【海外の反応】「日本人は韓国を高く評価しすぎている…」アメリカ人が日本人の助言を受け韓国に来た末路w【日本のあれこれ】

I came to Japan and Korea because I was recommended by a Koryo, but it was completely different from what I heard. Hello, everyone. I'm Yuri of Personality. Japan and Korea are similar to each other because they are in the same Asian country. However, foreigners who have actually visited both countries say that they feel many differences. This time, I would like to introduce an episode of an American woman who went on a business trip to Japan and Korea. What did she feel was the difference between Japan and Korea? Let's take a look! My name is Alessia. I'm an American in my 30s. My job is a global IT company. Various nationalities work in my department. All of them are fluent in English, so communication is smooth. I can hear about various countries with different cultures, so it's quite interesting to chat during work. One day, I was ordered to go on a business trip to Korea and Japan. I've been abroad many times, so it's not unusual. But it was my first time to go to Korea and Japan. So I researched what kind of country those two countries were in advance. The first person I talked to was Yoon-Sul, a Korean colleague. She has a clear opinion of her own, and her grades are excellent. But she gets a little too excited. She gets emotional and often yells at her juniors. Also, the distance when talking to people is close, so I'm sometimes curious about familiar places. Actually, I'm going on a business trip to Korea and Japan this time. I've never been to Korea, so I'd like you to refer to it. When I said that, Yoon-Sul looked me in the eye and started talking. If that's the case, leave it to me. Korea is a really wonderful country. I'm sure you'll have a 100 times better experience than Japan. The kindness of Koreans, the beauty of the city, the developed transportation infrastructure, the delicious Korean food, etc. She is passionate about the good things about Korea. I kept talking about how amazing Korea is and how much better it is than Japan. Thank you. I've learned enough about how wonderful Korea is. What? I'm not done talking yet. I'm sorry. It's almost time for the meeting. When I persuaded her to do that, she finally stopped talking and went back to work. Even though there are Japanese employees in the same department, she said something like that. I thought it wasn't a very pleasant story. Next, I decided to listen to Asumi, a Japanese colleague. She's not the kind of person who stands out because of her gentle personality, but she does her job diligently. And she's good at giving orders, so her boss and seniors like her. For example, when an employee made a big mistake in the data input and caused a ruckus. Thanks to her noticing the mistake and correcting the data, it didn't become a big deal. But she said, I fixed it, so it's okay. When she said that, the person in charge of the mistake said, Then you can say that you fixed it. She complained. I thought it was a shame. But it's common for Asumi to follow up like this and prevent mistakes. Since she came, the number of mistakes in that department has increased by about one-third. Even so, I think she's wonderful as a person because she never chooses. Also, Asumi is beautiful and her desk is always organized. And not only her desk, but also the meeting table and other shared spaces. Our department is always shiny. So, the introduction was a little long, but I asked Asumi about Japan. Then she taught me a lot of things very politely. Manners to be careful about in Japan. Japanese phrases that are convenient to remember. Railways in complex metropolitan areas. Recommended restaurants in Tokyo. Everything was helpful. As I was listening to her, I was looking forward to going to Japan. By the way, I'm going to Korea for this business trip. What do you think of Korea, Asumi? Finally, I asked such a question casually. Then she said, I think Korea is a country with a lot of wonderful culture. I've never actually been there, but the Korean food is delicious. There are many famous world heritages such as Chan Dok-geun and Chongmyo, right? And my sister, who lives in Japan, told me that K-pop is very popular all over the world, including Japan. My sister seems to be a big fan of a group called BTS. She praised Korea a lot. That's why I was able to have a very pleasant conversation. Asumi, who praises Korea for making fun of Japan. Their answers were symmetrical, but Asumi was the one who didn't say bad things about other countries. And when the Japanese praised Korea, I had high expectations that Korea would be a very good country. Japan is also Asumi's mother country, so I thought it would be a wonderful country. Still, I wonder if they really knew that I was going to Korea and Japan for work. They told me a lot of information about recommended tourist spots, restaurants, and souvenirs. I was very curious about all the information, but I decided to keep it for fun until I traveled in private. Then, about a month later, I finished my business trip and safely returned to the United States. The first thing I thought when I visited Korea and Japan was that the two countries were so different. I'll explain one by one what the difference was. The first is the cleanliness of the city. In Korea, there was a lot of garbage on the street. But in Japan, even when I was walking in the city, I didn't see any garbage being thrown away. And what's amazing about Japan is that there are almost no garbage cans on the street. But if there was no garbage, everyone would take responsibility and bring garbage home, or carry garbage until they found a garbage can. Well, the streets of the United States are mostly filled with garbage and dirty, so I'm not in a position to say anything great. The second is the attitude at work. Koreans are straightforward, just like our company's Yunsul. Even when I talk to someone I've just met, I'm not afraid of a conflict of opinion. It's pretty emotional. So I tend to have a bad atmosphere with Americans who speak their mind. There have been many times when I was afraid that I might have made them angry. On the other hand, the Japanese try to avoid clashes and suppress their emotions. Thanks to them, the conversation at work went very smoothly. But that doesn't mean that Japanese people will be polite to us. They tend to speak their mind in a way that doesn't offend others. In Japan, this is called politeness. The third is the restaurants. I stayed in Korea and Japan for five days, so I had a lot of opportunities to eat out. However, there was a huge difference in the level of the restaurants in the two countries. The Korean customers were very polite. Even when customers came in, they didn't say hello. The waiters who had their hands free were playing with their smartphones. And the menu was really hard to read. But even if I asked the waiters, they just looked like they were in a lot of trouble, so I just answered appropriately. On the other hand, Japanese service is the best. First, when I entered the store, the waiters greeted me with a cheerful greeting and a smile. The menu had an English label, and most of the menus had pictures on them. So even if I couldn't read Japanese, I knew what kind of food it was. On top of that, the waiters came to check the timing even if I didn't call them. They explained everything to me carefully. Japan is much kinder than Korea. That level of hospitality is as good as a first-class hotel. And about the taste of the food, Japanese food was more to my liking. Korean food was very spicy and had a lot of similar or similar flavors. Of all the things I ate in Japan, I liked sushi the most. Actually, I'm not very good at raw fish. When I ate California rolls at a Japanese restaurant in America, I was worried about the fishy smell, so I left only the salmon part. But since I went to Japan, I thought I'd try the real sushi. So I went to Kaiten Sushi. Then, the first Japanese sushi I ate was completely different from American sushi, and I was surprised. I didn't care about the sourness of the rice or the fishy smell of the fish at all. All the seafood was fresh, and the sauce was well seasoned. I ate a lot of salmon, shrimp, tuna, and squid, and I was full. But the bill was about 1,500 yen. I was surprised at how cheap it was. And the small plates with sushi were on the top of the lane. The style of choosing the sushi you want to eat is highly enticing and very unique. If I had come to Kaiten Sushi when I was a kid, I would have been very excited. By the way, you can drink green tea for free at Kaiten Sushi. I've never had green tea before, and I thought it looked creepy. But when I actually drank it, it was completely different from what I had imagined. It's easy to drink because it doesn't have a strange sweetness, and I thought it was perfect for a refreshment after eating. And I was curious that Koreans were talking loudly, not caring about the customers around them, no matter where they were. I can understand the feeling of wanting to enjoy a meal with everyone, but there are people who want to eat quietly, so I want you to be a little more careful. In that respect, Japanese people are basically quiet wherever they go. Even the children at Kaiten Sushi are eating quietly and trying not to bother other people. The fourth is the operation situation of the railway. Korean railways are not as long as American ones, but they are quite long. In the worst case, the train arrived 10 minutes later than expected. Well, there are some countries that can be a few hours late, so it's much better than that. On the other hand, the operation of Japanese railways is really accurate. There was an announcement even if it was only a minute late. This time, I went to Japan after Korea, so I was impressed that Japanese railways are very accurate in time. If the order of going was the opposite, I would have been irritated by the delay, saying, Why don't you come on time like Japan? Speaking of railways, Koreans felt like they were staring at others in the train without hesitation, but Japanese people didn't feel that way at all. On the contrary, Japanese people felt like they were trying not to look at each other as much as possible, and when they looked at each other, they felt more nervous. Well, maybe it's just my imagination. It's a little difficult to say which part is better. This time, I spent 5 days in Japan and Korea, and Japan was comfortable for me. If I were told to stay in either country, I would definitely choose Japan now. But don't get me wrong. Everyone has their own way of thinking, and I don't want to say bad things about Korea. There must be a lot of good things about Korea that I just didn't notice. However, Asumi praised Korea as a wonderful country, but I thought it was overestimating it. Speaking of which, I was asked how Korea was because I was pregnant the other day. When I said that Korea was a wonderful country, she said, Right? Korea is the best! She seemed to be satisfied. It seems that I was a little imitated by Japanese people like Asumi. Anyway, Japan was a very good country. So this time, I'm thinking of going to Japan even if it's private. My favorite foreign country is Japan. I've been to Japan many times before, and I'm going to keep going for the rest of my life. I thought Koreans were quite positive and expressive. And I was grateful that there were a lot of street food and the food was cheap. Japanese employees are surprisingly kind. If you work in America, you'll get a lot of tips. I don't see much garbage in Japan because Japanese people value their community. And I think it's because they're proud to keep it clean. All my friends who traveled to Japan told me to try real sushi. It seems that the freshness of the fish is completely different. I want to try Japanese sushi someday. Summary As you can see from this episode, there are so many differences between Japan and Korea. But this doesn't mean that Japan is superior and Korea is inferior. It is also important to respect cultural differences. For example, Japanese people's way of thinking and Korean people who don't understand Japanese manners. I think it's important for each person to have a mutual understanding. I hear that there are not many Koreans who look down on Japan. I hope that Japanese and Koreans can understand each other's culture and respect each other. How was it? I'd appreciate it if you could tell me your impressions in the comments. Please like and subscribe to my channel. Thank you for watching until the end. See you in the next video.