rajeem 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 OK, since I have been in Japan I have put up with a lot of unwanted attention - people looking at me even when I'm doing nothing, just because of my skin color. Always standing out, making me more self-conscious. I've seen more of it in the last year or so, since the terrorist thing happened. Me coming from India maybe makes me look typecast in a whole new way. But I was wondering all you other foreigners thoughts on being constantly stared at and standing out in crowds. Link to post Share on other sites
nekobi 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 i think it's kinda funny when little kids stare and point at you. i always wonder what they are saying/thinking. is it like- hey look at that weirdo, or cool it's someone different. i feel like now i stare at gaijin i don't know. it's really strange to go to tokyo and see so many (well compared to nagano). Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 I don't like it. Sometimes I want to be left alone (or at least feel like I am being left alone). Link to post Share on other sites
mikazooki 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 i noticed a lot when i was fresh, but not so much now. i reckon most freshies put out a vibe which is of some interest to the locals. but this dies with age... combined with the fact some attention kinda becomes normal. i say hello to the younguns, and their mums always encourage them to say herro back Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 doesn't seem to faze me these days. When kids point at me and say "Gaijin da!" I just point back and say " Nihon Jin da!" they still haven't worked out how to react to that one! Link to post Share on other sites
Wizz 11 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 I think we just get used to it. Start thinking about it again and you notice it. Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 At my height - personally I don't think myself that big - I get stared at whereever I go so I have become numb to it all. Although the burn-through-steel type constant stare stills gets me. Faced with these type of stares I find myself often checking to see if there is a boger hanging out my nose or some other blemish of my appearance that could be the result of this. Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 I get looked at, but have come to not notice it anymore. My GF gets stared at all the time as she looks so different to Japanese women. If opportunity permits (eg sitting on a train) she now stares at the japanese persons shoes, whilst making an 'oh my god' expression. This seems to make them very uncomfortable and they stop looking her way pretty fast. I have tried it and it seems to work. Link to post Share on other sites
amandanism 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 get stared at quite often. its very common for gaijin girls my age to be stared at constantly in singapore, mainly be construction workers and old drunk men. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 I think the vibe theory is very plausible. Or it could be an olfactory thing - maybe newbies smell of butter (or ghee). If you get stared at a lot, try eating more natto and seaweed. I find that with my somewhat Japanese diet and the fact that the Japanese are too busy manipulating their mobile phones, I don't get stared at much any more. Being accused of being American used to annoy me intensely, but now I find it quite funny. Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 My response to being mistaken for an American is ... If only... as I stare mistily toward the heavens, dreaming of said promised land. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 Yes, I enjoy the feeling of being envied by mistake, even as I envy true Americans myself. Link to post Share on other sites
scoobydoo 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 I'm new to Japan and I don't like it. Makes me feel uneasy.. Link to post Share on other sites
danz 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 I've gotten used to it...but sometimes it gets on my nerves...especially when its that middle aged dude driving his toyota crown and trying to do something stupid and dangerous involving my car... sometimes I get a kick out of it...I feel like an alien or something...that's cool! danz Link to post Share on other sites
rach 1 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 I'm used to it too, but it doesn't mean I like it. Us ladies get a lot of it, much of it unwanted from real sukebe looking ojisans. Link to post Share on other sites
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