Here are my dislikes about Japan. Most fall in the category of being irritating or inconvenient, but aren’t show stoppers. Read down further for my likes. They greatly exceed my dislikes.

• Strangers bumping into you and never saying “excuse me” afterwards. Sometimes bumping someone is just carelessness on a crowded sidewalk or in a busy train station but sometimes not. For example, people will push you from behind to get by without the slightest hesitation or apology such as “Excuse me, I would like to get by” (or something in Japanese like “Sumimasen” or “Shitsurei shimasu”). Even little old ladies do it. It’s not just done to foreigners; Japanese do it to each other. If you did this in the US you’d get yelled at or even punched. This is really irritating and it happens constantly.

• UPDATED AUG 2017: There’s no chivalry in Japan. Men don’t hold doors for women. Men often have their wives carry their packages for them. Seats on trains for seniors are filled with 20 year olds (pretending to be asleep). People arriving at the same time at a door don’t pause and offer the other person the chance to go first. They race to beat the other person to it (regardless of gender or age). The exception to this: Japanese drivers. There are some rude drivers, but most are very considerate of letting other drivers in, turning down headlights at intersections and waiting for pedestrians.
• Tiny apartments and high rent
• Incredibly expensive electric bills
• No “doggy bags” at restaurants. Eat it or lose it.
• UPDATED AUG 2017: Addresses that are nearly impossible to find. Guess what? Japanese addresses don’t include a street name! You can’t just find a street and then look for the number of your destination. Addresses here are based on districts and numbered subdistricts, and don’t include a street reference. It is nearly impossible to find a destination without a GPS (or an iPhone with a good mapping program).
• UPDATED AUG 2017: Not only are addresses nearly impossible to find, there may be more than one building with the exact same address. My home address (a small house) is the same exact address as my neighbor’s house, and their neighbor’s (which is an apartment building).
• Not much chance to meet people with whom you don’t work (they don’t have time because of long working hours and the expectation that they must socialize with co-workers in their free time)
• Japanese are very shy and will almost never converse with a stranger (in English or Japanese), except for good Samaritans that stop to help out foreigners standing around with maps looking totally lost (they usually are).
• Japanese can be excessively private. They will often tell you what they think you want to hear rather than what they really think. They will almost never invite you to their home or introduce you to their family or friends. Mostly it’s because homes are too small and likely cluttered, but in any case it makes it hard for foreigners to meet and get to know people in Japan.
• Crazy amounts of paperwork for everything. If you make the slightest error, you have to begin from scratch.
• Bureaucracy and an obsessive following of rules that make no sense (by the way, most Japanese agree with this)

The following are more serious issues, mostly affecting the Japanese workplace:

• Some unpleasant work environments. Japanese follow a management style that allows/encourages bosses to yell at subordinates, even in front of others. Few workplaces have privacy. They are organized into one room bullpens with desks lined up by one’s position in the hierarchy.

• No protection against discrimination for race, age, ethnicity, gender or anything else. Your job can be at risk if you get divorced or have some other personal issue unrelated to work. No whistle blowing in Japan, for sure.
• The pay structure is usually based on age, not achievement.
• Very difficult to change jobs. Hard to find work if you are middle aged.
• Male chauvinism/sexism in employment. Women get more menial positions and lower pay. The most common job for a woman in a company is an O.L. which stands for Office Lady. This is basically a support job that only lasts until a woman gets married; it is not a career position.

Office lady - Wikipedia

• Low minimum wage. As low as $5 or $6 an hour. How do you survive on that with the high cost of living in Japan and with no income from tips?
• Japanese sometimes work themselves to death in Japan trying to satisfy their boss. Literally die. It’s called “karoushi” or “karoshi”. See below for a link. Also there are many suicides by jumping in front of trains

Karōshi - Wikipedia

UPDATED Aug 2017: A comprehensive answer about the down side of the Japanese workplace was written by Misha Yurchenko (ユルチェンコ ミーシャ), whose essays I highly recommend. Here is the link:

Misha Yurchenko (ユルチェンコ ミーシャ)'s answer to Is Japan a depressed nation?

Outside the Japanese workplace, here are three issues that get to me.

• A tolerance for killing whales and dolphins; whale meat is often sold in markets. I just don’t believe in killing such highly intelligent animals. It wouldn’t surprise me if whales and dolphins were way more intelligent than those who are butchering them. See below for a sample in a Japanese market. The label くじら= kujira (whale).

• A fondness for raw horse meat sashimi in some parts of Japan (called “basashi”馬刺し). I don’t believe in killing animals we love as pets. Along those lines, I’m terribly saddened that dogs and cats are killed and eaten in certain other Asian countries (not Japan). Monkeys, too. This just isn’t civilized. The label 馬刺し = basashi (horsemeat).

• An unwillingness to fully accept responsibility for past war crimes or war aggression (the government still doesn’t own up to Pearl Harbor or allow accurate history books to be published). This topic is taboo to discuss. At least, I’d feel extremely uncomfortable bringing it up.

OK. Here are my “likes.” They overwhelm my “dislikes”. I love living in Japan and love being part of the Japanese community, despite the negatives and despite how difficult it is for me to read kanji (but I keep trying).

Safety and consideration in personal interactions. Zen-like (every one of these stands in stark contrast to the opposite situation in the West):

• Almost no gun deaths
• No muggings or attacks; safe even for women walking alone at night
• Not confrontational at a personal level
• Comfortable with silence. Japanese don’t feel the need to talk nonstop or play loud music. This is a great place for introspective people. Groups of women or school kids are the exception. They are talkative and loud!
• Except for teens trying to impress each other, Japanese speak with a soft voice, unlike Americans who think they have to project their voice at all times as if that makes them more important and their opinions more valid.
• Polite and helpful, except for the part about strangers bumping into you in crowded places and not saying “Excuse me.”

• Very hesitant to complain or criticize others. The act of complaining is considered more impolite than whatever it is the person wanted to complain about.
• Not opinionated/judgmental. Willing to say “I don’t know”. This contrasts with people in the West that will give an opinion to anyone about anything, anytime, regardless of how ignorant that opinion is or how insensitive. Americans don’t even need to be asked their opinion. They are eager to volunteer it.
• Japanese don’t like or use sarcasm.
• Genuinely humble (except for managers senior to you at your job and except for bureaucrats)
• Willing to wait in line without butting in

• Honest. Very little theft. Recently, there have been some scams, though, and my apartment was once burgled when I was traveling, but this is rare. Hint: don’t tell your newspaper delivery service in Japan you plan to be out of town.
• Consideration when using cell phones around others. When Japanese do use a cell phone, they almost whisper into it; they don’t yell into it, and they don’t use a cell phone in trains or restaurants except in designated areas away from others.
• No boom boxes
• Supermarkets play classical music in the background while you shop (at least ours does)
• Helpful police assistance and good community relations with police via locations known as Koban (Police “boxes”, often near train or subway stations)

• More polite when drinking alcohol. For some reason, Japanese do not become aggressive and start arguments/fights in bars (or on airlines). They just get a bit silly. (If only that was universal.)
• No tipping!!! Employees would be fired if they accepted a tip
• Great service and attitude in stores, restaurants, hotels and taxis even without tipping.

Personally, I think all that tipping accomplishes is to create hostility between server and customer.

Other great traditions

• Clean. Almost no graffiti
• Ofuro (tub at home)

• Onsen (soaking at a hot spring)

• Beautiful gardens and a love of nature
• A fantastic delivery service (takkyubin)
• Great public transportation. Trains and subways actually run on time and are safe to ride. Bullet trains (shinkansen) are terrific, too (but pricey).
• Fun and challenging GO Game Clubs. GO is called Igo here (look for the characters 囲碁). It is every bit as hard as Chess, probably more so. Don’t expect to find anyone at an Igo Club that speaks English, though. You won’t hear any trash talk, either. Highly recommended.

• Sumo tournaments

• Sushi and sashimi

• An excellent medical care system (but expect long waits at the doctor’s office or hospital. Bring a book)
• Japanese sake (the sake you get in the US is total swill). My favorite is bakuren (ginjou red)(ばくれん 吟醸 赤)

• Wonderful Japanese beer (Suntory Premium Malt’s is my favorite). They have IPA beer here, too, which is also excellent.
• Enka music. This is an acquired taste. I acquired it for sure.
• Japanese noodles and noodle shops (no, Cup Noodles doesn’t count)

• Japanese humor. Japanese comedians make jokes about themselves or behave in a silly way to get laughs, rather than laughing at, making fun of or insulting others (the way Western comedians do it). What’s funny about hearing someone get insulted, anyway?

Update from readers:

• Washlets - a great addition to your bathroom (compliments of User-13526761155537460099)!!!