Japanese Culture: Sleeping
My last blog entry had to do with being back for such a long time already. And while I suppose I could use this as an excuse to stop writing about the Japanese . . .
Well, sometimes they are just too damn funny.
Which isn’t to say that this post isn’t culturally relevant.
As I approach the problem I will sketch some of the cultural markers which have lead to the development of this behaviour.
Who knows. It may even be true.
First of all the stage has to be set. Japan is one of the safest countries in the world to live in. Speaking crime wise. What I will describe couldn’t take place in the Netherlands, the EU, US or a sheitload of other places.
Also, as mentioned before (and a lot) the Japanese take their work-life seriously. This means that a lot of Japanese leave for work early and don’t come back ’till late. Midnight is not an exception for some people. Another thing I’ve mentioned earlier in this blog is the relatively tight family bond the Japanese maintain with their family.
So . . . we have a busy worklife, an involved family life and everything else in between is safe.
Where and when the hell do we sleep?
That’s right, wherever the hell we want.
I give you the Neighbourly shoulder:
Say “Hi” to my friend Nikolaos btw.
The comfortable chairs on the subway:
The euhm . . . almost made it to the chair on the subway
The euhm . . . floor . . . of the subway
The platform, waiting for the comfortable subway:
The door of the subway. Extra comfortable
And because we are the culture of Wa all of us together:
I’ll be honest. Some of these are every day pictures and others are every night pictures. While it is true that you will find people snoozing on other people’s shoulders on the way to (and from) work at any time of the day it took alcohol to inspire some of the pictures you can take regarding the sleeping habits of Japanese.
However you want to look at it though, the Japanese have developed a great cultural collective ability to catch Z’s whenever they need it. And it took Japan to foster this ability. Let’s face it, in Amsterdam, London, New York or any other modern “Western” city you’d be picked clean. Fall asleep in a quiet corner of a subway station? You’re going home on your socks. Not so in Japan. Your picture will get posted on a silly Gaijin’s Blog though. Small price to pay. Sleep on little Japanese buddies. Sleep on!
Go here for some others which I have collected. Otherwise just google it and you’ll get some facebook groups, Youtube videos or just random pictures.
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Quote of the day:
When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist
- Dom Helder Camara