#1555

a boy/girlfriend and money; finger counting is also different

when someone is talking about someone else's boy/girlfriend they might not say the wooooord, but use their little finger up. Easy to do, close your hand, fingers looking towards you and raise the little finger. Everyone will understand.

Money. In Europe, we use the thumb and the forefinger in a mouvement that simulates money touching and counting. Well, sort of. In Japan, you want to show a coin. Easy: put your hand in front of you, the palm towards your feet or the person you are talking to. Join the point of the nails of your thumb and finger so that it creates a round, facing you. Keep the 3 other fingers souple but extended. Then, you need to rotate your hand, the little fingers coming toward your belly so that your two thumb and your fingers will face outward. I am not sure that this is clear.

Finger counting: for those mathematically challenged people, finger counting is very important. In Europe, 1 is the thumb, 2 is made with the forefinger+ middle finger, 3 is thumb+forefinger+middle finger, 4 is all fingers minus the thumb, 5 is composed of 5 fingers, and then you go on with your second hand until 10.

In Japan, this is totally different. First of all, you will use only one hand to count until 10. Easy: get your hand in front of you, palm up. sounds like yoga. You will close your hand one finger by one finger to get a gist at 5.

1: put your thumb inside the palm, 2: get the forefinger above your thumb. 3, get the middle finger on your thumb etc. 6: you open your hand again, starting with the little finger, so that 10 is the hand open.

if you show numbers to people, for instance in a restaurant, to tell the waiter how many of you there are, this is different. 1: the forefinger is raised. 2, forefinger+ thumb. 3: forefinger+middle finger+ ring finger;

but the english way is fine too it just does not feel Japanese.

Claire image

Claire

Belgium

Claire's other advice

Kasai Rinkai Park : enjoy the sea ! images

Kasai Rinkai Park : enjoy the sea !

If you want to get away from high-rise building without going too far, Kasai Rinkai parc is your place. One station before Disneyland (Maihama), on the Keiyo line, it takes you 20 minutes to get …

Enjoy the cherry blossoms images

Enjoy the cherry blossoms

Every spring, it is the same thing: everyone are getting very (positively) anxious and are looking forward to enjoying the cherry blossoms.Spring is there. 8 blossoms on a tree, and it's done. C…

Hot spring etiquette: Please, do hot-bath like a pro. images

Hot spring etiquette: Please, do hot-bath like a pro.

Hot springs are often marketed for their positive effects on health: skin, articulations, cardio-vascular system, muscular relaxation… depending on its mineral content, the hot water is supposed to h…

Indulge myself with a small luxury : a minitrip to Kusatsu images

Indulge myself with a small luxury : a minitrip to Kusatsu

Have you ever had that feeling that your mind is stuck with your work and you need to get away from the office for a while? Staying home is not an option because then, you will not stay focus on your…

A trip to hot springs? images

A trip to hot springs?

I remember one business meeting I attended and the quizzical look of my Belgian business partner when our Japanese host suggested a trip to hot springs together. We knew him very well, but…, a trip t…

Omotenashi - a tradition made famous by Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic 2020 images

Omotenashi - a tradition made famous by Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic 2020

Since Tokyo has been nominated to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2020, « omotenashi » has become the buzz word to epitomize Japan’s art of welcoming guests and attract tourists. But what do…

You might also like

What to do at a Japanese Funeral | Funeral Etiquette images

What to do at a Japanese Funeral | Funeral Etiquette

Attending a Japanese funeral can be stressful, even shocking, if you don't know what to do. The more you know beforehand the better, as you'll be able to comfort and support mutual friends and their …

Former Deep Japan Writer image

Former Deep Japan Writer

Don't Wear Black in Japan images

Don't Wear Black in Japan

In Japan, the color white is attributed to happiness and good times. Death is a time of mourning and so people must dress in the color of depression, black. Men usually wear a black suit with a black…

GenS image

GenS

Yurei, Yokai and Obake: Japan's Very Busy Ghost Scene images

Yurei, Yokai and Obake: Japan's Very Busy Ghost Scene

Ghosts and spirits hold a place in the folklore of many cultures around the world. In the western world, Halloween, observed on October 31st, is a time for scary, spooky tales, while Latin America w…

jdlawrence image

jdlawrence

Enjoy bath, Japanese style images

Enjoy bath, Japanese style

Enjoy taking bath with Babu(Bub), a popular Japanese bath tablet to Relax after Exploring Japan on Foot.All travelers know how sight seeing can be exhausting. Especially walking around on foot, t…

mimichan image

mimichan

Ride The Tokyo Metro Like A Boss With These Apps images

Ride The Tokyo Metro Like A Boss With These Apps

To people new to Japan, the Tokyo subway system, stylishly called "Tokyo Metro" is a confusing labyrinth of lines going every which way. Orderly thought and planning, it would appear, seem to be the…

jdlawrence image

jdlawrence

Why Do Japanese People Call Mt. Fuji, Mr. Fuji? images

Why Do Japanese People Call Mt. Fuji, Mr. Fuji?

If you wondered why Japanese people refer to Mt. Fuji as Mr. Fuji, you are not alone.When I first came to Japan, and actually until about two years ago, well okay, actually it still happens a lot…

 image