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I studied in Tokyo from 2010 to 2014 and noticed a lot of cultural differences between Japan and my country so to deal with my culture shock, I started creating comic strips about them. I hope my comics will help more foreigners like myself understand Japan and the Japanese people better, as well as increase awareness about some changes in behavior we might have to make when we visit. These comic strips were selected from a collection of over 300 that I created between 2012 and 2015 and posted on my Facebook page. I also compiled these illustrations into two books: "Eva, Kopi and Matcha" and "Eva, Kopi and Matcha 2.0" which are available on Amazon and other eBook platforms (Kindle, iBooks, Google Books, Kobo).

More info: amazon.com | Instagram | Facebook

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    #3

    Eating Noodles

    Eating Noodles

    Slurping noodles to eat in Japan is perfectly fine and it is said that they will taste better too.

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    #5

    Picking Up Your Own (And Others) Trash

    Picking Up Your Own (And Others) Trash

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    #6

    Baths

    Baths

    Japanese enjoy taking hot baths too, especially hot spring baths. (monkeys are there for humor, you won't get to dip with any, sorry!)

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    #8

    Toilets

    Toilets

    The toilets are always wet in Malaysia and there's always no toilet papers.

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    #9

    Fruits

    Fruits

    Anybody bought the expensive Japanese fruits before? Like the melon or the insanely priced grapes...

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    K. LNU
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    When I was stationed in Japan, it was explained to me that Japan is an island with limited resources. Much of the produce and meats are brought from other countries; or grown specially for the market (like the square watermelons) ... thus the high cost of some foods!

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    #10

    The Last Stop

    The Last Stop

    If you fall deep asleep on the bus in the US, it may be your last stop...

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    #11

    Vending Machines

    Vending Machines

    There are vending machines almost everywhere, even at places where life-forms doesn't seem to exist.

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    kurisutofu
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That's what I noticed the first time I came to Japan. I was walking on a street between empty field and there you had a vending machine in the middle of nowhere, nothing else.

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    #12

    Celebrating Christmas

    Celebrating Christmas

    Strangely Japanese celebrates Christmas not with turkey and ham, but with KFC...

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    D. Pitbull
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Oh. OH!!!! Maybe this explains my mother-in-law!! We kept insisting "Do you not want something... more? We will get you any---" - "No. KFC." .. okaaay...

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    #14

    Clean And State-Of-The-Art Japanese Toilets

    Clean And State-Of-The-Art Japanese Toilets

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    #15

    Smartphones

    Smartphones

    You can't turn off camera shutter sound on Japanese smartphones due to privacy and upskirt photo taking.

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    Twenty øne doggos
    Community Member
    5 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Actually, that sounds like a good feature, they should do this with other phones.

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    #16

    Tattoos

    Tattoos

    If the tattoo is small, it can be covered with plaster to enter into the public bath houses or swimming pool.

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    kurisutofu
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The reason is not that the person is thought to be a Yakuza. The reason is that you can't forbid only Yakuzas or they would get mad. In order to work around that, since they all have tattoos, this excuse was used. So if a Yakuza gets mad, they can say it's the rule, nothing against them.

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    #17

    Getting Off The Train

    Getting Off The Train

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    OreOs
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I feel that Singaporeans generally let passengers get off first, those who dont are usually the older people who may be ignorant or impatient with a sense of entitlement or tourists/foreigners.

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    #19

    Active Elderly

    Active Elderly

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    kurisutofu
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That's so true! In see old people here and they're more active than me!

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    #20

    Seven Wonders Of Japanese

    Seven Wonders Of Japanese

    The 7th wonder can be found on my FB or blog.

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    kurisutofu
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I don't think you took the train in the summer ... I can assure you they are and look sweaty in the work suits.

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    #21

    Train Etiquette

    Train Etiquette

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    Carol Emory
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Now this happens in the USA and it's very annoying. I've been at restaurants and had people at the table next to me with their smartphones cranked up loud so the kid who's hardly touched his food can be entertained.

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    #22

    Sayonara

    Sayonara

    "Sayonara" means goodbye but has a sense of finality to it, so don't use it to your clients!

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    #23

    Stairs

    Stairs

    There is a great number of staircases and very few escalators and lifts at smaller train stations.

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    #24

    Impressive Customer Service

    Impressive Customer Service

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    tuzdayschild
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Maybe it depends on where you are in the US. I'm from southeastern Virginia and people definitely greet me with a smile and politeness. No bow though.

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    #25

    Office Toilet

    Office Toilet

    I went to a Japanese company for an interview before I decided to leave Japan. When I went to the ladies toilet, I saw a nice wooden locker cabinet mounted on the wall with small compartments. I know Japanese are very particular about hygiene but to see a locker for toothbrushes and sanitary stuff is a whole new world for me...

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    #27

    Sushi Rice

    Sushi Rice

    Somehow sushi rice will fall off when you eat outside of Japan...

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    DemPugs
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I heard sushi chefs spend like 7 years just working on rice so it kinda makes sense.

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    #28

    Japanese Speak English

    Japanese Speak English

    Based on the real story at a sushi restaurant...

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    Lala_nene
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Most of Japanese have an inferiority complex about English pronunciation. We (I am a Japanese) think that it is impolite to speak in poor pronunciation.

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    #29

    Kids In Trains

    Kids In Trains

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    Carol Emory
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That's in the USA too...people letting the kids run wild on public transportation.

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    #30

    Hairdresser

    Hairdresser

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    Hans
    Community Member
    5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Anyone else who always says "all right" independent of boiling hot or ice cold water?

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    Note: this post originally had 60 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.