Nihon Fried Chicken

For the most part the Japanese like American food, at least once in a while (Japanese people are all pretty thin, so they can't be eating it too often). But one of the reasons foreign food is popular is Japan is that it is often made "Japanese Style" to accommodate the highly sensitive Japanese tastebud. Japanese food is predominantly simple in taste with usually few ingredients, and this style of cooking is often imposed onto foreign recipes. But not American fast food. McDonald's (pronounced mac-a-dun-al-do) and KFC have managed to stay true to their original recipes in Japan. But in this case, the Colonel wasn't able to hang on to his American fashion sense....meh, you win some, you lose some.

Fail in the Gap

Among my very first experiences in Japan was shopping. The fashion is really great here, and there are countless (and I mean that quite literally) of women's clothing shops. I remember finding the Gap for the first time, and feeling somewhat relieved as one naturally would after finding something familiar in a place where so many things seem alien. But that familiarity would be short-lived. I waltzed in, found some things to try on and shuffled off to the dressing room. The attendant, a very nice and pretty young girl, showed me to my room. But before she drew the curtain, she handed me a neatly folded square of tissue-paper and said something (I presume was an explanation) in Japanese I couldn't understand. Now, at the time I hadn't the slightest idea what this paper was for. Behind the curtain, I held the square in my hand and stared at it for a while, trying to figure out what its purpose was. Don't ask my why, because I don't have a problem myself in that area, but the first thing I thought it could be was a towel for armpit-sweat. Or maybe foot sweat? Oh jeeze, I have no idea. But I did know one thing, when I came out of that little room, the attendant would expect that I used the paper for whatever its used for. So after trying on the clothes, I stuffed the mystery paper into my bag, and sped off hoping the attendant wouldn't ask for the paper back, or come to notice I'm not smart enough to figure out how to use it. A few weeks after that, though slightly jaded, I ventured off into the dressing room of a small Japanese clothing shop. And, as I feared, I was handed the dreaded square of tissue paper again. Deja-vu. Here I am again behind the curtain, bewildered. I looked up, and there they were: directions (with pictures) on how to use the tissue paper. Turns out it is a face cover for women to wear while they try on clothing to prevent makeup from smearing on prospective garments. It really is a very sensible idea, as I can't count how many times I have seen rejected shirts in the States on sale because of makeup smears all over the collar. Japan: land of common sense. Props.

$1,000 Fan!

I don't know what this thing is made of, but it sure doesn't look like it's worth such a giant hunk of anyone's hard-earned money. I'm sure it's handcrafted from the finest wood in the world, blah, blah, blah, but it is still shocking to me nonetheless. It doesn't even look that fancy. Of course I realize that expensive doesn't always mean fancy per say, but if I'm going to spend a grand on something that can fit in my pocket, it better be good. Perhaps my inner American shines through the most at a time like this--were I to be asked to imagine what a $1,000 fan would look like, this wouldn't even come close--precious metals and jewels come to mind almost immediately. Personally, I don't buy fans that cost over 100 yen--and now that I think about it, I could have sworn I've seen a fan that looks a lot like this for 100 yen...and even if it didn't, who cares? You are just going to be whipping it around and fanning yourself anyway, most people won't even get a chance to notice the "fine craftsmanship", and those that try risk getting whiplash. Nope, if I ever pay this much money for a fan, I'll get one with a TV in it.