Japan's Rules of of the Road

So, after about a month of driving in Japan, I think it's time to discuss the particularities of driving in my slice of Asia, because besides the whole driving on the right side of the car and the left side of the road there's a few things that have caught this little American off her guard.....

My car looks like an egg..........

Japan's Rules of the Road. 

1. Even though you drive on the left side of the road, there is no such thing as a “free left.” This is a serious flaw in Japan's driving etiquette. 

2. A green light means “go,” a yellow light means “go,” and a red light means, “at least 4 more cars can go really fast, until people start honking.” 

3. Police cars ALWAYS have their sirens on. You don’t have to pull over unless they start yelling into their loud speaker. This is very distracting.

4. You always have to stop at train tracks. I haven’t actually stopped at train tracks since I rode the bus in 6th grade. The bus driver would stop at the tracks, and stay at a standstill until every student on the bus was silent, with their arms in the air and their hands making a peace sign. This acknowledged that we knew we were supposed to shut the hell up. When I come across train tracks I can’t help it, I turn my music down and make a peace sign until I’ve checked that the coast is clear. Conditioning is eerie….

5. There is zero tolerance for drinking and driving. No beer with dinner, no wine with dinner, no nothing. If you even blow .01 from drinking cough syrup you’re deported. 

So needless to say I miss the freedom of the American "free right," the ability to legally drink and drive, and of course the safety of American intersections (seriously, if somebody runs a red and whacks into my egg shaped car in an intersection, I have NO idea how to say "Officer, with all due respect that butt head ran a red! I think the Japanese are too polite to even have a word that translates into butt head.....) 

Ratty has become my highway sanctuary. For a tiny dented car shaped like an egg, the acoustics in there are amazing! I have an amazing do-hickey that hooks my I-pod up to my stereo, so my car has become a my own personal portable Karaoke box. However, I fear I look rather strange on the highway tapping my steering wheel with my thumbs and making these faces:

Now, remember that these were taken a few months ago in an actual Karaoke box. I assure you my eyes are open when I sing AND drive. Still, I don't think the Japanese out here in the countryside have ever seen (or heard) anything quite like what they get when I cruise by. They gave me a paper house, so I'm giving them the American driving experience. Not only is it a feast for the senses, it's a cultural exchange. I even have a top 15 list of favorite songs to sing in the car:

Erin's Toe-Tappin' Tunes-the super- happy- long -time Metric System Edition 

(when you can't think of how many miles an hour 60km is, just sing!)

1. Brooks and Dunn- Boot Scootin' Boogie

2. Badfinger- No Matter What

3. Charlie Daniels and the Charlie Daniel's band- The Devil went down to Georgia 

4. Journey-Don't Stop Believin'

5. Vampire Weekend- Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa

6. M.I.A- Paper Planes

7. Toto-Rosanna 

8. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers- American Girl

9. Johnny Cash- Boy Named Sue 

10.Leonard Cohen- So Long, Marianne 

11. Salt-n-Pepa-Shoop

12. Nancy Sinatra- These boots are made for walkin'

13. Against Me! -Don't lose touch

14. Bonnie Tyler- Total Eclipse of the heart

15. Chicago- If you leave me now

Eclectic, I know. 

In other news, last weekend marked a significant landmark in my adventures in driving. I had my first passengers! Greg decided to invite some friends from Oita City to Kunisaki for the night, and since I wasn’t in the mood for drinking I volunteered my services as a designated driver. So, we kicked the night off at a Korean restaurant near Greg’s house.


Once we arrived back at Greg’s apartment, we uncovered an old friend. When my mom sent me my Jedi Knight costume for Halloween, it came with an Obi Wan Kenobi mask. I was too embarrassed to wear it, and somehow it ended up at Greg’s apartment. Since I was sober and they were all drunk, it was fairly easy to talk them into taking turns wearing the mask. I like to think it was the power of The Force. 

As Hunter demonstrated, Obi Wan Kenobi LOVES NorthFace fleece jackets.

I tried to convince Betsy and Darin that this should be their engagement picture. 

Betsy's exact words were "Oh heavens! It's cold on the ice planet Hoth!"

Classic SNL tribute photo. 

Me: I SAID WHO'S THAT SPARTAN IN MY TEE-PEE?!

Danielle:It's ME! It's ME!

Scene 1: Obi Wan was stalking us around a corner. We were too involved in our conversation to notice. 

Scene 2: Realizing we aren't paying any attention whatsoever, Obi Wan gets a little bolder. 

Scene 3: HOLY SHIT OBI WAN COMES AT US WITH A PAIR OF SCISSORS AND WE DON'T EVEN NOTICE BECAUSE WE ARE TWIRLING OUR HAIR. Judging by the blank expression upon that plastic face, I'm going to say this is a merciless crime, and the crime- committer will have no remorse. No doubt this will end up on CSI: Japan. 

When I wear the mask, I just look like Jeebus. Then Shahzana mauls me. 

Hunter just caresses my sharp nose. He knows that I am really a softy under than false plastic exterior. 

So, I left the mask with my friends and headed home early. The next morning we all headed into the mountains to see the leaves and visit a temple. Now, since everyone besides Greg and I were hung over, we didn’t stay long. However, I was able to get a few pictures in before my battery died. It was absolutely stunning.

Hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving!