The Happy List: #1

I love how people actually SMILE here. Not all the time, mind you. People don't walk around like Cheshire cats grinning like maniacs. But, the wonderful thing here is that people will smile and they usually won't GLARE at you for smiling while you walk to work.

You make eye contact with someone, they may actually smile shyly at you. If you smile, then they may smile at you. If any of you remember when I was living in between Tokyo and Chiba, my first week of orientation I almost cried one day because as an Iowan I have the habit of smiling at people when I make eye contact. I mean for crying out loud, I come from a place where I lot of people will WAVE or at least wave their fingers at the people driving past, wave at the tractor that's gotten over so we can pass, or stop in the middle of a sleepy road to talk to your friend (because you live somewhere so small you can recognize your friends by their cars). Let's just say that the habit is a bit... ingrained.

So in Japan when I would smile, most people would look shocked, embarrassed, disturbed, even angry — that, or they would quickly ignore me by looking off to the side. There it's not normal to smile like that. I had to learn that and I got used to it, and it's fine really, but it was an adjustment. Here though, I don't feel like people feel uncomfortable when I smile at them. I was walking to work the other day and a young guy working at a little restaurant saw me through the window and smiled at me — for no other reason than our eyes had met.

As a smiley, happy person, I LOVE that I can smile freely and sometimes get a reciprocal reaction. It makes my day every time! :D