When a non- Japanese got lost in Yokohama


When a non- Japanese got lost in Yokohama


smiling couple navigating with map on city street
Photo by Samson Katt on Pexels.com
Ravethy and I couldn't find 
the way back to our hotel.
The road signs then
were all in Japanese. 
Even the road map brochure
was of no help.
And, it was getting darker.

We were delighted 
when we saw a man in uniform.
He was very happy to help;
rattling away to me 
(in Japanese) 
both palms together 
pointing forwards,
then his right hand
 directing to the right... 
brushing aside my attempts 
with crossed hands 
and shaking head
to say I did not understand!
Sigh! We stood by
the road side again!
The baseball game was over at a nearby stadium. We were lucky to find a fellow Singaporean to explain the route to us. It was only a ten minutes walk away! That was in the 1990s. *******

Four years ago, I went back again to Japan. I found that more Japanese people could speak English. The signs and maps seem easier to read. I learned to speak some simple Japanese, too!

The uniformed man had mistaken me for a Japanese. Last week a fellow blogger addressed me as a Korean! Not long ago another thought I was a Taiwanese!

A face and a name can be misleading!

I am from Malaysia! My ancestors were from Hainan island, China.

****

14 Comments

  1. Info-Man's avatar Info-Man says:

    Lol 😆 i knew you were from china because of your name ….. ( Lol i watch a lot of chinese series 😂😂)

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Now you are wrong. There are many Chinese people who have migrated to other parts of the world, including Malaysia.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Info-Man's avatar Info-Man says:

        Oh ! I am really sorry 😔

        Liked by 1 person

      2. No, it is OK! You have good drawings!

        Liked by 1 person

      3. Info-Man's avatar Info-Man says:

        Awww thanks! Gald you liked it . 😊

        Liked by 1 person

  2. I went back to Tokyo a few years back. A man along the road offered to walk me and my friends back to our hotel – a kilometer away! I was very surprised because no one in my city would do that! We declined and managed to walk back as instructed by the man’ s sign language!

    Like

  3. Ab's avatar Ab says:

    I hear Japan can be a difficult place to navigate. Good thing it sounds like it wasn’t too bad for you to get around – regardless of how you were identified! 😂

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Garfield Hug's avatar Garfield Hug says:

    Haha! Yes, I remember when I lived in USA, I was Taiwanese, Mainland Chinese or Korean. Not Singaporean – in 1990s Lil Red Dot was an unknown and thought to be a part of China LOL!

    Like

    1. 😊👍🙏🙏🙏 Singapore is now a very bright star!

      Like

      1. Garfield Hug's avatar Garfield Hug says:

        Yes, she is and she has come a long way since colonial days with thanks to the late founding father Mr Lee Kuan Yew and his cabinet ministers back then.

        Like

      2. Yes, I admire him!

        Like

  5. Many Asian look alike. 😊🙏🙏🙏

    Like

  6. haoyando's avatar haoyando says:

    LOL. There are so many different ethnicity and cultures in Asia. Even if we look alike, we can’t take for granted. I’ve learned that…

    Like

Leave a Comment