Japan After 50: 11 Lies That Can Ruin Your Trip!

📖 Before You Land in Japan: 37 years at the concierge desk, every question a first trip asks → https://marikoaono.com You've watched the videos. The spotless little Tokyo apartment with nothing in it but a low table and a single plant. The trains that are never, ever a second late. The country with no crime, no trash, and no homeless people, where everybody lives to a hundred on seaweed and green tea. And then you arrive. Your train is four minutes late. The lady at the supermarket puts a single banana in a plastic bag. And you start to wonder whether you've been sold a fairy tale. Please don't feel silly. It isn't your fault. In my last ten years at the concierge desk of a big Tokyo hotel, more and more American guests arrived with their heads full of things they'd seen online. Some of it was true. Some of it made my colleagues and me laugh behind the desk, very politely, of course. The real Japan underneath those videos is far more lovable than the perfect one. So today I count down eleven things YouTube told you about Japan, right down to the one that makes Japanese people laugh the most. In this video: 11. "Japanese trains are never late" (the bullet train, yes, but a Tokyo weekday morning is another story) 10. "Every Japanese person washes their hands perfectly" 9. "Japan is the most high-tech, cashless country on Earth" (and the fax machine number that turns the joke upside down) 8. "Japan is so clean, it must have hardly any plastic waste" 7. "There are no homeless people in Japan" 6. "Japanese people work longer hours than anyone in the world" 5. "You can buy a Japanese house for $500" 4. "Eat like Okinawa and you'll live to a hundred" 3. "There is no crime in Japan" (and the part of the legend that is completely, beautifully true) 2. "Japanese people are always polite and never complain" 1. The one Japanese people laugh at the most, and what the inside of a real Japanese home actually looks like WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOUR TRIP: · Leave a few extra minutes for Tokyo commuter trains in the morning rush. · Carry some cash. Many small restaurants, temples and countryside shops still prefer it. · Pack a small handkerchief. Many restrooms have no paper towels. · Bring your own shopping bag, and feel free to say no, thank you to the extra plastic. · Lost your wallet? Go to the nearest police box. There's a very good chance someone has already handed it in. · Be as careful with investment offers from strangers online as you would be at home. · If someone smiles and says "hmm, that might be a little difficult," it probably means no. My favorite tip from the concierge desk: when you book a hotel in Japan, look at the square meters on the booking page. It's the one number that never lies about the size of a Japanese room. Tell me in the comments which of these eleven surprised you the most. I have a feeling it might be the fax machines. And tell me, which thing about Japan did you believe before today? I read every single one. And if you know someone who has watched every "perfect Japan" video there is, send them this one. #JapanTravel #RealJapan #JapanTips