I went to meet my professor when I was preparing for my first trip to Japan. It was also my first trip abroad. Apart from all other general advise, she also told me about ‘Culture Shock’ and I started laughing. I told her that there could be nothing new or surprising for the person who has been born and brought up in India. India is mixture of so many cultures that nothing would shock me. I was speaking out of ignorance and I was not aware of the series of experiences that were to follow.
First thing that hit me was a severe ‘Financial Shock’ rather than a ‘Cultural Shock’. There could be nothing worse than a financial crisis for a student in a totally unknown land. I was totally dumbfounded when I had to pay half the money I carried for the taxi fare from Airport to my university. I thought that the taxi driver is joking but had to pay when his facial expressions changed very fast. I could not even bargain because of the language barrier. And in the end I had to say the only word I knew in Japanese - Arigatto Gozaimus, which means Thank you very much.
This was just the beginning of the rough times to come. I went to super- market next day and came back without buying anything. All I thought was words like atrocious, expensive, killing, inflation etc. This is what I had never anticipated in India and had no solution for it. I got up early next morning and did some yoga and meditation to conjure up enough energy and initiative to buy something. That day I made a brave attempt, marched into the super-market and bought bread and butter. I can buy the bread for the whole month in India for the same amount of money. One can understand that the currency denomination in Japan is small but I was simply not used to pay in thousands for every small thing I buy. Mentally, I was really moved by the price range. You have to pay around hundred thousand for a TV or say about a 5 million for the car. All my knowledge about economics and statistics just evaporated into thin air.
My Japanese professor took me out to have green tea that is served after an elaborate traditional ceremony. He said that it would be a god cultural experience for me. Traditional ceremony goes back thousands of years and is very well preserved by certain organizations. That was also the most expensive cup of tea I have ever had in my life. He paid 15, 000 yen for a cup of tea (approx. 135 US$.). I felt like a Hiroshima bombshell. At the rate of one tea per day in India, I could buy tea for nine years for the same amount of money. I was about to faint when the traditional ceremony started. There are very few authentic places in Japan, which serve the green tea in traditional manner. The ceremony is quite elaborate with dance and flowing gestures. You are supposed to drink the tea in specific manner, which is taught to you.
Being a vegetarian and remaining one is a very comical experience in Japan. You should have extremely strong determination, patience and a good sense of humor to be a strict vegetarian in Japan. Its lot of fun to go to a fast food restaurant and order a hamburger without ham. Its like ordering vegetable sandwich without vegetables !!!!!!!!!
Eating with chopstick was like trying a triple summersault when you are just learning to walk. Eating rice with chopsticks is the final test of your patience.
Lot of my basic beliefs and fundamental ideas were shattered after this trip. The bottom line is that you have to travel with a totally open mind if you want to learn more about different cultures and people. IT IS ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD. The experiences are endless and instances countless but there will be some other time to share it all with you. Japan, The Land of Rising Sun proved out to be The Land of VANISHING YEN for me.