日本人は何をしますか。 | What Do Japanese People Do?

When asked what members of a certain culture do, it’s easy to dwell on the stereotypical activities unique to that country. If you were to think of dances in Lederhosen, the first country that might come to mind would be Germany. If you were to think of ice hockey, you might think, “Oh, Canada.” Distinguishing cultures through typical or commonly-associated images is quite easy, but what goes beyond that is finding that in essence, countries all around the world engage in basically the same activities despite the presented façade of country-specific activities.

Children from Japan enjoy candy and games just as much as any other child from around the world. While the juxtaposition of this traditional Mexican game in the context of a Japanese park may seem at odds upon first glance, it quite clearly goes to show that one’s cultural roots and the activities one engages in have no concrete connection.

Adults, regardless of where they are from, are similar as well. Here, one can see a pedestrian-only section of the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo and gather that these people, much like many members of the rest of the world, enjoy shopping and walking around commercial areas, if to do nothing more than window shop or bear witness to the bustling urban areas of Tokyo.

In the same vein, people enjoy finding those small idiosyncrasies of life that make them stop and take a second look. Surely, while shopping downtown you don’t expect two find two cats posing motionlessly on an electrical box, but when you do, why not stop?

Sightseeing is also a widely enjoyed pastime. As is indulging in the latest fashions.

Lastly, people from all over the world love spectacle. While it may be called the Japanese National Sport (apart from baseball, of course), Sumo can be enjoyed regardless of where you come from.