Woah did I do a cultural faux pas this morning! (I am at the hospital now with Lucky #5 and have a 30min wait so I have time to thumb this...)
I can never remember which end of the train to get on so that I am nearest my destination. As strange as it may sound, depending on which set of stairs you descend the feel of your location (if one does not have NSEW spacial relation ability, and I do not possess this very helpful ability) changes.
So I went dow the stairs in the opposite direction from which I usually go, effectively putting me at the other end of the train. Although the cars are all numbered from 1-8 or 10 number one is not always the lead car so that adds to the confusion.
As I was going down to the platform my train was already spewing forth the denizen so I needed to rush a bit in order to jump in.
My mind was preoccupied with the thought concerning whether or not this was the right end of the train or not, for you see, I have to transfer to a different line at Morishita Stn in order to come to the hospital and that transfer area is ONLY at one end of the station. If you go up the stairs at the opposite end you have to walk the length of the station then go back down to the depths only to walk over to a different set of stairs that you then must climb. Once ascending those stairs you walk a bit and then go down another long flight of steps that lead to the correct platform (Oedo Subway Line, one of the deeper lines in the country).
As it turned out I was on the wrong end of the train this morning but that is neither here nor there. I digress...
I jumped on my train with my mind pre-occupied. I then immediately pulled out my book (not Kindle) and delved into it. About three stops from Morishita I looked up and around to see a masked elderly woman staring intently at me. I get stared at all the time so it didn't particularly set off any warning bells; however the intensity of her gaze was noted in my pre-occupied brain.
It was then that I ended a chapter in my book and actually looked around the car with the purpose of actually SEEING and absorbing my NOW surroundings. I like the feeling of being able to see above most of the heads (a perk of being very tall is that your face never gets crushed by a sea of heads and backs and the air is a little less stale, albeit hot).
At that moment I distinctly noted that the average height of the people in the car was unusually even and rather... low.
And then it hit me: I was in a women-only car!!!
So I grabbed my bag, apologized to the women around me telling them that I just realized where I was and slipped through the adjoining door to car #2 which was jam packed with all manners of suited japanese men and women.
From 7am-9:30 Car #1 is for women only. *blush* No wonder the air was so much fresher this morning!
Suddenly the car felt very hot...
Oops! I won't take that route tomorrow morning!
Thumbingly Yours,
Feldman
P.S. I wish somebody would have simply SAID something!
PPS. It took 30mins to type this.
Wow - the concept of a women only car would have never occurred to me in like a gazillion years!
ReplyDeleteI've done that before. The first hint is usually "Wow, this car is not nearly as packed as the others." followed by "Wow, there is a lot of fine scenery here." followed by "Please don't arrest me, I'm a foolish white man."
ReplyDeleteCould be worse. You could have wandered into a woman's bath. :s
ReplyDelete大爆笑だ目を開けると心のギアを保つために支払っている。ベットの場合のにおいが押されたスーツやビジネスクラスのボージュースのカクテルを上回っていた。注意する。
ReplyDeleteI cheated. LOL
ReplyDeleteOne day you will remember that you have TWO ( or is it three?) computers... hee.
ReplyDeleteThey didn't say anything because that's the way the Japanese are... at least that's the impression i've always had of them. They're very deferential, very private, not really outspoken... to a fault.
Hope i'm not being politically correct but these perceptions are almost always born out by your stories.
You must have looked so funny ;-)
I would have said something, Mou... either because i'm a big mouth buttinski OR... because it would have given me an excuse to talk to a tall, great looking guy.... oh yeah...
Me..."Hi there, Handsome. Have you noticed something different about your fellow travelers?"
hehehehe....
The women-only car finally came into realization I think because women got tired of saying nothing regarding all the groping the Japanese men do. By becoming more vocal JR was forced to address the issue. It's like human rights: if nobody complains nothing's gonna change because as long as there is no voice there is no problem.
ReplyDeleteLong live Rosa Parks!
Matt - Exactly! It sure seemed a lot more civil. I asked Kyoko why more women dont use it and she said that the car reeks of too much foundation too much perfume too much female sweat and the women all give each other very critical eyes regarding dress and makeup so it can feel very uncomfortable.
I hope they didn't mistake ME for a woman, thus the silence...
Jen - Kyoko said that even tho its a women-only car if some man gets on by accident (and it happens in the morning fray) nobody can really say anything as it makes both parties uncomfortable. So Id sa you are right.
Jase has mild paranoia about this and hates riding on trains during peak times. *laughs
ReplyDeleteOoops! Well..... it happens, to all of us from time to time I suppose! Same absent mind, different scenario...... The good news is no one got hurt.
ReplyDeleteembarrassing for you but funny for us! thanks for sharing :-)
ReplyDelete