"Look, I don't know what you think it's like in Japan, but it'sreally a modern country. Japanese people are used to seeing all types. And yes . . . they will stare, but that's because they stare at everyone who doesn't look like them." She went on to explain that she's Japanese, but gets stared at whenever she's in Japan because she doesn't look Japanese.
To say this lady was right would be an understatement - though I think her indignation at the question was a bit exaggerated. I get stared at ALL THE TIME but it's a little different with me. If I could go back in time, walk into my own interview and answer my own question in more detail . . . I think I would probably tell myself, "These people will be very kind to you, but you will always be stared at as if you were a freak of nature. It will be different for you, however, because people will recognize that you are a foreigner way quicker than they will recognize your White/Hispanic/Asian American counterparts. They will ask you what part of Africa you are from and last but certainly not least they will touch your hair as if you were a llama at a petting zoo." These are the things that the lady failed to tell me.
Now I don't want to come off as angry or - I don't know - bitter. If anything, I find it amusing that I can grab the attention of everyone in a room by just being "boring ole me." I sit quietly in a corner, reading something off of my iPad, eating some noodles, and (out of habit) twisting my locks around in my fingers and when I look up, I swear the whole room is dead silent and all eyes are on me. Sometimes I run through little scenarios in my head. Like what would be the repercussions of me getting up and screaming, "Boogity-Boogity-Boo!" while shaking my head and sticking out my tongue. Then I have a little chuckle and get back to reading. Either way, sometimes I find it funny and sometimes . . . let's just say, I don't. Either way, I can't wait for my whole family to come visit me. It's going to be HILARIOUS!
(me . . . on a typical day)
One thing that has really stood out about my experiences out here has been the "hair" talk. I go through the "hair" conversation so much that the person I'm speaking with doesn't even need to know English for me to understand how to respond.
It's like a dance, and it always starts like this . . . First, the person stares at me - which is pretty normal. They smile and nod when they notice that I am staring back. Next their eyes deliberately shift to my hair. They tilt their head a little and give a confused look. Next they say something to themselves - or a friend - in Japanese (probably, "what's up with her hair" or something like that, I don't know). Sooner or later they make a gesture toward my hair and say something. I tell them, "They're called locks."
"Lockus?"
"Yes, locks."
"Oooh. Hmm." They say. More smiles and staring. Then they say something in Japanese.
"Yes, you can touch it," I respond. This almost ALWAYS seems to be the answer they were looking for, because at that moment they reach out and touch my hair.
"Wow!" they exclaim, while bulging their eyes and laughing. Now of course, so as not to be rude, they tell me that it's beautiful and they wish that they could do that to their hair too. This is usually done by smiling and saying "kirei" as well as pointing to their own hair with the question mark face. This also serves as my cue to tell them how I got my hair this way. At this point, I pick a random lock from my head and roll it between the palms of my hand tightening it until it stays in place. This is the part where everyone gasps. The last question is always, "Well, how do you wash it?"
I could easily take this the wrong way, but I'm pretty sure they're wondering whether I have to take my hair out of the locks in order to wash it because they always make a gesture that looks like pulling one's hair apart. I tell them that I wash my hair the same way that they do and I give the gesture for washing one's hair. "Ooh!" They say. Then, "Hmm." Next, they get one last "hair touch" in and the dance is officially complete.
Now, some people don't like letting others touch their hair but personally it doesn't bother me too much (because I wash my hair quite a bit) and also, I'd like to think that I'm showing these folks something they've never seen before. I think it's cool that they are bold enough to ask about something they don't know and if anything, it inspires me to do the same.
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