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
This post may include affiliate links.
Eating Noodles
Slurping noodles to eat in Japan is perfectly fine and it is said that they will taste better too.
Picking Up Your Own (And Others) Trash
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!)
Japanese Service
Toilets
The toilets are always wet in Malaysia and there's always no toilet papers.
Fruits
Anybody bought the expensive Japanese fruits before? Like the melon or the insanely priced grapes...
The Last Stop
If you fall deep asleep on the bus in the US, it may be your last stop...
Vending Machines
There are vending machines almost everywhere, even at places where life-forms doesn't seem to exist.
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.
Celebrating Christmas
Strangely Japanese celebrates Christmas not with turkey and ham, but with KFC...
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...
Smartphones
You can't turn off camera shutter sound on Japanese smartphones due to privacy and upskirt photo taking.
Actually, that sounds like a good feature, they should do this with other phones.
Tattoos
If the tattoo is small, it can be covered with plaster to enter into the public bath houses or swimming pool.
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.
Active Elderly
That's so true! In see old people here and they're more active than me!
Seven Wonders Of Japanese
The 7th wonder can be found on my FB or blog.
I don't think you took the train in the summer ... I can assure you they are and look sweaty in the work suits.
Train Etiquette
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.
Sayonara
"Sayonara" means goodbye but has a sense of finality to it, so don't use it to your clients!
Stairs
There is a great number of staircases and very few escalators and lifts at smaller train stations.
Impressive Customer Service
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.
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...
Sushi Rice
Somehow sushi rice will fall off when you eat outside of Japan...
Japanese Speak English
Based on the real story at a sushi restaurant...
Kids In Trains
That's in the USA too...people letting the kids run wild on public transportation.
Bus Drivers
I always say hello & thank you to every bus driver everywhere no matter where I live. They're real people too, and they deserve to be acknowledged.
Muscle Training
You'll get to train your muscles in Japan because there's a lot of stairs, not many escalators, and lifts! So imagine all the luggage you have to carry up and down while transiting to the airport to train stations and in-between hotels...
Hiking
I really feel like melting recently...
Shinjuku Station
It is a place where Google maps fail and all hope is lost to find the specific exits...
Shinjuku station is the worst ... I always get lost ... You can even enter from a gate and leave from another ... Once you enter, you need to leave at another station (and so take the train) or go see the station staff to let you out.
Giving Way To Those Who Really Need To Use The Lifts
Not too true. It's more the order at which you arrived. If you line up for the elevator before a wheelchair comes to wait behind you, it's pretty rare that the person decides to let the handicapped person to first. The person would just enter first and try to take as less space as possible.
Introducing
We only network with a plate full of food in our hands.
Accurate Weather Forecasts
I was and still am so amazed at how the weather forecast is so good here!
Convenient Stores
I often go to convenient stores to buy bento, snacks, cakes or vegetables when I was in Japan. Sometimes I will pass by their adult magazine section and wonder if I should play a prank by browsing through it and see the reaction of customers and staff. But I wasn't brave enough and abandoned the idea...
Cyclists Are Considerate
No... In Japan too, they're not that careful and there are many accidents hurting prior walking on the sidewalk.
Promotion
Japanese companies do not let employees specialize in one skill but instead be a Jack of all trades. So even if the employee graduated from an engineering school, they will place him in sales. During the promotion, they may even transfer a sales assistant manager to Human Resource!
This is called spreading out your resources. That way if say Johnny who is the manager of sales suddenly has a heart attack and can't come back to work for a while, Steve in human resources can fill in for him.
But you also end up with people who can't do their job ...
Load More Replies...
Some businesses in America are doing this - it is called "cross-training."
A lot of people praise this idea, but the thing is, no one teaches anyone what they're supposed to be doing after these promotions/transfers. It's an absolute Godsend if your new boss actually knows anything about what your job is, but a decent chunk of the time the person has no idea what they're doing, is untrained to fill that position, and yet is expected to do everything perfectly. Because of the social customs, the person can't just admit that they don't know, because then it looks badly on the company's decision to put you there. It causes ceaseless headaches at work whenever we get personnel changes.
I'm in Training, and I want to be in HR...but they won't let me.... :-(
This is actually a very good thing. Japanese managers get a 360 degree hands-on view of the company operations making them suitable candidates for higher management roles where knowledge of company operations is essential. Western companies promote people within their narrow skill set until they reach their incompetency level.
In theory yes, but the social dynamics don't quite workout like that. I've been working here for a while and generally what happens is that a person who is inexperienced in a field ends up getting promoted into that field. Promotions more often go to people by time spent at a company, not so much merit based. Often times we'll get an older guy at work get put into a supervisor position who honestly has no idea what he's doing or how he got there when there's a younger guy who knows the ins and outs of the job like clockwork, but the company would consider him, "Too inexperienced," for the position. Anyways, new guy comes in not knowing anything about the role they're being put into, but they can't just say that they have no idea what they're doing because that would look bad on them/the people who hired them. It's a pretty common occurrence in Japan, key example, Japan's last Minister of Cyber Security had to be removed from office after it was revealed he had never owned a computer.
Load More Replies...Safety
...or in singspore, insted of leaving your bag, you can just put tissue pack on the table to "book the table"
Recycle
Though it's good to recycle...
Takeaway
I heard that no take away of leftovers from restaurants and buffet was allowed because of a major food poisoning that happened some years ago. Caterers and restaurants did not want to be liable if anything happens. Bento is ok because they have an expiry date and storage instructions on the packaging
Final Decision
Although Japanese love to have meetings to gain a common consensus, they also may decide important things among themselves and simply let the employee know their final decision without discussing with them.
In a meeting, I learnt at the same time as everyone who will be the new team lead. It was me ...
Amazing Japanese Women At Shibuya
Fashion out of Tokyo, in regular cities, is actually really plain
Name Cards
Based on my friends' real stories. Quite amazing that the CEO has to approve name cards too!
Diagonal Crossing
The diagonal crossing will no longer be the same again!
There are some places in the USA you can do this. Around UNCW and in south Seattle at the Boeing Plant.
Drawing Session
I was surprised when I attended a life drawing session in Tokyo and all the artists flipped their pages as soon as a break was announced. Perhaps the Japanese do not like to show off their work and prefer to keep things to themselves...?
Dashing Rickshaw Pullers
What do you want them to do in Singapore ? Get cosmetic surgery, on a rickshaw puller pay ?
Changing Rooms
I always dislike to try clothes during winter time and especially in Japan because you have to remove your shoes to try in their fitting room...
Train Stations
And in Japan, you can eat and drink on the train..but make sure you clean up after yourself. It's the courteous thing to do.
The Real Kitty
What if the excited girls know it's a guy beneath the costume?
Bugs
This idea was contributed by reader Kok Hong, quite interesting don't you think? Probably because of our lack of interaction with nature that causes us to freak out whenever when we see insects.
In Japan some moms hate it too, but they understand that children need to experience the real nature and share their experiences with friends
Chichen Rice Stall
Wet Napkins
So do you use the wet napkin before or after or not at all?
Why It Takes Forever For The Japanese To Decide
This is based on the true story from my Japanese friend, that they need meetings to discuss when to hold the next meeting! The consensus from everyone is important but this delays making decisions...
Taxi
Hiring Married Women
Actually, the company (?) who wrote this, Evacomics, actually is part of a monthly school magazine thing in primary schools in SG. So probs is just a joke. Anyways, as a Singaporean, I dun feel offended. Just feels relatable honestly.
Load More Replies...
This seems to basically be a "have a dig at Singapore" comic. It's just dissing Singapore. And all of Malaysia. And also the US.
This is so damn right. Unfair portrayal of these countries.
Load More Replies...
Many of the things about Japan are half truths. More like Tokyo and Singapore. Seems more appropriate then.
Becos the comic is from Sg. She telling the truth becos it is where she lives.
Load More Replies...
I do like Japan's way of keeping public spaces immaculate. It starts in school. They don't hire janitors or cleaners. The kids are responsible for keeping their school clean and well taken care of. Obviously that breeds an attitude of respect and responsibility for your environment. Maybe we should all try it.
I think I'm not happy BP deleted three comments I made immediately after I made them
A few people have made the same comment. Perhaps Bored Panda would care to comment?
Load More Replies...
I always find those post about Japan problematic. I have been living in Japan for a while. Primarily, around Tokyo, now in Kansai. However, I was always away from the city center. I use a lot of trains and have to live on a small budget. Maybe that is why I encounter a lot of dirty and stinky toilets, yes yes in Japan. I can't afford for luxury here, so my perspective is different. Also every day I meet people who break the rules, but it is not so catchy.
Seriously, people?! What's wrong with you? I have been to Japan and I confirm all is right. The author does not hate Singapore... I don't hate my country, either, but I would portray it the same way compared to Japan and many European countries. And it will be all true. Why is everybody so sensitive suddenly??? Just enjoy some fun comics. If I wanted to go to Singapore, nothing like that would stop me and I don't think that it is made with hate for Singapore.
These comics have a very bias look about japan. As much as I love japan this is not a very honest portrayal. Japan had a huge bike issue, toilets at stations are not clean, they have a huge homeless problem in the cities that the police try to hide, you have kids that can be rude on the trains, certain etiquette that seems ok to the Japanese but in reality make no sense. I've not been to Singapore but if this artist is Japanese then they are being a stereotypical Japanese person that seems to only have negative views on other Asian countries (after 8 years of living in japan I soon learnt that most Japanese don't like talking about other Asian countries unless you ended with "but of course it's not as good as japan).
A bit too Japan-o-centric and chauvinistic. To sum up the entire post "Japan is better than the rest of the world, except for a couple things."
Anyway, I personally love both countries, each one has many positive and lovely things
Really? Don’t take this seriously, guys. It’s just meant to be funny.
I learn from this comic that my country is pretty similar to Singapore.
To everyone who thinks the author is being unfair towards SG, IMHO, I believe she wrote this as somewhat of a joke and not in a complaining way.
How can the writer hate SG if she IS FROM SG! So yeah, I believe it’s just a joke.
Load More Replies...
Thank you for that interesting peek into the differences in cultural norms between Japan and other places.
Singapore reminds me of elite areas of the US. I wanna go! It'd be like home... -Dr. M
F-me! I'm moving to Japan! @author, thank you for learning me lots of new stuff! :-)
Nice insight into the life in Japan AND Singapore. I learned many things about the people of both countries.
This is not how you learn about other people and cultures.
Load More Replies... That won't change anything. "Otaku" people working in animation etc have the lowest salaries and are famously exploited. That's why they must live together as they can't pay the rent on their own. Also, "otaku" is not a nice word to use, it's kind of saying "dork".
Load More Replies... Actually, the company (?) who wrote this, Evacomics, actually is part of a monthly school magazine thing in primary schools in SG. So probs is just a joke. Anyways, as a Singaporean, I dun feel offended. Just feels relatable honestly.
Load More Replies... This seems to basically be a "have a dig at Singapore" comic. It's just dissing Singapore. And all of Malaysia. And also the US.
This is so damn right. Unfair portrayal of these countries.
Load More Replies... Many of the things about Japan are half truths. More like Tokyo and Singapore. Seems more appropriate then.
Becos the comic is from Sg. She telling the truth becos it is where she lives.
Load More Replies... I do like Japan's way of keeping public spaces immaculate. It starts in school. They don't hire janitors or cleaners. The kids are responsible for keeping their school clean and well taken care of. Obviously that breeds an attitude of respect and responsibility for your environment. Maybe we should all try it.
I think I'm not happy BP deleted three comments I made immediately after I made them
A few people have made the same comment. Perhaps Bored Panda would care to comment?
Load More Replies... I always find those post about Japan problematic. I have been living in Japan for a while. Primarily, around Tokyo, now in Kansai. However, I was always away from the city center. I use a lot of trains and have to live on a small budget. Maybe that is why I encounter a lot of dirty and stinky toilets, yes yes in Japan. I can't afford for luxury here, so my perspective is different. Also every day I meet people who break the rules, but it is not so catchy.
Seriously, people?! What's wrong with you? I have been to Japan and I confirm all is right. The author does not hate Singapore... I don't hate my country, either, but I would portray it the same way compared to Japan and many European countries. And it will be all true. Why is everybody so sensitive suddenly??? Just enjoy some fun comics. If I wanted to go to Singapore, nothing like that would stop me and I don't think that it is made with hate for Singapore.
These comics have a very bias look about japan. As much as I love japan this is not a very honest portrayal. Japan had a huge bike issue, toilets at stations are not clean, they have a huge homeless problem in the cities that the police try to hide, you have kids that can be rude on the trains, certain etiquette that seems ok to the Japanese but in reality make no sense. I've not been to Singapore but if this artist is Japanese then they are being a stereotypical Japanese person that seems to only have negative views on other Asian countries (after 8 years of living in japan I soon learnt that most Japanese don't like talking about other Asian countries unless you ended with "but of course it's not as good as japan).
A bit too Japan-o-centric and chauvinistic. To sum up the entire post "Japan is better than the rest of the world, except for a couple things."
Anyway, I personally love both countries, each one has many positive and lovely things
Really? Don’t take this seriously, guys. It’s just meant to be funny.
I learn from this comic that my country is pretty similar to Singapore.
To everyone who thinks the author is being unfair towards SG, IMHO, I believe she wrote this as somewhat of a joke and not in a complaining way.
How can the writer hate SG if she IS FROM SG! So yeah, I believe it’s just a joke.
Load More Replies... Thank you for that interesting peek into the differences in cultural norms between Japan and other places.
Singapore reminds me of elite areas of the US. I wanna go! It'd be like home... -Dr. M
F-me! I'm moving to Japan! @author, thank you for learning me lots of new stuff! :-)
Nice insight into the life in Japan AND Singapore. I learned many things about the people of both countries.
This is not how you learn about other people and cultures.
Load More Replies... That won't change anything. "Otaku" people working in animation etc have the lowest salaries and are famously exploited. That's why they must live together as they can't pay the rent on their own. Also, "otaku" is not a nice word to use, it's kind of saying "dork".
Load More Replies...
