Encounters with Japanese in Europe

Soon after I wandered groggily out of Hlavi Nadrazi, the main Prague train station, after an overnight journey from the Netherlands, I was accosted by a stranger. No, not a tout. Not even a prostitute, despite rumours that many were to be found around Wenceslas Square. It was an older Japanese lady, and she was waving a camera in my face and gesturing at her family. "Sumimasen..." she said with a sweet smile. What was I to do but drop my 40 pound backpack to the ground, take the camera, and give it my best "Hai, Cheezu!"

Yes, the Japanese were all over Europe. In Amsterdam, they clutched their guidebooks along the canals and in the Van Gogh Museum. Large groups milled around the Old Town in Prague. When I went with some friends to Bohumil Hrabal's favorite hangout "U Zlateho tygra", it was completely full. Most of the patrons were men in large groups, who seemed to be regulars, but there was one notable exception. At a table in the center of the pub were two Japanese women, clearly mother and daughter. They were enjoying their large mugs of beer, but with a restraint and delicacy that contrasted with all the other folks in this noisy, smoky pub. (At that moment I envied them, because, gosh darn it, I wanted their table!) A few days later, New Year's Eve in Bratislava, while once again hoofing it from the train station to the hotel, I ran into a group of about twelve elderly Japanese tourists. Hey, it's New Year's Eve. Didn't they have better things to do for O-shogatsu -- like preparing O-sechi ryori or some other tradition?

A few days later, I was on the Stansted Express heading into London, tired after several days of travel. The train was packed, standing room only. A couple and their kindergarten-age daughter were occupying some seats near where I stood. The wife was reading a Dan Brown novel "Angels and Demons" but I could tell the family was from Japan. She noticed me, told her husband in Japanese to move their belongings, then gestured. I accepted their kindness, and sat down with a smile.