Japan Fashion: Winter '13 edition

Remember that rule about dress yourself warmly for winter and then take an article off?

In Japan's case that article is a hat...or maybe brain.
Apparently skirts and mini skirts never go out of fashion. It was snowing the other day and I just watched a couple walking at a major shopping arcade. The girls skirt was shorter than some of my panties and well she wasn't alone in her short skirt-ed-ness. There were certainly others there without half the clothing that I had on. But that shouldn't really be a surprise to anyone anymore.

I mention the hat because it is one obvious thing that all people should wear to keep their heads warm but guess who doesn't? I think I read somewhere sometime that we lose 80% of our body heat through our heads. Where that little nugget of parenting trickery is clearly not true (if it were true then we could walk around nearly naked and keep our heads warm and still not be cold because our heat is conserved), the Japanese take it to the extreme and decide not to wear hats all together! Well for the most part. Or at least the womens part. I asked why it was that they don't wear any hats to keep them warm and they patiently explained to me that they had big faces. Well I have never been concerned with the size of my face or head, and have never heard such worries over in America before, so I inquired further. They explained that if they wear a hat and they have a big face, then it will push their hair down and make their face look even bigger by comparison. I have some students so adverse to wearing hats they will literally run away from any offenders trying to place one upon their heads (often their friends) so that no one will ever know. Again it isn't something I really see or notice people for, but they seem to care a lot.
On the flip side, there are some extra chicly dressed people strutting themselves around Japan wearing some of these guys right here. Not exactly Por Pie hats, so I guess a little closer to Fedoras, but there are tons of shops all over with this kind of selection so there is clearly a good market for them. As you can guess the predominant type of person who wears this is men, but there are a good number of women stores around. You just see them wearing their hats less. I think these are slowly coming into fashion as you see more and more people wearing them on television shows and commercials.

So one thing that pretty much every normal person, and I can admit to wearing right now, will be wearing this time of year, is Heattech or Heat Fact. It is a heat conserving technology used in clothing to keep people warm without them wearing 18 layers. They sell it in a variety of different styles of shirts, leggings, socks, and scarves and such. Pretty much the idea is to look like you are still only wearing one layer of clothes. These can easily be bought at nearly any generic department store like Aeon or a bit more popular in the rankings is Uniqlo. I remember Korea also had, and I am sure still has, something like this at least in tights. They were nice and kind of fuzzy on the inside and kept you nice and warm. Though they were a bit thicker.

Another raging fashion I have been seeing all over the place, is fur scarves. And yes, I too have fallen victim to it. Don't judge. They are very warm...and soft. Anyways! These scarves have been around for quite some time actually and were used in combination with kimonos before. But this year and perhaps last year, they have been outfitted for everyday fashion. They are mostly rabbit fur with some fox tails (which are noticeably more expensive) and are colored and styled to ever style of fur scarf I could possibly imagine. I even found this crazy mustard colored one I was sorely tempted to get my mustard-loving friend. They are mostly shorter in style, as the wrap around ones are going to be more expensive and thus have a much limited market. Some are thick and will go down like a capette toward your elbows in a fancy dress me up sort of way, and other are simple around the neck and tidy claps sort of affairs that are for every day use. And I sincerely believe that nearly every woman in Kobe must own at least one. And all those women in Kyoto, especially the fancy-pants kimono ladies, they have one too.

And one last piece of winter fashion advice, peacoats. I remember when I was in college especially that they were the exact coat that everyone should own. But in Japan things were different last year. Everyone and their mother went out and all bought down jackets. Not a hard feat to accomplish when Uniqlo sells them for 2990-3990 on sale. But even more popular last year, were these puffy down coats. The sort that only a tall slim figure could pull off and not look overweight. Those coats would go in or tie or they would have some belt at the middle so as their figure would not be diminished. They were typically a bit longer sometimes even going to mid thigh or knee. So those coats are still around this year of course, but since last year when I was disappointed to see that not many were wearing peacoats, I have been doubly surprised to see their resurgence. Again I would blame idols and the television as when I think about all of the fashion conscious commercials, I remember in specifically a nice bright read peacoat and a cute navy beret. So needless to say, they are in fashion and there are more styles of them than I can count, but the odd thing I find is, is that the stores were not quite ready for this trend to take hold and a good many of them are still serving down jackets.

Also boots. Boots are always in.

center is a fur scarf. left is a peacoat. and all of them are wearing boots and no hats.

and these...I don't know why...
They are sold all over and I don't really see anyone using one.

Lose Yourself

I wanted to name it Identity Theft but I feel like that might create too much of a stir. But sure enough it often feels like Japan stole my identity a bit.

Most people would call it growing up or becoming mature, but if you think about it I am not even a quarter of a century old. And pictures alone can attest to what my other 24 year old friends are doing on their weekends. And in comparison one might thing that I am purely unAmerican or a hack.
Many things have happened to me over the years. And yes it has been years now. I have officially been abroad for over two years. But one of them I never expected was to lose a bit of my 'American' and yet surely I know no other way to describe it. In my assimilation to fit in and be among the adult population of Japan, I have changed myself, my habits and my American-ness.
Recently, a man, an American man, described me as 'sexy'. My response was to say nothing and pretend it never happened. This is a very Korean response actually, but the Japanese people will do it too. Japanese people like to correct people and tell them how wrong they are with their descriptions, which really just makes the other person insist upon how accurate and sincere they are. But the alternative is to just ignore it entirely happened. Sometimes Japanese people really like to be oblivious to things until they are forcefully pointed out. For example:someone is not very clearly in love with someone else and pulling them all kinds of favors until explicitly in a confession he/she announces his intentions.
But my reaction to this was a bit of revulsion at the forwardness of this person. Japanese people do not really describe others as being sexy and if so, it is sometimes a bad thing where they mean that you look like a whore. If they want to say you look pretty or cute or anything, they pretty much always say kawaii, or cute. They have a word for beautiful, but they reserve that for people specially deserving of it. As I was entirely properly attired and very trim looking, I have ruled it out that I looked like a whore and more presumably he wanted to have more romantic relations with me. But that isn't what this article is about. It is about how in American if someone calls you sexy, you begin to feel a bit sexier and you feel good about yourself and you tell yourself you look hot. But in Japan is it a very different reaction. More or less the reaction that I had. If you are a upstanding Japanese citizen and someone such as a friend said you looked sexy, you might go to the bathroom and adjust your attire to make sure that you were sufficiently covered or you might put on a sweater. If someone less than a friend said that you might be repelled and attempt to cover up a bit more.

Additionally I can sense my Americanism, or perhaps at this point it is more youth vs maturity, draining away when I see young Japanese women on the streets and think to myself 'cover up!' Their skirts come only in one size here, mini. And their shorts are tailored to accent their slender long legs. And if I ever see a sleeveless shirt, even if it is entirely within reason or even business-like, I will think how unsuitable it is and improper for the public. Or perhaps it is me just spying the awkward in the scenario: the one person wearing a sleeveless shirt in a sea of people. That is just happens to stand out against the normal.

And a final example of my identity theft is in my very mannerisms. They have become a bit more quiet and reserved and excessively polite. Exceedingly similar to the Japanese mannerisms. There is no loud conversations on trains or cheering amongst friends, if you so much as pass by someone in an aisleway , you say excuse me for the mean inconvenience of your presence. You even try not meet too many peoples eyes, but then again I do that because I pretend no to notice their stares.
The one part about myself that remains unchanged thus far, is my happiness. I feel that I allow myself to be significantly happier than a good many of my Japanese counter parts. You will not often find Japanese people with a smile on their face when they walk any where. I would even go so far as to say that you have to catch them off their guard to see them smile, when they see an old friend, when something ridiculous occurs where the only solution is to laugh, or when they get proposed to. What I am trying to say is that they rarely feel liberated enough to let loose just a little and crack a smile. This is one thing that I hope I will never lose.

Japanese-Engrish

Interestingly there isn't much of it.

Sure there are some occasional places where it is amusing, but it is not as rampant as it was in Korea. Here the funniest thing I saw was an omelette on a menu which described it as using 'enough eggs'. We had a good laugh over that dish. But most of the mistakes you will find are normally on chalkboard-like signs with advertisements or changeable English menus and such. They are typically hand written affairs and easily fixed. For example on a little chalkboard by a sink someone wrote 'You got a me'. A little water took that 'a' right off and fixed it.
Other places where you hope to see awkward English is typically pretty hard to find. Like the store fronts of the names of restaurants. Those are best found in Korea. I kid you not. There was one English academy in my town in Korea named 'Winning English' I always got a good laugh out of that. Especially when the Charlie Sheen 'winning' thing happened.
Other places you may see it are on T-shirts. You won't find it on too many adult t-shirts, though on the ones that you do find are going to be awkward anyways since you know you will almost never see that on a grown person in the U.S. Where you do find the most awkward English, is on the t-shirts of the young-ins. Their shirts are cheap and colorful and something that they wear and don't think twice about, and perhaps the larger contributing factor is that they come from China. Kids are not picky about their clothes and wear them into the ground. Pretty literally. Therefore most parents get whatever is cheap for their daily use. And those just so happen to be from China. Not to say their own clothes are not from China, but they take better care in the selection of their own clothes and will go for brand names and more expensive things and do not have the awkward English problem.
Kids on the other hand...
Sometimes it is not so awkward as it is just wrong. I had one kid who had a bunch of writing artfully arranged on their shirt, and as it seems their new favorite task for me is to read their shirts, I had the pleasure of reading hers...'fununglement' the heck does that mean. Others are amusing like a shirt my friend found and bought displaying GET KRUMP GET KRUMP GET KRUMP and even worse, a good portion are not something you would want your kid to wear. For example, I have a student who walks around school in a black shirt with SKANK written in pink glittery letters on the front. Oh my indeed.

Here are a few good select shirts I found in the mall the other day. I don't know about you guys, but Notable Jabberwocky...

Yep, you're doing it right Japan. hahahaha

Moving to Japan: What to bring?

Moving to Japan is entirely different from moving to college or taking a vacation. For starters you are moving your whole life to another country half way across the globe. But then again you have a limit to what you can bring. So the essential question, what to bring?

Here I have made a list to help with some added helpful and or snarky comments. Since I am a girl my list is mostly doctored to help girls out but men can pretty much just subtract the girly items. 

Clothes (what I packed)	The obvious	Not as obvious and optional	NOT essential
Bottoms •4 skirts (3 business skirts and one that can is business casual) •4 pants (different colors – khaki, black, blue, brown) •2 jeans ( You still have the weekends and vacations. You are going to want these) •?? Shorts (I brought 3 but I rarely wear them)	Tech •Laptop  •Camera(s) •Handheld gaming & games •Chargers  •Adapter  •IPod  •Headphones •Phone (optional. it wont work in Japan)	On the plane •A book (Optional. And just one don’t be greedy!) •Snack  •Bottled water •Your own headphones •IPod  •Handheld games	Don’t Bring! •Your gaming console (haha I am one to talk! But I brought mine over after I went home for a Christmas. If you bring this then you have to take it out at every security scan in addition to your laptop. IF you bring this make sure it isn’t region locked!!) •Bedding (you can get them easily enough in Japan unlike Korea) •CDs and DVDs(bulky + DVDs are region locked) •Large amounts of health care products ( you are not moving to a 3rd world country) •Any of your crazy Japanophile paraphernalia (ok the figurine is OK but leave the katana or body pillow at home) •Kitchenware ( unless you have something really unique and doubt its availability in Japan get that stuff here. It just takes up room) •Extra clothes ( you will buy stuff here don’t worry. And yes they have ‘American sizes’ - don’t be silly. They even have American outlet malls) •Alarm Clock (well don’t bring one that plugs in anyways. Most electronic plug-ins are perfectly capable in Japan, but because of the current differences, clocks will work fine but run slower and slower. And you will be late for things. )
Shirts •3 sweaters or cardigans •3 long sleeves shirts (used for winter undershirts) •6 short sleeved shirts (appropriate for work. Must have sleeves. Japan doesn’t do the sleeveless look. It isn’t proper)  •3 tank tops (summer is hot and still good for undershirts) •4 long sleeved blouses  •2 T-shirts (weekends. Vacation.) •2 dresses	Essential •Passport  •Wallet, cash, & cards (make sure you have Yen and your countries currency – for airport use. Don’t do travelers cheques they are too much of a hassle and not many banks in Japan will recognize them) •Tickets  •Directions printed out (there likely won’t be anyone with a sign for you and you won’t have access to the internet or your phone)	Unsuspecting Health •Meds (remember pain reliever, while they have it here is a different dosage and you can’t read the bottle) •Cortizone (useful in every situation) •Nyquil (Their medication for colds is depressing here. Pretty much just a face mask.) •Sunscreen (wickedly small and super expensive here) •Contact case (if I had a dollar for how often I left this behind…) •Tampons (just in case) •Packet of tissues (just in case) •Towels (they do not have an abundance full body towels in Japan they use what we would call a dish or hand towel)
Shoes •7+ pairs of socks •Indoor shoes (tennis shoes or slippers. Rubber soles. You will wear these inside school and not out of it)  •Running shoes/ walking shoes •1-2 Professional shoes •1 pair of flats  •2 boots (I have snow boots and hiking boots that are water proof. There is a rainy season here) •Indoor sneakers (optional – to be used in the gym at school. They are typically different from your school shoes and are also indoor only shoes) •Flip-flops (I am American after all. Also you might go to the beach and they don’t take up that much space)	Bathroom supplies •Travel kit for shampoo/conditioner and soap  •Tooth brush •Tooth Paste •Contacts  •Mini contact solution  •Deodorant (heck bring 2! This stuff is nonexistent in Japan!) •Brush  •Razor  •Make up And that should hold you over until you get to Japan where everything else can be readily bought from the dollar store. If you have favorite brands of certain products, they may be really hard to come by overseas. Example: Studio Gear make up? Can’t get it here. Also Clinique, and Maybelline are ridiculously expensive (I know, Maybelline, right?!	Bit Random •Umbrella (only the collapsible kind. Only if you come during the rainy season. Otherwise they run a dollar a piece at the 100yen store) •Omiyage  •Address's (only if you are an awesome friend who sends postcards) •A small dictionary (no don’t get that phrase book! Don’t be ridiculous you are not going to use that) •Japanese study books (only if you are really going to use them! Their selection here is limited inside bookstores and online shopping is best but be prepared to do it in Japanese!) •Mamas baked goods!  •Any food favorite from home ( cookies and candies are likely to be double here and Australian and British brands are less available. Things like oatmeal is nearly unheard of and much more difficult to find in smaller cities) •A bit of home (it would help decorate your room and lessen any homesickness) •Coffee (its just no good here) •Sports equipment (Like for hiking Mt. Fuji. Be sure you are going to use it )
Coats •1 matching blazer to a pair of suit pants •1-2 light jackets for spring and autumn •1 coat for colder autumn (like a pea coat) •1 winter coat (if you are not prone to cold or are not to live in cold places then you can do without) •1 raincoat (rainy season. It is a month long)	Accessories (optional) •Hats  •Scarves  •Hair accessories (hair ties and bobby pins) •Glasses  •Sunglasses  •Jewelry  •Belt(s) •Purse(s) •Gloves  •Watch  •Pantyhose  •Backpack (really good for weekend traveling)
Undergarments •2 (ish) weeks of panties •4 bras (different colors – white, skin colored, black, and a fun one) •Robe (optional) •1-2 sets of sleepwear	I have extra space and I really care about my hygiene •Tweezers  •Nail clippers  •Perfume (more expensive in Japan) •Band-aids

IN ALL HONESTY, you can bring like a week of supplies and buy the rest here. THOUGH you would have to find good stores that carry suitable good quality products ( I feel like the quality is hard to find). If you are located out there in the inaka, you might have a much harder time of this. The size issue, it is not so much as an issue any more. There are American stores here and they carry most sizes, albeit they have a diminished stock of larger sizes (they don't need to order as many). There are also stores that cater to a very willowy Japanese figure and they are pretty prevalent. Especially in Osaka.
However, to buy everything here is kind of expensive...So, you know, make your decisions wisely...

Extra advice:

• Bring 2 suitcases. Even if you don't need both of them, you will accumulate stuff in Japan to fill up that room when you go back home. (conversely, you can just get an extra suitcase in Japan but they are more expensive)
• If you are coming in March, you don't have to worry about your winter clothes as much and hope that your family is more loving and charitable and will send you your winter clothes at a later date. Shying on the winter clothes, coats especially can significantly increase your space, but note that if you are placed in the northern regions, that it can still be snowing at this time. Even in the regions like Osaka and Kyoto as well... but that is a bit infrequent at that time and never lasts to see daylight. 
• If you have space and want to save on money then I would advise you to pack a nice electric razor (for men) and hair electronics for women (if you care about that sort of thing...I don't). These items are apparently more expensive here and sometimes  difficult to find ones of better quality(for men). This is a complaint I heard more than once from people who have recently made the move (hard to find/expensive). But I also know for fact that recycle shops will carry a very wide range in quality and a significant number of said products at a good price. Also there is yahoo auction where you can find cheaper things, but is limited to Japanese.
• Buy a mini sewing kit at a 100 yen store. Super useful things. 
• I cannot think of a single electronic besides clocks that do not run perfectly in Japan. They may have less power than you are used to, but they will function just fine. Personally I have a CuisineArt hand held and of course chargers and the like, no problems here. 

Extra important advice:

In your carry on pack everything you might need for a week or two. This is good so you don't have to root through your bigger suitcase during orientation only to go through the hassle to pack it all up again. The less bags you open the smaller the mess. Also if you are lazy and haven't unpacked before school starts then you will know where everything you need is conveniently located.