We talked in class about the social standards that we adjust to when we move to a new place. Like how in Tokyo it’s inappropriate to walk while you eat. There are customs and rules that we have to learn when we’re trying to assimilate into a new culture.
I learned one of these on the train the other day. This young guy was sitting next to me and he started to fall asleep. I was reading and out of the corner of my eye I could see his head bobbing. Then, slowly it started to fall in my direction until it was almost resting on my shoulder. I really wanted to tap him and make him move his head. I looked around at the people to see if they thought it was strange that this guy was falling asleep in my direction, but nobody reacted. When the train arrived at my stop I stood up carefully, so that I wouldn’t wake him and got off the train.
Maybe I’ve never been in this sort of situation, so I didn’t know how to react to it, but I felt awkward sitting there with this guy so close to me. I started watching the sleepers on my trains and I noticed that the way people react in this situation is just to sit there and let the person sleep. I watched a woman fall asleep the same way my guy had and the man next to her continued to read without reacting to her head on his shoulder. It’s very strange for me to think that a complete stranger is allowed to let their head fall almost on your shoulder, but on Tokyo subways it’s allowed.
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