HOW Japan has changed me.

Before moving to Japan, I was determined that travel wouldn’t really change me. I was happy with who I was, and I didn’t need to conform to another country's ideal to feel happy. Oh how wrong I was!

I had spent many hours trawling the internet trying to learn as much as possible about the Japanese lifestyle, and how different is was to our own. A lot of what I found out, really didn’t match with who I was, I was still excited to go. Now, looking back, I see how naive I was, and how much Japan has changed me — hopefully, for the better.

My Style

Before moving, my wardrobe only consisted of black, white, and grey (maybe a couple of darker coloured items for variety). A lot of the clothes were low cut, or form fitting; there was leather, zips — the whole shebang. Now, I’ve moved more to white and even have quite a few colours in there. A lot of items have much higher necklines, and maybe even the odd floral detail. I’ve definitely turned a new, girly, corner. Even though I am still miles away from the Japanese ‘kawaii’ looks of pink frills and layers of lace, my style has definitely change since moving here.

My Manners

I was brought up right, don’t get me wrong. I always tried my hardest to be polite to my elders, and considerate of others. But here in Japan, all of this is seen in a very different light. I now get annoyed at other people when they talk on the phone on a train (very rude), or eat on a train (even ruder), and I find myself bowing to everyone I meet. Strangely, my respect for Japanese elders has waned quite a lot since arriving, as they seem to have a great air of self-importance, and are some of the rudest people I’ve ever met!

My English

The one thing I never imagined happening — I’ve started to forget how to English…Sorry, how to speak English. Teaching students English day in, day out, I thought my language skills would improve; turns out, I’ve started to mimic a lot of the mistakes my own students make. Missing out words, or using strange turns of phrase has become normal to me, and all my friends (who are also teachers). I must admit, I’m rather worried about returning to England — I’m not sure everyone will be able to understand me anymore…

Japan is such an interesting country, and living here has been such a roller coaster. I’m glad for the way I’ve changed here, as I think it’s made me able to understand our cultural differences better than before.