them as a friend, there always over at my place ( my friends and siblings friends always want to chill at our place instead of theirs, nice atmosphore (sp?) I guess? :\ ), and usely, if they blend in with the crowed ( my family, meaning: their not loud, annoying, whiny or needy ) they can stay with us as long as they like, really.
In the summer, I've had friends stay over for like, three days at the most, and then, come back like, two days later

So, before you ever want to really hang out with your Best Friend for about, three months, its best to live with them every other weekend of so to make sure you 'really' want to do that

Or hang out as much as possible xD

So in short, live with them first


~~Katura

P.S. Normally I would know them for at LEAST a year for them to come over
that much anyway.

[prekabreki]

He's a childhood friend of mine, he's had well an unfortunate life I guess.
He looks at me like I know everything about everything and a guide to everything.
I can convince him to do just about anything
(no no, it's a good thing, not unhealthy at all)
So it's up to me what we do there, I agree three months is a long time but there are some personal reasons why it's either a week or three months...

Man I just don't know what to do!
I mean, when we get off that plane...take the rail down to Tokyo? Walk around for a bit?...Go into an izakaya and get some foodstuffs?...

I'm going to be there for three months! With heaps of cash! With a burning passion for all things Japanese that lie in my blood!

(Maybe I should start a new thread for this?... )

Well anyways...