Life in Japan is quite different from back home in the States, and there were many things I needed to get used to when I came here in 1991. Constantly standing out as “the gaijin” was one, and getting used to children looking at me as if I were wearing a clown suit or something. Becoming comfortable being in smaller spaces. Learning not to flinch at paying $2 for a newspaper or a video game in a game center or around $5 for the equivalent of a gallon of gas. But there were good things, too, such as learning to take really good service in restaurants or shops for granted, since being treated well is the norm here in Japan. Forgetting the smell of gasoline on my hands thanks to most service stations being full service, like something from Back to the Future, isn’t bad either.
Gas stations in Japan are usually full service, and always awesome.
