Days ago, when I went into a cafe in Asakusa, a waiter guided me to a seat beside a group of foreign tourists. I refused instantly and demanded to be seated in a Japanese area on the other side of the cafe. The waiter seemed confused but honored my request. Then, I asked for a menu in fluent Japanese. However, the waiter give me an English menu which was very unexpected. Although I was pissed off at that moment, I still kept calm for many rational reasons. “Give me the Japanese menu!” I said to the waiter loudly in Japanese.
This was the first time I received such awful service in Tokyo. Since so many foreign residents live in Tokyo, I thought the service industry in Tokyo would be smarter. I really can’t figure out why that waiter knew I was not Japanese the moment I entered the cafe. Even though I showed off my Japanese ability, they still thought English would be better for me. This incident frustrated me a lot. The ironic part is if I were to talk to them in English, most of them would probably not understand it anyway.
I am really disappointed by the attitudes of a part of Japanese people, and they are trying my limits day by day. They don’t want to be my friend. They don’t want me to go out with them like their Japanese mates. They treat me like an idiot just because I come from another country. They think my Japanese ability is bad just because I have a foreign accent. Still, I am working on myself to be a part of this country.
I have a final solution. Since almost no Japanese people want to have chats with me, not to mention to correct my Japanese accent, I will pay them to talk to me. I am prepared to hire some Japanese people to correct my accent. What’s more I can have talks with real people which is really rare in my life in Japan. They key to surviving in Japanese society is definitely Japanese ability. If I can get this weapon for such small money, that shall be a bargain.