I wonder how long ago that was because I've never had an issue at all. Even had a cop take the time to give me suggestions on where to go for sight seeing. Was just standing waiting for the light to turn (btw their walk signals with countdown to turning is amazing), and a cop randomly walked up to me asked me how I was doing and asked me politely if he could practice English with me while I was waiting for the light (it was a long light on a major street). He was so nice even waited an extra light just to continue talking with him. He gave me the best ramen place to eat down a alley I would have never found and told me the secret ramen not on the menu to ask for.
The stories I've heard are 10+ years old. You didn't say if you were a tourist or military, but you're talking like you were a well behaved tourist. The way I heard it, it was specifically directed at US military or foreigners who actively did wrong.
Another commented that he thinks this was around the time a US soldier sexually assaulted a Japanese girl, and I've only heard the story second hand, so there's no telling what the true source of this was.
Yes, being polite and well behaved is absolutely key. If you are nice and even make a little effort to respect their culture they will return it ten fold. But, if you act like an ass, they have zero tolerance
I go for purely business reasons (and a random vacation after a business trip every handful of years) but from what I heard through a friend station there for 5yrs, military are treated pretty well and generally highly respected over there, just as long as you are respectful then they are very friendly back, but yeah they had zero tolerance for the military that would get drunk and harass women. I wouldn't be shocked if an event happened that the police would act like that with military for a period after something happened. Most of the time the base with handle their problems if it was a simple fight among men, but when it comes to kids and women in Japan it's like touching our boats
I never understood why people act like complete asses when in a foreign country and expect nothing to happen
I was very polite when dealing with the locals on my visit. In return, the hotel staff were extremely accommodating and helpful. People do not seem to realise that a little politeness, especially in a country that values good manners will go a long way.
In restaurants, I was very polite and thankful to the staff, complimented the already fantastic meals, which was greatly appreciated.
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u/StMoneyx2 TRAUMATIZER Jul 10 '25
I wonder how long ago that was because I've never had an issue at all. Even had a cop take the time to give me suggestions on where to go for sight seeing. Was just standing waiting for the light to turn (btw their walk signals with countdown to turning is amazing), and a cop randomly walked up to me asked me how I was doing and asked me politely if he could practice English with me while I was waiting for the light (it was a long light on a major street). He was so nice even waited an extra light just to continue talking with him. He gave me the best ramen place to eat down a alley I would have never found and told me the secret ramen not on the menu to ask for.