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About the Bunny
| Name: | Stubby (Don't ask why). |
| Occupation: | White space filler and, nominally, your guide to this book. |
| Personality: | Recalcitrant and peevish, foil of every icky-sweet, cutesy character that ever romped across the Japanese landscape. Tends to see the world in terms of pink and white. |
| Likes: | Speaking his walnut-sized mind. |
| Dislikes: | Splitting hares. |
| Note: | Want to know what Stubby thinks about Japan? To find out, watch him in the corner as you flip the pages of this book from left to right. |
Published by Tuttle Publishing, an imprint of Periplus Editions(HK) Ltd. with editorial offices at 364 Innovation Drive, North Clarendon, VT 05759 and 61 Tai Seng Avenue, #02-12 Singapore 534167.
Copyright © 2003 Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd.
Rabbit character © 2003 Bill Mutranowski
All rights reserved.
First Tuttle edition, 2003
LCC Card No. 2004559829
ISBN: 978-1-4629-0942-1 (ebook)
Printed in Singapore
10 09 08 07 06 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3
Distributed by:
Japan: Tuttle Publishing
Yaekari Building, 3F, 5-4-12 Osaki, Shinagawa-ku. Tokyo 141-0032
Tel: (03) 5437 0171 Fax: (03) 5437 0755
Email: [email protected]
North America, Latin America &Europe: Tuttle Publishing
364 Innovation Drive, North Clarendon, VT 05759-9436
Tel: (802) 773 8930 Fax: (802) 773 6993
Email: [email protected] Web site: www.tuttlepublishing.com
Asia Pacific: Berkeley Books Pte Ltd
61 Tai Seng Avenue, #02-12 Singapore 534167
Tel: (65) 6280 1330 Fax: (65) 6280 6290
Email: [email protected] Web site: www.periplus.com
TUTTLE PUBLISHING® is a registered trademark of Tuttle Publishing, a division of Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd.
Foreword
Anyone who spends even a little time in Japan will have a few good stories to tell when they get back home. But rubbing elbows with the Japanese, on their own turf, is good for more than just a laugh. The experience can give you a lot of insight into yourself. And that's not the kind of thing you can pick up in any old souvenir shop.
This book is for anyone who can read English (and even if you can't, you can always look at the pictures) and especially for those who already know a little something about Japan (I guarantee that it will confuse you even more). But it is dedicated to all those trailblazing expatriates who have been crazy enough to actually try and live alongside the natives in this very (insert favorite stereotype here) country.
I like to think that the mere presence of we foreigners in their Montana-sized enclave is a spur to Japan's own efforts to "internationalize". That's a holy grail of an objective that the Japanese seem hellbent on realizing. Problem is, they haven't yet defined for themselves what it means. But they'll figure it out someday. And when they do, with luck, they'll realize that they have more in common with the rest of the world, i.e., gaijin, than not.
Having a little trouble pronouncing those Rs and Ls? Is your speech devoid of idioms, slang and words longer than five letters? Are you losing it linguistically? Well, you could find an English conversation teacher and take a little refresher course. What's that you say? You are an English conversation teacher?
Ahh... laid back, mellow, stop-and-smell-the-roses of Tokyo. In your dreams! Not only is it one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, people there always seem to be in a hurry and busy with something or other. The pace slows down a bit on weekends, though—when the trains come 6 minutes, 17 seconds apart.
Ittai is Japanese for "ouch," and otto translates as "oops." But how to say yoisho in English? In the U.S.A., where obesity is practically the national pastime, it would have to be something like "grunt," immediately followed by "groan... creak... pop" and finally, "call 911! "
Strikes, pickets and other such public demonstrations are pretty rare in Japan. It's not that everybody's happy about the way things are; they just think confrontation is something to be avoided. You know, the group harmony thing. It adds ups to a stable, well-ordered and politically inert society. So go ahead and have your sit-in. Just don't expect anyone to join you.
Native English-speaking newcomers to Japan can get in a tizzy about how their mother tongue is twisted beyond recognition. There are cryptic English song lyrics, meaningless English ad slogans, hilarious English signs and incomprehensible English instructional manuals. But you've gotta admit that anything makes more sense than nihongo.
