Traveling abroad and actually living abroad are very different, and when you live abroad, there are many things that reaffirm the appeal of Japan. Here, I will introduce the goodness of Japan through my life in Rome, Italy.
Always accurate
Bus and train
I feel that Japanese public transportation is great when living abroad. There are times when you feel stress like a crowded train, but it’s still convenient and beautiful. More accurate than time. I think that Japan is the only country where apology announcements flow after a few minutes of delay.
Italian buses and trains never come in the right time. In particular, it is a daily routine that the bus does not come for 30 minutes although it says every 15 minutes. Of course, there is no apology announcement. There are many strikes and the transportation network may stop. The chairs are broken in the car, the air conditioner is not working, and the spray graffiti on the subway may be terrible.
Italian public transport seems to be a hard work with a thin salary. Therefore, the driver is not motivated and it is useless to complain. The only thing you have to do is to make sure you leave with plenty of room and not get frustrated.
Office work
If you have any questions about the procedures or documents, in Japan, you can get the correct answer when you contact the municipal office. Things are easy to solve. In Japan, employee education and organizational rules are thorough, and things go very smoothly.
Italian office work is really better than in Japan. The police and fire / emergency relations work well in emergency situations and are encouraging, but we can see coffee drinking and serving gelato outside from the morning. Some soldiers keep a gun with one hand while eating a kit cut. My husband is Italian, but my husband doesn’t seem uncomfortable.
Even civil servants have different things to say, and there are many things that are answered appropriately. When I called the phone number written on the documents of a public institution, I was told that “this number is not used now”, and I was really shocked at that time. I thought Japan was a wonderfully smooth country.
Service is quick and smooth
Home delivery system
In Japan, when a package arrives in the absence, the contact information for re-delivery appears on the absence slip. It will be delivered within the day at the earliest. Of course, the problem of excessive service has been pointed out recently, but when I was in Japan, I thought this service was normal.
In Italy, if you have an absent card, you must go to the designated place on the following day. Such a system is not limited to Italy, but rather common in many countries. Normal courier service will not deliver again. Heavy luggage is hard.
If you know the day to arrive in advance, you have to wait at home until the day arrives. Mysteriously, things often arrive when you go out a little.
Quick response to repair requests
For example, in Japan, there are many companies that can respond immediately even if it is a public holiday if the kitchen water supply has to be repaired. Furthermore, it will be resolved on the same day or the next day.
On the other hand, this is not the case in Italy. Let’s say that the leak occurred on December 20th. Then, even if the phone is connected, the merchant goes on Christmas holiday, so it is said that it is a new year response at the earliest. Of course, on weekends and other holidays, there are many things that cannot be called. Unless you are a friend, you have to give up and wait.
Accurate change
Whether fishing will come back
When you shop in Japan, your fishing changes will come back first. Even if it is slightly different, it will be corrected as soon as it is pointed out, and even if you make a mistake, the clerk did not do it on purpose.
In Italian supermarkets, there is a lot of money that can be deceived in fine yen. If there is no change in the cash register, it is often troublesome. For example, let’s say you made € 5 for a € 4.98 account. If you do so, you may not get a change. There are times when we start accounting for the next customer.
There may be times when you say “Please wait and give me a change”, but there are many things that were said to be bad without saying “I’m sorry, I don’t have fine money now”.
However, the reverse is also true. For example, when paying € 5.03, if you give € 10, you may be asked if you do n’t have 3 cents and answer that you do n’t have it. In this case, for example, you will return as € 5 fishing. Speaking often, it’s flexible, but not accurate.
Realizing good parts about your country
If you go abroad, you may learn only the elements of that country. Because tourist sites are designed to be comfortable for tourists, you don’t have to see bad things.
However, when you actually live in that country, there are many things that you will notice in your country. Even if I was in Japan and I didn’t realize it was a natural thing, I feel very grateful now.
Building on the goodness of your own country may be one of the best things about living abroad.
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