As some of y’all may know, I’ve been away for the past 2 weeks as I’ve been travelling in Japan with 4 other close friends. Overall, it was a great experience as Japan has been one of the places I’ve always wanted to visit (and still want to go back to!) because there’s just so much to do in one country.
In this update, I wanted to touch on a few themes that I was often thinking about while I was there.
Observations
Little Things
Bowing, greetings, being quiet, noticing the people around you, not littering, accessible vending machines on every block, and heated toilet seats with bidets that play music are all small things in the grand scheme of things. But when you are visiting a new environment, these small details shape your first impression very quickly.
It made me think about how first impressions are rarely made from one grand gesture. They are usually made up of a bunch of tiny signals.
This led to me wondering how western and Japanese societies approach first impressions. I would frame it through baseline versus style.
The baseline standard for service is held extremely high in Japan. The overall society had a more “cohesive” feeling because so many little things were done well by default. The west is more of a mixed bag. It can be less consistent, but there is also more room for personality.
One specific example is with flight attendants. Japanese flight attendants were very “by the book”. However, on my flight to Tokyo with United Airlines, I had an extremely animated flight attendant who was cracking jokes, giving great service (gave me extra food!), asking what books people were reading, and striking up conversation about why he liked Project Hail Mary so much.
I would argue that this United attendant was also doing the little things really well, just in a different style. He was curious, had a positive attitude, and made the flight more enjoyable. Japanese fundamentals are second to none, but western individuality really can be special.
Familiarity
Another thing I noticed is that I am usually more engaged by things when I have some familiarity with them beforehand. The Shinkansen, Japanese watches, food (omurice + waygu specifically), and Onitsuka Tigers were all things I had looked into before the trip, so I had some anticipation built up before experiencing/buying them.
When I am introduced to something for the first time with no context, it’s hard for me to get into it. Some of the shrines and historical sights made me realize this. They were visually impressive, but I would have appreciated them more deeply if I had learned more about their history beforehand.
This same thing happens with other areas of life too. If there is an external speaker coming to speak at a company event, I am much more invested when I have researched their background, and topic most importantly. If the topic is something I resonate with, I’m more likely to be paying attention and trying my best to engage. Without prior context, information can be in one ear and out the other.
Scrolling
Being in Japan also reminded me that scrolling is not just a western thing. During mundane moments, people still defaulted to scrolling on their phones to pass time. This was not surprising, and I am guilty of it myself, but it was still interesting to notice.
While I do believe the act of passive scrolling can be beneficial in terms of broad access to information, most people are just consuming content being recommended to them by an algorithm. I think the part that is scary is that this is a very mindless thing we all do. The “default” is something that we all don’t choose to do.
Piggybacking on the Little Things I referenced above, I think some of the most meaningful moments of travel come from sitting quietly on a train looking out a window while listening to Japanese music, seeing local finance bros getting a group dinner after work, and just noticing ordinary life in another culture. These unfilled moments get missed especially if we are seeking to fill these moments with content pushed by algorithms.
The Days Are Long, But The Week Is Short
One phrase I kept saying during the trip was:
“The days are long, but the week is short.”
That was probably the best way to describe the strange relationship with time while traveling. Individual days can feel really long. Waiting in lines, walking over 20k steps, seeing many sights, and especially shopping at Don Quijote (such a stimulating store) can make the morning feel like it happened forever ago. In retrospect, it also felt like I had just landed in Japan moments ago. You can feel tired from everything you did in a single day, while also feeling like the whole week passed too quickly.
I think wearing a watch makes me more aware of this. There is something about seeing the seconds hand always moving that reminds me time is never paused.
Being aware of this contradiction makes me have immense gratitude that I got to experience this trip with the groups of friends I went with. The conversations, many inside jokes, meals, and photos that were all made/taken are the timeless takeaways that we’ll all get to keep forever.
Coming Home
One of my favourite feelings when traveling is coming back to Canada. I get this feeling whenever I land at Pearson, or when driving back across the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia. There is always a sense of relief when I am back in Canada. Home just has a grounding feeling that is hard to explain.
After Japan, one of the things I missed most was vegetables. While the food was good, I did start craving stir-fried veggies that I’d have in my diet normally.
I also enjoyed the strangely refreshing feeling of using my laptop again. I went about 10 days without using my MacBook and coming back to it felt different. There was something nice about returning to my own setup, my own routines, and the ordinary tools of my day to day life.
Travel gives me contrast and gratitude. You get to see somewhere else, but you also come home with a sharper appreciation for what was already familiar. Being back in Canada made me grateful for my routines, my food, my room, my laptop, and the ordinary structure of my life.
It also made me feel grateful that I am in a position where I can visit and experience other countries and cultures in the first place. I have the means to step outside my normal routine, spend time with friends, see a different part of the world, and then return home with a reset.
Travel is not only about seeing somewhere else. Sometimes it is also about coming home with a better appreciation for the ordinary things you did not realize you missed.
Interesting Ideas
- the dating advice that changed my life: I might sound like a hypocrite, but this was a recommended video from the YouTube algorithm (re: Scrolling haha). This is a perspective I align with much. Both falling in love and staying in love are two very different but difficult problems. This video helped me to articulate what I’ve been feeling for quite a long time now.
- Watch CNBC’s full interview with Berkshire Hathaway Chair Warren Buffett: A weird aspiration I have is that I want to buy 1 share of Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares just so I can attend the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting in Omaha one day. Even though Buffett stepped down as CEO this year, hearing this interview is a breath of fresh air. While he does yap in this interview, I do admire his wisdom around future conditions and how the biggest things in the future will always be unexpected (we’ve seen this with covid, the great depression, 2008 financial crash, world wars etc.).
- A forty-year career: One common thing I hear from friends and students who are transitioning from university into the workforce is that life becomes “repetitive” and “boring”. I really like the pace, people, prestige, profit, and learning framework into how our career really shouldn’t be boring and mundane. There is so much compounding growth to experience. This is where the fun begins!