Small spaces

As you probably know, Japan is a country with very little space.  There are 120 million people, and the country is smaller than California (which has 35 million).  Plus, it is quite mountainous, so half of the area (or more) is unbuildable.   So you get the idea, there's less space per person than the US, for example.
And this is not new, Japanese towns have historically been much more compact.  So people deal with it.  Here are some examples:

Narrow streets (yes, this is a two-way street); many people choose a car by the width of their street!  Also notice: no sidewalks.  But of course that has no relation to how much people walk.  Not by design, but it is traffic calming.

Smaller parking spaces (and less than one space per apartment here); everyone stays in the lines!

Kids play wherever (and they play outside more than most kids with big yards in the US...)

Urban farming (they grow lots of vegetables on this little plot)

Clever products

Our apartment building is old (30 yrs+), but the elevators have been updated.  In the photo, you can see two sets of call buttons.  The lower ones are for the disabled (wheelchairs, etc), and there's a sticker which says:
"Pressing these buttons cause the doors to close more slowly".  If you're pressing these buttons, you might need more time to get on/off the elevator, so the doors are programmed to close slower.

I love that!

Engrish

Sorry, this almost seems like a cheap shot, because misuse of English in Japan is infamous.  Still, I think we can enjoy a laugh while understanding that the English we see is better than most of our Japanese, and Japanese people surely chuckle at some of our Japanese (like Karaoke or Tokyo)....

Anyway, I had to share this one, a sign advertising a "Silly Bar" (sorry it's blurry).  My guess is it's supposed to mean a fun bar.  What do you think?

Safety

It's not a myth: Japan is an extremely safe place.  Those of us from countries which are less safe don't like to admit it, but Japan is very safe.  Virtually all kids go to school on their own, from the smallest 1st grader (6 years).  Here's an example, of a group of little kids (6 or 7 years old?) who commute to school on the train, passing through a very busy station/shopping area, without adult supervision.

Trivia from Japan

Since moving to Japan (again), I'm enjoying the funny, awesome, weird and just maniacal stuff I see on the street.  Coming from the US, there are so many little differences, and big ones, that make daily life interesting.

I'll start with one of my favorites, which is kind of famous: plastic food samples.
Many restaurants have a picture window in the front with plastic (wax?) models of their food, showing the full range of options and side dishes.  Making this stuff is an industry in itself.  Here's an example (sushi).  Some of the best are ramen with chopsticks suspended in space, and drinks being poured into a glass (I'll look for photos of those).
They're cute, and make ordering easy, whether you know the language or not!  My interpretation is that Japanese are 'visual' people, so showing a model is much better than just a written menu, ie it's not just for foreigners!

Hello!

OK, finally kick-off!
I got the name from the album by Phil Collins (1982 - whew, I'm old!), which basically summarizes our contemporary life, where we spend so much energy saying hello to everyone that we have no time to share anything meaningful.
The blog, of course, will be a way to fight against that sad state of affairs -- but only if you readers participate in the give-and-take!
Please post comments, ideas and questions!
-M