more backtracking

This is a photo of Sapporo's airport where we landed a few week's back. It was supposed to be a 3 hour flight, but became 4 hours after we circled for an extra hour, as there was snow on the runway. After we landed, I remember thinking, how the heck did we ever land with all that snow everywhere? The landing was actually really smooth...

After living in China for over 5 months, Japanese people seemed extremely friendly and polite to us. That's not to say that Chinese people are rude, but just that there are some cultural differences involved in welcoming people and serving people etc. Some of it is clearly language based, as the Japanese language has developed with inbuilt words that relay respect and service that are common in everyday situations. Even the way they say 'hai' is very polite and welcoming... Speaking to an Australian who has lived in Japan for 4 years, and an American for 8 years, though, gave a different perspective on Japanese people. They both basically said that they couldn't stand the overwhelming politeness that accompanies any conversation. In fact, it was explained to me that the difference in cultures between willingness to express what people actually think is vastly different in Japan, and that essentially this is the difference - that the extreme friendliness encountered is a cultural and language aspect that actually masks true feelings... interesting...

Anyway, you don't get that here in China, so it was welcomed. The Japanese language also struck us as being really cute sounding, even beautiful. It's more smooth flowing than Chinese and very childlike. In fact, I kept remarking to Nancy and others how it sounds like a kids' language... Of course the Japanese fascination with child like qualities (from the girly pigtails, to the short skirts, and kitschy products) - particularly in women is a whole other story...