On the train home yesterday I had a couple of strange experiences overhearing some people speaking Japanese. The first was when two high school age students got on the train and actually used me as a landmark.
“Let’s stand here in front of the gaijin so that when he gets off we can take his spot.”
I looked right at them when they said that, and I could tell the boy who said it was wondering if it was somehow possible to suck the words back into his mouth and un-say them. Sorry dude – I caught that. They still stood in front of me, and were a little disappointed that I didn’t get off the train before they did.
Two stops after that a pair of junior high school girls got on the train and were admiring my appearance out loud in Japanese.
“Foreigners are so cool, aren’t they?”
“Yes – I wish I had a tall nose like he has.”
“Where do you think he comes from?”
“I don’t know. He looks a little English.”
I tried to keep a straight face, and managed to for most of the conversation. One of the girls was staring at me, and when my head moved like I might turn in her direction, she turned away quickly. They kept this up for a while but finally I had to smile at the goofy comments, and I caught them both staring at the same time. They both started giggling, and luckily got off at the next stop, waving goodbye as they went. Once they were off the train they started screaming with laughter, and other people on the platform watched them walk away with curiosity.
So the moral of the story is that you can ride the train for six months and never hear a word about you – and then hear about yourself twice in the same day. Always interesting, the life here.
