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Shocked to see that in the restroom!? What surprised Italians most about Japan

Date published: 24 May 2022

Italy has many similarities with Japan. Both are blessed to be beside the sea; both have a long and narrow geography; and both have a rich food culture that is popular in many other countries. But what would Italians think if they came to Japan?

In this issue, we will introduce a summary of what Italians found shocking about coming to Japan from our past articles (each comment is the personal opinion of the respondent).

"I was surprised to find whipped cream in Japanese carbonara! Italian carbonara contains no cream," mentioned one of our respondents.

Italian carbonara does not use cream, but instead uses eggs and cheese to give it a strong, rich flavor. They seem to feel that the Japanese version of carbonara is different, saying, "It's delicious, but it's not quite what I imagine Carbonara to be."

"The moment you enter a restaurant in Japan, you are always greeted with a hearty 'Irasshaimase (welcome)!'

"This may be a natural service for Japanese people, but foreigners are often a bit surprised. Especially if they don't understand Japanese, they don't know what they are being told, so they must be a bit confused, wondering if they have done something wrong and what to do next. The first time I was told 'Irasshaimase!' I kind of instinctively snapped back at the staff, "Wait - what's wrong? (laugh)."

Although the situation may be a little different now due to Covid-19, in Japan, you hear "irasshaimase!" when entering a shop; and when leaving, you'll hear, "Arigatou gozaimashita!" (thank you very much!).

This is based on the spirit of hospitality, but it also has the effect of preventing crime. According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, when people are approached, they feel less inclined to do something bad.

Japan is often hit by earthquakes and other major disasters, but they take their hats off to the Japanese people for the way they respond to such times.

"Japan is very quick to respond and take action when a disaster strikes," one of our respondents remarked. "Italy is an earthquake-prone country like Japan, so I feel we have a lot to learn from them."

Japan has overcome a number of disasters, including the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011. Even after suffering devastating damage, the country has been able to recover with what can be called astonishing strength.

In an earthquake-prone country with as many active volcanoes as Japan, these efforts might be noteworthy. Nevertheless, Japan still has some areas that need to be reviewed in terms of disaster prevention and disaster preparedness, so we should not relax our efforts.

"Among Japanese people, many believe that moisturizing is important for beautiful skin, and many have beautiful skin. In Italy, there are many women who are interested in skincare, but I don't think they are as concerned about dry skin as the Japanese. I would like to learn from Japanese beauty practices."

Living in Japan, we take beauty awareness for granted. However, Japanese beauty consciousness is probably one of the highest in the world. For example, Japanese women do not often go out without makeup, even for a short shopping trip. However, in many countries, it is considered normal to walk around town without makeup. Of course, there are individual differences.

Regarding Japanese beauty awareness, "I was shocked to see them applying their makeup and doing skin care in the restroom!" Another commented, "I was surprised when I saw them wearing makeup on the street and on the train."

Many Japanese are also concerned about unwanted hair treatment, and I hear that many not only take care of their own hair, but also go to medical hair removal clinics to have body hair permanently removed.

In many foreign countries, it seems that Japanese women do not treat their hair as much as they are concerned about it. This is not because they have a low sense of beauty, but because there is no single standard of beauty, and each individual has his or her own standards.

Other foreigners seem to think it a little strange that young women wear mini-skirts even in the cold winter months for the sake of fashion.