stepchild 0 Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 I was on a chairlift the other day, with my girl to my left and two j-girls (strangers) to my right. my girl and i were talking about the rideable terrain that we could see, we were scanning for lines and as i described one i pointed over to it, at about half past one (if straight up the lift is 12 o´clock) and as i pointed the j-girl to my right knocked my hand out of the way pretty hard. she didn't say anything though. thing is, i didn't point at her, i was clearly pointing at the mountain, and my hand was only slightly across her left arm, but at least a foot away from touching her. this also happened in tokyo, waiting to cross a road and seeing a funny neon sign, i pointed it out and again a japanese guy whacked my hand down, even though i wasn't that close to touching him and was pointing up a building so was clearly not pointing at a person. i understand that pointing at people in japan is considered rude, but what's the deal with just pointing at inanimate objects?? anyone got a clue what i'm on about? i asked some of my japanese friends and they haven't got the foggiest.... Link to post Share on other sites
gamera 0 Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 Hum... not sure but I guess perhaps they don't like anything bothers their visibilty? How much distance was it from their face to your hand? I sometimes have the same case ( someone points something and his/her hand gets in my visibility real close), but have never punched it off. If I remember right, I was educated not to interrupt others' visibility putting my hands soon close to their faces because it's not comfortable to them and accidentaly I am to slap their faces. Does this explain? Link to post Share on other sites
kintaro 0 Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 nope..first time I've heard that one...?? Next time someone whacks your arm down you might want to directly ask them what gives. Link to post Share on other sites
stepchild 0 Posted March 1, 2005 Author Share Posted March 1, 2005 gamera - both times i was well over a foot away from the other person and i think that the time when i was on the chair lift i wasn't even obstructing their vision. i, also, wouldn't want someone's hand in my face but i really don't think that i was very close to them. also, it seemed to occur really quickly in both cases, almost like an unconscious reaction. i wish that my japanese was efficient enough to politely ask what the deal was but unfortunately it isn't. i might actually try some empirical research and start pointing near people and seeing what happens... Link to post Share on other sites
gamera 0 Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 Hum.... no idea why, then ) Link to post Share on other sites
stepchild 0 Posted March 1, 2005 Author Share Posted March 1, 2005 i'll give it a try gamera. it's a strange one eh??!! yep, i'm hitting the books everyday, benkyoshimasu-ing.... Link to post Share on other sites
gamera 0 Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Yeah, maybe you wrote something like 'Hit my hand off plz' at your face? Anyway sometimes don't understand what others do. That's why we call others strangers in English? Link to post Share on other sites
KlingKlang 1 Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 I've always been warned against pointing, saying its rude. I try not to now. Link to post Share on other sites
mfurmane 0 Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Staring is rude. Any ideas on how to stop that? Link to post Share on other sites
woywoy 0 Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Just stare right back at them with a wicked death stare Furm. Always puts them right off ... how rude they are thinking that it's ok to stare at foreigners. Or is it ok to stare at anyone in Japan? Link to post Share on other sites
unit 0 Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Stepchild, There are some japanese out there that view foreigners with absolute contempt. Just your presence is an inconvenience for them. You have probably just come across a few of them. My guess is less to do with pointing and more to do with the fact that you're not japanese. Furm, if returning the death stare doesn't crack em, give them a good "nani-o mitenndaroo" in your best tongue-curling tough-guy japanese. It's a bit like saying "What the f*** are you lookin at?" That usually has em staring at the floor for the rest of the train ride. Link to post Share on other sites
Yuki's Passion 1 Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Quote: Originally posted by woywoy: Or is it ok to stare at anyone in Japan? woywoy, didnt you know its ok to stare at honeyz?? Maybe Im just use to being stared at (cuz of my massive masculine physiques ) or I just dont care about it anymore. There are racist people in any country but I find Japan is the least vocal about it. Link to post Share on other sites
mfurmane 0 Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 UNIT...good one...I'm gonna carry that in my back pocket. Link to post Share on other sites
scouser 4 Posted March 7, 2005 Share Posted March 7, 2005 It's rude to stare at anyone I have been told. As said above the wicked death stare often does the trick. Link to post Share on other sites
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