About 2 weeks passed in Taiwan, I've felt lots of things.
As everybody knows, our countries has strong related histories of thousands of years and it gets even stronger and stronger. Therefore I can see so many similar things that I can't enumerate every single one here. However, I can see lots of differences as well and it might be much more important than similarities. I am sometimes surprised and sometimes shocked when I face on these things by chance.
On today's blog, I want to share the biggest cultural difference I am feeling right now between Taiwan and Japan .
It's about the concept of borderline we have.
The first thing I was so surprised in Taiwan is that Taiwanese house doesn't have specific border which separates inside from outside. There are 2 doors but both of them have open spaces and the inside can be seen from outside. And the space between 2 doors is a very vague space where I can't say either inside or outside.
Also, people here get in the house with shoes. they even go to Toilet or take shower with shoes. So I don't feel any timing that I got in the house even when I am actually ''inside'' of the house. At the same time, however, people here also sometimes walk on the same floor inside without shoes. So, It may be still somehow outside for them with my sense.
On the other hand, in Japan, we have a very clear border of ''inside'' and ''outside'' of house. There is a steady door and have to take off shoes right getting inside. So I can clearly tell ''Here is inside'' and ''Here is outside ''.
I can say the same thing about the way they eat. At meal in Taiwan, the foods is served with big dishes so that everyone can share. So the dishes on the table is not for each but for everyone. Each person only has a small bowl and they take foods from the dishes and put it on the bowl. They use same small bowl even they have soup as well.
In Japan, it's different.
This is not for everyone to share. This is for each person. So we use a lot of dishes for each person and we have own dishes that we have to finish. So I can tell ''This is mine'' and ''This is yours''
This is actually well-studied concept of Japanese culture called ''uchi(inside)'' and ''soto(outside)'' We put a clear borderline between things and separate them into 2 groups. The behavior we take at ''uchi'' and ''soto'' is different. Though I've felt the idea is very usual thing common in the world, now I think differently.
Ah It seems it's time to go to bed. I will write the following part next time.
