Don't Ask Stupid Questions!

It's only natural to be curious about what life is like in Japan for your friend or loved one, but sometimes people will ask the dumbest (and borderline racist) questions and all I can do is sigh....on one of the forums I visit, the people have compiled this list of "dumb FAQs" and I've attempted to answer the questions so that none of my friends or family, who have so far been not stupid at all, will not be stupid question askers:

Oh, I'm sorry, did I wake you? Yes, probably. Use the computer to convert the time if you don't know exactly how many hours ahead Japan is.


Are the Japanese really that short? Shorter than Americans on average, yes, but like all people there are a variety of shapes and sizes.

Do restaurants serve just sushi? Only sushi restaurants. Sushi seems to be a US concept. It's actually hard to find a run of the mill sushi place here. Many sushi places are very high end and very expensive.

Does everyone live in houses with paper doors? No. And if they do it's more for decoration than use as an actual way to block out the elements. All of my paper doors have glass sliding doors behind them.


Does everyone drive like they do in 'Tokyo Drift'? No. I wish.

Do they eat fish everyday? You must miss hamburgers and fried food. There's plenty of hamburgers and fried food to be had. Fish is a huge diet staple for the Japanese people.

Do you have bamboo floors? What?

Are the woman that submissive there? They're like slaves, right? Again, what? Japanese girls are crazy. Ever had a girl block your driveway with her car?

I was wondering about the japanese sanitation system. I dont want no fountian in my toilet. Their sanitation system is set up for toilet paper, right? RIGHT? Umm...yes, they do indeed have toilet paper.

Do have Japanese people come up to you for a autograph? What? No. They usually don't care about Americans one way or the other.

Are there Walmart's in Japan? No, but there is a company called AVE which is owned by the WalMart corporation.


Have you eaten dog yet? No. The Japanese people would be horrified. They love their dogs.

Why do the Japanese drive on the wrong side of the street? It's not the wrong side to them.


Do you use chopsticks every time you eat? At restaurants, yes. At home, no.

Do they use dollars there? No, Japan is not like some other countries which will accept the dollar and their native currency. Stores in Japan usually only accept yen.