> the Japanese were portrayed as this unique society where you need to say "excuse me" before approaching a stranger on the street asking for directions. I agr

> the Japanese were portrayed as this unique society where you need to say "excuse me" before approaching a stranger on the street asking for directions. I agree that part is not really unique, but if you are an obvious foreigner and stare at a map in a train station for more than a few seconds, a stranger will come up and ask you if you need directions. Maybe it is just people who want a chance to practice their English, or something (since they all have to learn it in school, but do not get a lot of chances to use it in daily life). However, I have literally had someone walk me halfway across the station and wait with me on the platform to personally see me get on the right train, during the middle of commuter rush hour, even though it was not the way she was going at all. That kind of stuff only happens to me in Japan, and it happens to me there repeatedly. Of course, in the modern cellphone era, navigating Japan is not the imposing challenge for foreigners that it once was.