Culture Shock in - Scotland

Table of Contents

This was translated from the original Japanese written from the perspective of Konatsu (my girlfriend) with a few comments added from my perspective (Ross, the translator). Now on with the article.

My second and third times leaving Japan were on a trip by myself to Scotland. There I spent a month with each time with my partner (Ross) and his family, so this article is about the cultural differences I found between the two countries.

Transport

Since neither of us own a driving license we got around by train and bus in Scotland. Ross' house is a little far from the train station by foot and so we usually used the bus, but even then it was still a 6 minute walk. In Japan, I live right beside a train station so I wasn't used to being so far from the closest station.

On days that we went into town and ate dinner we would sometimes get the train back home and if it was late Ross' Mum would come to pick us up in the car. This really surprised me as I had never considered getting the car home from the closest station (because my home in Japan is so close), so I was so grateful. On other rainy days when we had been hiking, we got a lift back home too. Even when we went on a trip in Scotland we initially went by car up to a train station in the north of Scotland where we continued by train. I'm so thankful to Ross' parents for helping us so much.

This might not be a culture shock as such but in Japan, if you are going anywhere it is almost a given that you will just take the train because there are so many stations all over the place. I'm so grateful that I can go almost anywhere in Japan just by public transport.

Food

Food was a huge part of the culture shock I had during my trips. To me food is super important, it's all I can think about most of the time. My first meal in Scotland was lasagna that Ross' Dad made and it was so delicious, I'm glad I got to eat it this year too. It was served on a single plate and we could help ourselves to fries (or chips in the UK). Almost everyday dinner was served on a single plate, but in Japan (at least in my family), we always eat lots of courses on lots of smaller plates. Rice in a bowl, miso soup in a bowl, then other plates for different types of food that we can help ourselves to throughout the meal. Having everything on one big plate was very foreign to me.

Because I had been on a long flight I really wanted to eat some salad so we bought some at the supermarket, but right as I went to eat it I asked for some dressing and there wasn't any. There was some salad cream that I had never heard of before, maybe we have the same product in Japan but I have never seen it before. Eating salad seems less common with most meals here, whereas in Japan we often have a side of salad with meals.

Of course, I knew that eating with a fork and knife was normal in the UK and most western cultures, but surely it's easier to eat a salad with chopsticks? Fortunately, by the end of my stay, I had gotten so good at eating with a fork and knife I didn't even have much bother eating salad with them.

In Japan when someone says pasta, most of the time they are referring to long spaghetti style pasta, but this wasn't the case abroad. I thought that short pasta was just called macaroni, but there are so many different types.

There are still so many things that I want to write about different types of food so I think I will definitely write more at another time.

Private room, private time

In Japan, I don't have a room that I can call my own. I have my own desk but that room is shared with my sister. However, in Ross' house, everyone has their own room. Ever since I was young all I wanted was my own room, but this made me realize how much time I spend in the living room with my family.

Everyone having their own private room also means that everyone has their own private space and time. But this wasn't what surprised me (plenty of people in Japan have their own rooms too), but what surprised me was eating meals in those rooms. In my house, we always eat together at the dining table and so I have never even considered eating meals in separate rooms before. Most of the time when eating we would go to Ross' room and watch netflix during dinner. It was such a relaxing way to eat since I could eat at my own pace. But I enjoyed both ways of eating, although I wasn't very good at eating without a table using the large plates ad a fork and knife.

[Translator comment] We do sometimes eat together downstairs, it mostly depends on who is working since my parents work shifts. Also Kona's own pace fo eating is much slower than mine :D

During most of the day, Ross and his siblings would do their own thing, working, playing games, studying, watching stuff, etc. It made me think that this style of living must help improve independence a lot more than a traditional Japanese house would. Managing your time, decorating your room, and looking after pets all on your own.

Ross' sister has a rabbit, his brother has a pet snake and they both look after them in their own rooms. When I imagine a pet I always think of it being a family pet, but when Ross says "my sisters rabbit" that always surprises me a little. But if you think about it it's true, she always looks after it in her own room and it is ultimately her responsibility and so speaking about it that way makes sense. Also, the rabbit is so cute as it hops around the house.

House

The houses reminded me so much of houses that I see in foreign dramas on TV, I was so surprised by the size of the kitchen. On-suite bathrooms and the bed taking up most of the room made me really feel like I was in a foreign country.

I had thought that in the west wearing shoes inside was normal, however, this seems to be slightly wrong, at least in Ross' house it was. Everyone took their shoes off when they entered the house, but if for example someone was about to leave with their shoes on and had to go back upstairs to get something, walking in the house with shoes on wasn't a huge problem. Also, indoor sandals or slippers could be worn outside if it was just in the back garden. So although wearing shoes inside isn't forbidden like it is in Japan, it is just viewed as more comfortable to take them off.

Something that I thought was particularly lovely was the fireplace in the living room. It was a lovely room when the fire was warm, relaxing in comfy sofas with a lovely glass table in the centre. It felt like a reception room in a mansion. There aren't many fireplaces in Japanese buildings so it felt really special, and then in the evening sometimes candles would be lit and everything felt so cosy.

In Ross' room, the bed quilt and curtains were a matching design and it made the room feel really lovely. In Japan, I sleep in a tatami room on a futon so I don't have a chance to match things like that. By the way, Ross' Mum made the bed cover and curtains by herself and also made me and my family face masks as well as teaching me lots of baking recipes.

[Translator comment] Japan has some really small kitchens and they often don't even have ovens. Also, a futon is not a western couch style futon but instead a rollable thin mattress that is used on the floor.

Supermarket

I love exploring other country's supermarkets. Just wandering around is so much interesting since there are so many products I have never seen before. What surprised me about Scottish supermarkets in particular was:

• Cashless payment (not just supermarkets)
• Scottish items
• Tiny fish section
• Cake section

Cashless payment was common everywhere we went, but in the supermarket, there was something even more than just contactless payments. Instead of lining up at a register for someone to scan every item at the end, you do it as you go. Before you put an item int he trolley you just scan the barcode on a small device and it gets added. Then at the end, it's as simple as paying the total. I wish we had something that simple and quick to use in Japan.

Also using eco bags was just the normal option in Scotland, everyone just brought their own bag. This is something just starting in Japan so I was surprised to see so many people using the system here.

In the supermarket, there was a separate section just for products that were specifically made in Scotland. There were, of course, lots of items and produce made in Scotland but this area was dedicated to just that. Scottish people seem to be very proud of their nationality and I loved browsing these sections.

The fish corner was such a tiny wee section, it was just a small corner in the supermarket. I knew that fish was not as popular here as in Japan, but this tiny fish area really surprised me. Also, it was quite expensive. I ate some really tasty fish in Scotland when we travelled so it made me wonder why fish is not eaten more regularly in daily life.

Most of the cakes in Japan are topped using fresh cream and so need to be stored in cold areas of department stores or supermarkets. So I was very surprised to see all the cakes next to the sweets aisle. it turns out they are made using icing instead of cream and so they can be stored at room temperature. Despite this, they had so many cute designs and characters on them. When I tried a cake like this it was completely different from Japanese cakes, and I think I preferred the fresh cream versions more.

Summary

Everything I have written up to this point isn't necessarily just differences between Japan and Scotland, a lot of these differences might just be differences in how Ross and I have been raised and are not necessarily true for the entirety of each country. I wonder what is normal. A better title might have been "Culture shock - Ross' house".

I still have lots of experiences and memories that I want to write about.

Thank you so much for reading, see you next time :)