Blood Types
Michael In addition to learning the language, we also got to know about some cultural peculiarities in the Japanese course. We were surprised to find out that in Japan it is common to directly ask someone about their blood type. Belonging to A, B, O, or AB is somewhat similar in importance to zodiac signs in the Western world.
According to Japanese science, people with blood type A are supposedly very serious, determined, reliable, but also stubborn. On the other hand, carriers of blood type B show a wide range of interests, so many that they sometimes jump too quickly from one topic to the next. They are often mentally absent and do not directly seek contact with other people, but they tend to show extraordinary achievements and are usually great jokers. Carriers of blood type O bring harmony to every group, are good-natured, peaceful, loved by everyone, and appear easy-going at first glance, but can display remarkable stubbornness. Finally, people with blood type AB take great care of others and have many friends. They are strict with themselves and the people close to them, but they show a considerable amount of sentimentality towards outsiders. By the way, blood type O is predominant in America, while blood type A is the most common in Japan. Now you can guess which blood type(s) Angelika and I have -- the first correct submission will be rewarded with a self-burned newsletter CD, with which you can read all the newsletters from 1996 to 2002 on your computer without having to dial into the internet!
And I gather some more peculiarities from our course textbook: It is completely normal for Japanese people to ask how old their conversation partner is. If it is an unmarried woman over 25, the question "Why are you not married yet?" immediately follows. This is by no means intended to be rude; it is merely for conversation! If you have been married for a few years and have no children, questions like "Why don't you have children yet?" and "You should have children as soon as possible" are quite culturally common. The textbook advises against countering such questions with "That's none of your business," as it would ruin the conversation. Instead, you should view such inquiries as small talk and respond humorously or simply smile and say nothing, which is culturally perfectly acceptable.
By the way, we both passed our "Beginning 3" exam in the intense course at the Soko-Gakuen School in San Francisco's Japantown (Angelika 99%, me 90%) and are well-prepared with the essential phrases, 250 Hiragana/Katakana, and 80 Kanji characters for our immanent trip to Japan. Sometimes, our Japanese teacher even praises us -- my favorite quote by her: "Very good! -- for this level."
