Cars in Japan are crazy. As you who have been following me since the beginning should know, I was terrified by Okaasan Prime's driving. It was all I could do to keep my fingers from digging into the upholstery. And this wasn't just because of Okaasan Prime's driving--the roads are super narrow here and the corners are super tight. Bikes pay attention to no man and zoom around everywhere; not to mention the pedestrians! Sitting shotgun is almost as much as a heart attack as sitting in the driver's seat must be!
But Sarah, you gently say, surely someone of your dramatic status (you drama queen, you) must be exaggerating? It can't possibly be that bad.
I submit to you doubters, Exhibit A: Mirrors.
The streets are so narrow that they place large posts with curved mirrors on the top so you can see who's coming around the corner, because you can't see otherwise.
Still not convinced? Exhibit B: Stop lines
The stop lines are a full ten feet or so from the crosswalk--this is so that when large things (such as buses) make a turn, they don't accidentally crash into a close car and cause unseemly carnage.
And now the piece de résistance, Exhibit C: Video footage.
That, right there, is a two lane street with “sidewalks” on both sides. Never mind the chatter--Okaasan Prime and I were talking about what my friends and I were planning to do. What you hear is the sound of my incompetence--I couldn't understand what she was asking at the time. :(
And now about cars (written actually quite a while ago, but I wanted a major big post on cars):
Cars are different in Japan, at least compared to America. For one thing, they’re way more compact, and look kinda squished next to the cars I see in America. Another thing is that their side mirrors fold inward when the car is parked. This makes for more parking spaces, I think? Anyway, I think it’s pretty nifty! Also, the drivers are INSANE. But that’s okay, everyone else is too. I live in constant fear of getting smushed be it by car, bicycle, moped, or pedestrian. XD Also, when Okaasan Prime drives, she wears these long black gloves. It’s all very 1930sish.
One interesting thing about parking in Japan that I’ve noticed is that they park with the front end of the car pointing out. In America, we usually park with the trunk to the front, so if we have groceries we can put them in the trunk, etc. We also just drive into our garages; in Japan they back into them. I believe this is to compensate for the absolute lack of a driveway.
Also, for gas stops (at least the ones Okaasan Prime goes to), it’s like we’re still in the fifties! There’s people who fill up your gas for you, wash the car as you wait, and even take your credit card to the machine so you don’t have to get out (I’m a little wary of the last one, but I think that’ s just my paranoia kicking in)!
As I’ve said before the streets are very narrow here (especially for two-lane streets!) and sometimes it feels like there’s no sidewalks at all! To compensate for the very sharp turns, in Japan they have these curved mirrors that are at almost every intersection, so you can see the traffic coming. Again, isn’t it nifty!
And the stop signs are triangles. I think that was one of the biggest shocks. My friendly octagon was replaced by a triangle. Scary, man, scary.
And the highways are pretty weird as well. They have walls around them. When I asked Okaasan Prime why, she told me it was for people's privacy.
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| I'm not even joking! |
Someone once told me the walls were because of high winds. When I lived near Nagoya (no idea about the roads around here, but they're probably the same), the highways were really high up so they were more susceptible to high winds.
ReplyDeleteAlso I swear barely anyone else notices the backing-into-parking-spaces thing! I've never ever had to do that in America.