Civilized

China frequently states 'civilized' is one of it's goals. You see it all over the country: drive civilized, use the public bathrooms in a civilized way, be civilized with your public habits by not spitting or dropping rubbish etc. Japan is already there. And it's reached it through respect for others, be they the elderly or women. Japan aims to provide for them all.

Chinese people may respect their friends, but not strangers. There is definitely a 'me first' culture at the moment, but we did not find that in Japan. We found respect and help everywhere, as well as both services and service. Yes, Japan has had more time to get there than China, so let's see if China can make as much progress!

What is interesting is that you really feel it in the attitude here, and that is reflected in everything else, rather than just a few things. So there are signposts absolutely everywhere, women only train carriages for rush hour, elevators in stations that work and are in service, fantastic changing facilities in shopping malls and museums, free guides in museums, and so on. Drivers actually give way on the streets too!

Yesterday we spent some time in various districts: shibuya, Shinjuku, kitazawa, and Harajuku. the first two are full of shops, though shinjuku also has the Golden Dai, several alleys packed with over a hundred bars which each seat a maximum of 5 on bar stools, and an interesting red light district. Kitazawa has a Camden-like feel to it with small shops and restaurants and an artsy-vibe. Harajuku is the area where Japan's unique fashion comes to life. And Japan certainly knows fashion, and does it well.

Today we went to the excellent edo-Tokyo museum which is well done. We managed to avoid too many cafés unlike the previous days. Who knew how much they're into coffee and desserts! On the other hand, how come so few Japanese ATM's accept foreign bank cards! Strange bearing in mind the costs involved, and the huge breadth of shopping around.

The food may present challenges to Andrea (who doesn't really like fish) and the place is not cheap; but it's green, pollution-free, international (at least in food), and, of course, civilized!