Gaijin in Disguise

One of the big questions before coming to Japan was the reactions I would receive being an Asian looking foreigner. I had definitely heard a ton of different stories, but I really didn't know what to expect until I actually got here. For starters, I definitely think my experience is a lot different than the other JETs in my area just by talking to them and hearing their stories. Everyone here thinks I'm Japanese when they first look at me. My supervisors asked me if my parents were Japanese when they first met me. When I go into a restaurant, the town hall, or the supermarket, I get absolutely 0 stares. I guess it IS a lot harder to tell the difference between Asians, then most people think. If Japanese people can't even tell whether or not I'm one of them or not, it's quite obvious, it's a difficult thing to pinpoint.

My first few weeks here, I felt a bit dissapointed that I wasn't getting paid any attention in this tiny rural town. It also felt quite awkward going into the local stores, and buying stuff, and when they talk to me in Japanese, I kind of answer back in strange Japanese, or in English. This one time, I was buying food at the supermarket, and this young girl cashier just completely froze when she heard English come out of my mouth. She just had no idea what to do. I just smiled at her, and she smiled back a little bit embarassed. The next time I went to the supermarket, I decided to look for the same girl, and enter her line. This time she looked a lot more comfortable, smiling a bit embarassingly - at least she recognized me this time.

Although I don't get the rock star treatment, most distinguishable foreigners get, there are some pros to being in disguise. For one thing, I love walking down the street, or going to the restaurant with other Japanese people, having a good time using Japanese and having no one look at all, and then suddenly just turning on the English. People around me sitting at other tables, or working at the store suddenly start staring - it's great. It definitely has a James Bond type feel to it. I basicaly have control of when I want to make myself noticed. Otherwise, I can just blend into the crowd, and do whatever crazy stuff the other Japanese people are doing. For example, this past Sunday, I went to Sendai to visit one of my Toronto camp kids, who lives in Sendai now. I basically used English all day, talking to him and his parents. We went shopping at a department store, and these 2 girls behind us just kept staring at me. I was going down the escalator, and they just kept staring. In fact she couldn't keep her eyes off of me to the point that she bumped into the kid's father who was standing right in front of her. Sweetness~

It's also definitely funny when we have JET meetings, and the teachers from other schools don't really know who I am, or what I'm doing there. Am I an English JTE? Am I a JET? They just don't know. The kids from other schools don't really have any idea either. It's quite fun playing around with their minds a bit. Sometimes, when I meet strangers, I'll just use Japanese. Other times, I'll use English, it's definitely fun seeing their different reactions. Some have no idea I'm a foreigner. Some probably just think I have a mental defect when I make mistakes when using Japanese.

One definitely interesting thing is that a few people I've met have already told me I remind them of their sons/brothers/friends. A nice woman at the local board of education took me to see Transformers, treated me to dinner, and gave me some food to put in the fridge. The crazy thing is that she actually thanked me for spending time with her, and that it felt just like the days when she used to spend time with her son. Apparently, we have the same facial features/body type. She also lent me her basically unused mountain bike and told me I didn't have to return it until I leave Kannari. Just this past Friday, one of the teachers at the Elementary school said I reminded her a lot of her son. Things like these help a lot in integrating into the town. I can't be exactly sure, but I think looking like a Japanese person has definitely helped in some regard, as most people in the staff office at school basically treat me like I'm their kid. They have no fear of talking to me, they throw food at me constantly, and because I actually have some ability in Japanese, they compliment me a ton and talk to me about whatever's on their mind. Although my real mother is in Toronto, I feel like I have a bunch of mothers here in Kannari.

It's also definitely helped me as well, because although I'm in a foreign country, it doesn't really feel much different to me. Everyone looks familiar to me, even though I've never met them before, and I'm supposedly in a foreign country. This thing called "culture shock" hasn't happened yet, and it probably won't happen...ever. Being able to speak basic Japanese also helps me communicate a lot better than most foreigners. At times, I feel like I'm more at home here than in Toronto. Maybe it's an Asian thing, I don't know, but I used to feel a bit strange at times in Toronto. In Japan, things seem a lot more familiar. People are around the same height as me. Most girls are actually shorter than me. Being skinny isn't actually a bad thing anymore. Strange isn't it? I'm in a foreign country, yet it doesn't really feel like one to me.

I'm definitely digging this gaijin in disguise thing.