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> In Japan it's very much frowned upon to talk on the train, at least in Tokyo. I kind of like that system. My experience was different. Random people started
by azatris 12y ago
> In Japan it's very much frowned upon to talk on the train, at least in Tokyo. I kind of like that system.
My experience was different. Random people started conversations with me, including a coy girl on the shinkansen, even though her English was as good as my non-existant Japanese. I'm pretty sure it depends on how inviting you look for conversations. I mostly had a dumb smile on throughout my trip, so I guess they liked that.
- ersii 12y agoI would say riding a local commuter train (ie. on the JR Yamanote-line in Tokyo) versus long-distance (ie. the bullet train/shinkansen) might be a sufficient different environment that talking is more accepted. As long as one isn't overly loud, of course. If you're outside of one of the "quiet zones" (like the local commuter trains or the subway); I find that people are really warm and friendly and doesn't mind talking for a while or helping you out a bit. I guess it helped a lot that I spoke some bare minimal Japanese (to the point where some started talking English to me, as the conversations approached more medium/advanced territory).