How I Disenchanted Myself with Japan:

I used to think that Japan was the most civilized country in Asia.
Clean cities, orderly streets, strong high-end manufacturing—
Tokyo's first impression even felt a bit shocking to me.
Until a small incident happened later.
Two years ago, I traveled to Tokyo with my wife and three-year-old daughter,
walking normally on the sidewalk when my wife, holding the child, was directly elbowed by a Japanese office worker.
My first reaction at the time was disbelief.
Because in my understanding, a normal society’s people, no matter how indifferent,
would not attack a woman holding a child.
I also comforted my wife, saying it might just be crowded and accidental.
Only after returning home did I realize that more and more people were sharing similar experiences:
Being deliberately bumped into, elbowed, or maliciously squeezed on the streets of Japan,
especially women and foreigners.
That’s when I realized that some countries look very civilized,
only because rules and order are well maintained.
But civilization and kindness are actually two different things.
The true underlying nature of a society is not whether people queue in the subway,
or whether the streets are clean.
It’s whether ordinary people would direct malice toward the vulnerable.
Many Chinese people like to mythologize Japan, saying it’s a “high-quality society.”
But I increasingly feel that some places are only superficially exquisite,
while internally they are extremely indifferent.
Chinese people (especially Beijingers) may not be as refined,
nor as delicate.
But most ordinary Chinese people wouldn’t lay hands on a mother holding a child.