Expatriot in Japan

Too many people go to Japan and leave the place after however long learning absolutely nothing, it really disappoints me. It seems that the majority of people that go there to work (teach English) are running from something back home or are at rock bottom back home. To be honest there are some good people over there that are there for the right reasons and happy to climb on the vertical learning curve that is learning about the Japanese way of thinking. But the majority? Whoa! steer clear. I was walking down the shopping arcade in Asakusa a few years back and the shop manager of this sushi shop was yelling at this American guy who had his hands up in the air and was shouting back at the shop manager. It is not usually in my character to intervene in these situations but I could spot a major miscommunication in progress so I did. These sushi train shops where the food travels around on a conveyor belt charge a certain amount of yen for a plate based on the content and you keep the plates on your table until it is time to pay, you then ask the waiter/waitress to count the plates and you pay your bill. Easy? yep. dead easy. This American guy obviously didn't understand the process and was taking the sushi off the plate and letting his empty plates continue their journey along the belt much to the dismay of staff and other customers in the shop. I helped out in calming everyone down and asking the man to apologise for his mistake and pay the bill. I mentioned that it was better to do this here and now than to spend the afternoon in one of the local police boxes, possibly to await trial. This guy was so angry and he felt that he was in the right kicking up a fuss until the police came and started to interview me as the gentleman's 'friend'! That's when things got too far. Sometimes it is better to not get involved and I learnt the hard way. I tend to learn the hard way a lot.