Turning Japanese
a.k.a. How to Vlog in Japan
Let me start this by saying, I’m not a Vlogger. I have to admit though, that the idea of being one has never been too far from my mind. In a time when most of us would have at least one form of social media account and travel has become more and more accessible, I am inclined to think that we all are. In our own little way, through the posts we write, the hashtags we use, and the pictures we share, we contribute to the growth of tourism in general and ultimately, to the destination pertained to. We are, whether voluntarily or otherwise, playing a vital role in the marketing and public relations of any particular place. In the same way a single movie can drive high figure sales by creating an image for any destination where it is filmed, we too, have that same powerful influence. With that in mind, I, with much hesitation, stumbled through a new experience.
Like many, I’ve come to admire the Vloggers of today. Who wouldn’t? Traveling to different exciting destinations, experiencing every activity available, getting a taste of every imaginable flavor; we could only wish to have the same lifestyle. But, only a handful are lucky, humorous, or brave enough to grab their camera, and the world by the balls, say what they want, and make us listen. I say only a handful because, try as they might, thousands more, grab their cameras but can’t grab onto the ever diminishing attention span of modern man. I consider myself one of those who don’t have the chutzpah and the charisma. Quite unfortunately for me, as part of a recent role I’ve taken, I was asked to do a Vlog. If this wasn’t daunting enough of a task for me, I had to do it in one of the biggest and most exciting metropolises in the world… Tokyo.
I started by watching a few Vlogs done in Tokyo. They all seemed easy enough to do. Take a camera, show the sights, try a few stuff, explain a little, react to everything… it all seemed so natural, like talking to a friend. What people, including myself, don’t see is everything else that happens before the clip starts. Here’s everything I learned while trying to Vlog in Tokyo.
Peace
I was already in Japan when they asked me to do the Vlog. Quite understandably, I wasn’t in any way prepared for it. I had my phone. I figured that was probably good enough. Some Vloggers don’t have anything more than what I did. Sure, most of them have the right equipment, fancy cameras, cranes, and clip on mic, I had the right attitude. I did my opening spiels in an empty gate at the airport in Fukuoka before boarding on the plane to Tokyo. I didn’t have much of a problem then. I did five takes, but apart from that, I was comfortable enough… because no one else was there. Fast forward to Tokyo, and I’m screwed.
Tokyo, as it seemed, was on both ends of the sound spectrum. Anywhere you go, it was either too quiet or crazy busy. Imagine trying to Vlog, holding your phone in front of you, walking across Shibuya Crossing with literally thousands of people around you. I had good sense not to talk while crossing. If I did, you would see the veins in my neck popping out, trying to talk over everything. Ok, it wasn’t that loud, but hey, you get what I mean. With no exaggeration this time, is the experience inside the trains. Still quite literally the same amount of people. Only this time, a whole car with 300 commuters in Japan would’ve been quieter than a high school class of 30 here.
Every person with you inside the train is either on their phones, asleep, or, uhm, I guess, maybe, meditating, deep in thought.
To avoid excommunication by offending the quiet commuters in the trains, it was all video and, well, crickets. Outside, still not wanting the Japanese to think I was an obnoxious tourist, I found spots which were far enough away from the crowd but still visible in the frame. This way, you’d still get a feel of the bustling metropolis behind me and I won’t end up behind bars.
People
To be quite honest, in the back of my mind, I’ve always thought that the courtesy and politeness of the Japanese has somehow lessened, or maybe just a bit of an exaggeration. I know that sounds a little condescending, maybe even demeaning, but I don’t mean any offense. Think about it, with every new generation that comes from most industrialized, advanced and urbanized countries, it’s almost quite expected that some of the values from the previous generations are lost. From a society that’s known for their unrivaled interpersonal values, especially with more and more forms of impersonal communication, it seems quite inevitable to lose touch of these nuances.
I. Could. Not. Have. Been. More. Wrong.
Anyone who comes to Japan with the same thing in mind will be embarrassed to have had those thoughts.
Much has been written and much more said about the values of the Japanese. The discipline, the bowing, the never-ending expression of gratitude, the cleanliness, and the punctuality, all this, I felt and experienced… and I haven’t even gotten out of the airport yet. Japan was certainly living up to expectations and stereotypes. One particular experience struck me because it was something that was seemingly so simple and totally unnecessary to everyone else.
Hungry at 11 pm, my sister and I went to a nearby convenience store. It was late, and there were barely any people around the community where we had stayed, so I didn’t think much about loitering inside the store. I was busy trying to read ingredients on the labels and ogling at the amazing convenience store finds when I was suddenly yanked out of place, nearly knocking out a display stand. My sister had pulled me right out of the way. As it turns out, a Japanese guy has been standing behind me for a while, waiting for me to move out of the way. I was apparently on the queue mark, just a few feet from the counter. My sister then told me about how the Japanese go out of their way not to offend anyone by keeping their thoughts to themselves. Because of this, I walked around always thinking of what the locals were thinking of me. I kept quiet most of the time and that gave some sort of assurance that in their eyes, I was a good little tourist. These guys are so polite that they wouldn’t even say anything so they could pass. I would probably already have had a bruised shoulder from a stranger knocking me out of the way, if I was back home.
Pictures
We’ve all seen so many incredible and awe-inspiring shots from the land of the rising sun. That adage alone is already a beautiful verbalization of a beautiful image. As part of doing the Vlog, and because this is one thing I actually know how to do, I took heaps and heaps of photos. I had pretty good shots of landmarks, trees, flowers, crazy patterns, unique stores, UH-mazing food, lavish landscapes, EVERYTHING, but people.
I was in Akihabara, the “Electric City”, and there were just so many things to see. It was an explosion of lights, costumes, games, robots, robot café, girls in French maid costumes, maid café, manga and manga cosplayers. It was Anime and gaming heaven, so I decided to walk around a whole bock and film the entire experience. I didn’t want to miss anything so my eyes were just darting in every direction while my camera was on and I just held it in front of me. The last train would leave in around an hour, so I just did some quick shopping and shot through some spiels for the Vlog without reviewing any of the material I had. Still amazed at the energy of Akihabara, I quickly went over my material as soon as I got into the room. I saw the gaming centers, the anime shops, the people going around, the costumed girls covering their faces and turning away from the camera... (wait... what?) ; I was so busy looking at everything else that I hadn’t noticed them turning away when the camera was facing right at them. Curious, I did a quick search and sure enough, found that I had another close call with a jail cell.
As part of Japanese law, it is permissible to take a photo of a general area. But, when it comes to photographing individuals, it’s not always welcomed, even more so with those who are working. Hence, the girl in the French maid costume, covering her face and turning away. With street performers and the general public, it's okay, as long as no specific individual is focused, it’s more forgivable. As for those in costume, you’ll probably have a harder time getting that shot you want. In any case, all you need to do is ask politely and they would very well likely oblige.
As a last reminder, if you were able to sneak a shot of someone, If you can’t help but post it online, at least blur out the face, or better yet, just don’t post it at all. With so many wonderful sights to see in Japan, you’ll have no trouble looking for a different subject for your photos.
Picturesque
You know how you see photos of favorite destinations online that make you go, “ooh, I wanna go there”? As online citizen, we’ve been getting more and more photos, from more and more destinations, leaving us wanting more and more, to go places, sometimes even, with pictures being the only driving force to visit. We’re all naturally visual creatures and when we like what we see, we want to experience the same thing and get a piece of it, albeit only in images. I have a lot of those moments, and oftentimes, the pictures are just a little much more than the actual places. It’s no secret that we edit almost all of our photos online, and that’s not bad at all. We naturally want to show the best side of our online material. I have to admit, though, there have been some places, which were just a tad disappointing.
Japan, on the other hand, was to me, real; the epitome of being picturesque. With or without editing, Japan just jumps out of photos with character and culture and captivating sights. Somehow, there’s always something deeper in any image you get from Japan.
Prepare
I have to say, I didn’t.
One thing was the weather. We went to Japan in spring, the perfect time to visit. I checked online before packing, and true enough, it was a comfortable 17 degrees Celsius. A couple of blazers, a pull-over and a few shirts, that would be enough. I just needed something to keep out the chill at night but still comfortable in the daytime... or so I thought. I come from a tropical country. Add to that, I’m naturally sensitive to cold. Now, I don’t know what really happened there, but I’m not trusting weather apps anymore because when we got out of the airport, I was blue in ten seconds. Zero degrees, for a tropical brown boy is torture.
Apparently, the weather was unusually colder when we visited and I ended up having to buy warmer clothing just to survive the whole trip.
Another thing, is all the walking. Man, the Japanese can walk. I saw some elderly women, with bent backs walking faster than me. In our country, if you take public commute to your house, you could ride a bus to a general area, take a Jeepney to get you closer to home, ride a motorcycle sidecar to go around a few more blocks, and maybe a cycle rickshaw, straight to your doorstep.
You have to admire the punctuality of the transportation in Japan, the trains, buses, all run on a precise schedule. To get around, easier, you could take a cab, but that could eat up your budget considerably, and being a tourist in Japan, you want to make the most of your time and see all that you can. So, you walk, plain and simple. You get some exercise, some fresh air, you don’t add to the pollution, and you get to see more.
When you get to where you’re staying, just soak your feet in hot water, have some green tea and the next morning, you’re ready for another beautiful and exciting day in Japan.
