Expect to carry your trash with you. Eating while walking is considered bad mannered. Sit down or at least stand in a place away from pedestrian traffic when enjoying a meal or snack. Eating while walking can lead to troubles when food soils the clothes of passers-by, is a cause of littering and annoys the locals.
Pedestrians should stay on the sidewalk wherever there is one. Where there is no sidewalk, pedestrians should walk on the right side of the road. Pedestrians should follow the pedestrian signals when crossing at an intersection that has traffic lights.
Walking and eating in Japan
Japanese tend not to eat while walking along or standing around on the street. However, it is acceptable to drink while standing aside a vending machine. Eating and drinking on local trains, but not long distance express trains, is also frowned upon.
Pointing at people or things is considered rude in Japan. Instead of using a finger to point at something, the Japanese use a hand to gently wave at what they would like to indicate. When referring to themselves, people will use their forefinger to touch their nose instead of pointing at themselves.
In Japan, it is considered bad manners to leave food behind in restaurants. This is because leaving something that was made for you is considered disrespectful to the person who made it.
So, if you want to introduce yourself to a person you meet in Japan, do not say “Hi, my name is Mark-san” or “I'm John Smith-san.” That is just wrong. Saying that makes you sound like a child and look silly. The correct way is to just say “Hi, my name is Mark” or “I'm John Smith.”
There are many taboos in speaking in Japan, such as saying “bitter” or “death”. Even some words of homophonic are also taboo, such as the pronunciation of the word “4” (shi), which is pronounced the same as death (shi), or the pronunciation of “42” (shi-ni) which sounds the same as “to die”.
In Japan, crossing one's legs is seen as disrespectful. It is because when you do this you show the bottom of your feet to guests, and since they have picked up dirt, you are showing that dirt to your guests. This makes for very bad business relations.
In Japan it's considered rude to yawn openly. Happily, you at least get to cover your mouth if you can't stop that yawn ... Prolonged eye contact (staring) is considered rude. Don't show affection, such as hugging or shoulder slapping, in public.
In Japan, touching another person's body is considered rude, even with friends or family. Hugging and kissing are mostly for couples. Our editor Kanako said that she's never hugged any of her family members as a grown woman. She hugs her foreign friends but not the Japanese ones.
If you are not wearing socks, it is polite to bring a fresh pair of socks to wear after removing your outdoor shoes because entering someone's house barefoot is not considered well mannered, although acceptable in informal situations.
Eating while walking outside is frowned upon in Japan. In fact, eating almost anywhere other than a designated eating area is frowned upon. If you've ever taken a stroll outside in Japan, you'll probably notice that nobody is eating anything. It's also very rare for the Japanese to walk outside holding coffees.
Eating and Walking in Japan: Stay Where You Are!
Eating while walking is a big no-no for most Japanese–even children enjoying an ice cream are often told to sit down before consuming food. That being said, summertime sees an explosion of street food stalls, especially during the festival season.
Crime. Although Japan is considered a very safe destination for tourists, you should still use your common sense to avoid trouble. We recommend a few simple precautions to keep you safe on your travels: Avoid going out by yourself at night to quiet or unlit areas, especially when you don't know your way around.
In Japan, when approaching a traffic signal that is red, all cars traveling straight ahead, turning left, and turning right must stop and wait until the signal turns green. If there are pedestrians ahead of the place you turn left or right, they have right-of-way.
Aside from crime prevention issues, Japanese laws on drinking in public are generally relaxed. This means that it is legal to drink in public in Japan. You're able to consume alcohol in parks, at the station or – while frowned upon in most social circumstances – even inside a train.
The Japanese are unfailingly polite. Usually very helpful. (To be fair, the odds of them inviting an unknown fellow Japanese for a cuppa are also ... Smiling is fine even though it is not customary in Japan.
In fact, in Japanese culture, people are taught not to maintain eye contact with others because too much eye contact is often considered disrespectful.
PDA or public displays of affection might be common in your country but in Japan most couples will avoid kissing or hugging in public. Holding hands is popular, though. Even when first meeting up with a girlfriend or boyfriend or saying goodbye at the end of the night, Japanese people rarely hug or kiss.
Pointing the finger is considered rude in Japanese culture because the person pointing is associated with explicitly calling out the other individual for their wrong behavior or actions.
Holding hands is okay. In smaller towns, you might get a dirty look if you're walking with an arm around your partner. Try to avoid snuggling up on a public bench, in queues or at restaurants. And don't stare lovingly into each other's eyes when others are around.
There are no legal or social rules against wearing shorts in Japan. It is very common to see other tourists wearing shorts in the major cities, especially in the summer; due to the sometimes extreme Asian heat.
“Talking about menstruation used to be a taboo subject. But social recognition is changing,” said an official from a sanitary product maker that offers seminars on the issue. The topic is being broached more regularly due to organizations wanting to help women navigate their lives around their cycles.
There are 3 Types of Taboos: cultural, religious, and food. Cultural Taboos – A cultural taboo is something that is considered inappropriate to do or discuss within a specific cultural or sub-cultural group.
However, what one society considers critical as a taboo may be irrelevant in the next society. There are four major types of taboos namely religious taboos, social taboos, legal taboos and sexual taboos.