**This is a guest post from my wonderful friend, Kalyn Kinomoto who is living in Japan now. You can read about more of her experiences at www.mochiandmunchkins.wordpress.com**

Japan is a wonderful place to—as I’m learning first-hand—live and work. In the short three months that I’ve been in the country, there have been many instances of culture adjustments. I hesitate to call it “culture shock” because honestly, I haven’t been too shocked about anything; it’s more of an adjustment to what I knew as normal.

As a disclaimer, the following insights are my own and don’t necessarily speak for the entire country of Japan. I’m a native of the suburbs of Seattle and Japan is quite different, but I am also half-Japanese, so some of it is just like second-nature.

Unlike living in a large, entertainment-driven metropolis like Tokyo, I’m currently living and working in the Gunma prefecture, which is about two hours by bus, car or train from Tokyo. It is a relatively rural, landlocked mountainous and agricultural region that is known for being one of the hottest areas in the country. Great! I love hot and humid.

So now for the “culture adjustments” and differences between Japan and the States:

• Everything comes wrapped. Doesn’t matter if you want carrots or strawberries, melon or potatoes, everything is wrapped in cellophane. It’s not a bad thing, but it is just so weird to see so much plastic everywhere.

• Garbage is serious business. If you think sorting recyclables from non-recyclables in the States is pointless and tedious, welcome to Japan, where they sort every type of garbage. Burnables, non-burnables, recycling, plastic garbage, plastic recycling, bulky items, toxic items, etc. And to add to the sorting, each different type of garbage is collected on a different day; sometimes weekly and others monthly.

• Timing is everything. The Japanese are very punctual. They don’t necessarily start things early, but they are never late. Whether it is a work meeting, the start or finish of a class, or even the public transportation, if it’s supposed to start/finish/leave at a certain time, you best be sure you’re ready at that exact time. A few weekends ago, I took the bus to Tokyo. It was scheduled to depart at 6 a.m. and we were literally driving away at 6 a.m. I’ve only been on a delayed train once, and it was due to a thunderstorm.

• Auld Lang Syne (commonly known in the States as the tune that welcomes a new year) plays in nearly every store to signal closing time. Grocery stores, department stores, even the school I work for, plays the tune over the PA systems to let everyone know it’s time to go home.

• Convenience stores are actually convenient. I can buy a decent sushi lunch at the same time as I pay my utilities—all at 7-Eleven (or a number of Japan’s other convenience stores, including Family Mart, Save-On, etc.).

Speaking of bills, they’re easy to pay in Japan. Because the country is mostly cash society, it’s common to get bills that have a barcode on them. You can take these bills to the convenience store and pay all at one time. Oh, and my bank account is hosted by the Post Office. So far, my experience in Japan has been great. I love the food (I failed to mention until now, that you don’t tip at restaurants. It’s cheaper to eat out than it is to buy groceries) and I love how simple most things are. I’m hoping that in the year that I have here, that I’ll be able to explore more of this country. Like almost any other country, there are so many diverse things in the neighboring regions.

Have you traveled to Japan? What was your favorite experience?