I've been hearing people talk a bunch about Japan so I had a chance to get on a cheap flight there and check it out for a bit. It was nothing major, just me and a buddy heading over there to do a bit of hiking, drink some beers, and take in some other culture.
Japan seems to be attempting to lure in more tourism visitor because the visa was easy as can be and there were incentives and discounts offered on various packages too.
I'd never been and my friend has been once so I thought what the hell? why not?
One of main things I noticed while we were here is that the place is spotlessly clean. I don't think anyone ever litters and even the footpaths were being cleared of leaves. This is in stark contrast to Thailand where everyone just seems to throw their trash wherever they want and make it someone else's problem.
The area was completely quiet even though there were quite a few people out there. I love that respect. I think that in a lot of the world people, especially younger people, would be working pretty hard to make it as loud as possible. Maybe some fools doing some sort of annoyance TikToks as well. I love that the culture in Japan is one of quiet and respect.
I didn't see any bears or even any sign that they might have been around any time recently.
This is another example of something nice that is not guarded but yet people leave it alone. I remembered a graveyard where I grew up where someone put up an elaborate statue for their loved one and someone came by and vandalized it. That was so shameful. I think a Japanese person would die of shock if someone were to suggest they do something similar.
There were some people politely offering beer and other drinks for sale so we had a beer. There were ample places to put your trash just a bit further down the trail and unlike how it would be in Thailand, it wasn't overflowing because nobody emptied it in days.
There was some lovely countryside here and because of the elevation and our distance from the equator, it was substantially cooler here than it would be if we were hiking in Thailand.
I think this might be a side of Japan that not everyone sees. I think most people think of japan as being very crowded and busy and don't get me wrong, it is that as well. But unlike other places I have been that are busy there was a real sense of order to it all and people politely wait their turn and queue up properly so that everyone can get through in a timely manner.
I don't know how Japan managed to pull this off but as far as an outsider looking in perspective is concerned, this seems like one of the most polite places on earth. I made certain to give way constantly and it almost becomes a game of who can be more polite all the time. Wow, what a wonderful world it would be if everyone was like this.
Not to Thailand bash or anything, but it would be nice of the people over there would look at this and perhaps try to emulate it. Not just Thailand, but almost anywhere else in the world as well.
After a few days here me and my buddy were both thinking the same thing about how incredible it would be to live here. Unfortunately that is where the dream ends. While Japan is a reasonably inexpensive place to visit the idea of living there is far more expensive than Thailand or perhaps most of the world is. They also don't just hand out long-term visas but it doesn't matter because I am not going to pursue it.
It was a nice place to visit though and I would definitely return.