Her image of Holland was not much broader than the windmills, the cheese and of course the tulips. An image that became more complete after some travelling in Europe. 'Those journeys as a tourist took away the main part of the culture shock,' Sayaka explains. 'There are parts of Japanese culture I don't like. For one, being indirect. I knew that people in Europe say things more straight out. And when I left Japan I considered myself quite direct and assertive.'
However, in Holland she noticed how very Japanese she actually was. 'In Japan people are very polite, constantly saying 'sorry'. Also, Japanese don't say no directly,' Sayaka goes on, 'Yet in Holland you will not get by without saying it.' And then there is the talking. She was struck by the European fondness for talking, no matter the nationality, Dutch, Greek or Spanish. And she kept on wondering what everybody was talking about. The importance of talking is clear to her. 'People cannot just guess what you think.'
Still, she sees drawbacks. One of them is that people need to express themselves, even when it is not necessary. To illustrate it she brings up a trip she made to an exhibition abroad. 'Every single European in the car kept on arguing over the direction, driving the girl at the wheel crazy. In Japan we think more and say less.'
Next to this, Sayaka is surprised at, if not irritated by, the inability of people to come to the point. 'They keep on moving around the main point, bringing up things that seem unimportant to me. To me that is wasting time. Take setting a time for a meeting: it takes hours and will be changed 5 times.'
Did living for more than a year in Holland have its influence on the Japanese girl? Sayaka thinks it did. 'The first time that I met some Japanese again was when I had been here for a few months and already I found myself saying significantly less 'sorry' and more 'no' compared to them. I have grown more direct and assertive; I took what I liked in the culture. Yet, my Japanese core is unaffected.'
Sayaka Honsho
