Tag Archives: Tokyo

Bowing in the Dark

The protocols for bowing in Asia are far more complicated and confusing than most Westerners, me included, can possibly understand. In Japan the meaning of a bow totally depends on the situation, depth, and length of time you hold your bow. Types of bow include the “Nod Bow,” which is about 5 degrees, the “Greeting Bow,” which is about 15 degrees, the “Respect Bow,” about 30 degrees and the “Highest Respect Bow,” which is an uncomfortable 45 degrees. When you’re born into a culture that’s been working out these details for a couple of thousand years, it’s all pretty clear. When you’re born in a Baptist hospital in ... [Read More]

The Japanese Way is Better

American literary critic and author Lionel Trilling once noted that American culture "peculiarly honors the act of blaming, which it takes as the sign of virtue and intellect.” In the movie based on Michael Crichton’s book Rising Sun, Sean Connery’s character said that, by contrast, the Japanese confront a problem by focusing on the solution, not the blame, suggesting “their way is better.” The Japanese response to the devastating 2011 earthquake and resulting tsunami and nuclear disaster at Fukushima certainly support that claim. You will recall that on March 11 a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck just off the coast of Tōhoku, sending massive waves as high as 133 feet ... [Read More]