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My favorite part of living in Japan was when I wanted I could not listen to what people around me were saying. Sure, if I felt like it, I could really listen to
by earthboundkid 19y ago
My favorite part of living in Japan was when I wanted I could not listen to what people around me were saying. Sure, if I felt like it, I could really listen to them and understand what they were saying (as long as it wasn't too far out of my lexicon), but if I didn't want to hear it, it all just became white noise. It makes thinking a lot easier.
- pg 19y agoYes! I like this about being in other countries too. Isn't it shocking when you arrive in an American airport after some time abroad and you can understand all the inconsequential chatter around you? There's a similar advantage to being in a country where you can't speak the language too well. When I was a student in Italy, I didn't say unnecessary things; it was too much work.
- deleted 19y ago[deleted]
- earthboundkid 19y agoIt's like that scene in a movie where the protagonist first gets his psychic powers and he can't help but read people's minds. He looks at the woman in the corner, "...OH YEAH, THEN WE SHOULD GO TO THE..." He grimaces. He looks at the boy walking by, "..SHE'S TOTALLY FINE..." He clutches his head to shut out the voices. It's just like the movie in real life, except the people are all holding cellphones.
- staunch 19y agoHah. I was just talking about this with a friend days ago. I live in Japan now. I love to sit and read alone in restaurants/cafes. I've become so accustomed to not understanding most of what's being said around me that when someone is speaking English within earshot it's ridiculously distracting. Even when I can't make out what they're saying the familiar sounds cause my brain to go nuts (in a background process) trying to interpret.