Your Visit To Japan

Jerica Gomez

Customary Greetings

Saying Hello
How to Bow in Japan
The correct way to offer a bow in Japan is to bend at the waist, keep your back and neck straight, feet
together, eyes downward, and have your arms straight at your sides. Women often bow with their fingertips together or hands clasped in front at thigh level. degree angle. The deepest bow involves bending to a full 45 degrees while you look at your shoes. The longer that you hold a bow, the more respect is shown.
Never Look in the eyes of your hostess as you bow, this is disrespectful.

A quick, informal bow involves bending to around 15 degrees, while a more formal bow will bend to a 30-

How to Say Hello in Japanese

Konnichiwa -- pronounced kon-nee-chee-wah -- is a basic way to say hello in Japanese, however, it is mostly
heard in the afternoon. Konnichiwa is used as a respectful-yet-generic way to say hello.

Receiving Business Cards (meishi)

Japanese business cards -- known as meishi -- are treated with utmost respect.

If conducting business, carry your cards in a nice case so that you don't hand your counterpart a frayed and butt-warmed card out of your wallet.

The quality and condition of your business card speaks much about how you intend to conduct yourself and business.

Steps
1. 2.
When receiving a business card, thank the other person and offer a quick bow. Take the card with both hands

3.
4.

hold it by the top two corners; examine it closely with respect.

Avoid covering the person's name on the card with your fingers.

Note: If cards are exchanged while already seated, place the card atop your case until you leave the table. Attention is even given to the order that cards are placed on the table. Put the highest ranking person's card on your case so that it is higher, with the subordinates' cards beside it on the table. The worst thing that you can possibly do in Japanese business etiquette is to cram someone's business card into a back pocket or wallet in front of them!

Japanese National Holidays

Restaurant Etiquette

Menus
Many restaurants in Japan
display plastic or wax replicas of their dishes in a window near their entrance. Replicas:
Entice and inform patrons of the
restaurant's menu.

Offer an accurate, visual description of

the style and price of meals found inside.

Entering the Restaurant/Home

In some traditional Japanese restaurants (izakaya) it is customary for the
guests to remove their shoes. In these restaurants, you will find a shoe storage (genkan) where you may store your
shoes upon entering.
Note: In some Izakayas, the shoe lockers located in the genkan have a metal key. If metal key is present, that means
locker is empty, grab the key and bring it to your table.

Chopsticks
Ordering and Eating After you are seated, each diner is usually served with a free glass of water or tea Everyone will also receive a wet towel (oshibori) which is used to clean your hands before eating. If chopsticks are not already set, you can usually find some in a box on the table.

Sitting Down (zashiki)

Saying Goodbye
Again, bowing is customary for saying goodbye . Sayonara (sa-YOH-nah-rah)
This is a formal way of saying goodbye
If you want to be really fancy

Kongo mo yoroshiku onegaitashimasu.

This means "from here on out, I wish us a good acquaintance."

References
Culture Tips- Japan Tours. (2011, March 4). Retrieved February 20, 2014, from http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2040.html Japanese Manners & Cultural Norms | Inside Japan Tours. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2014, from http://www.insidejapantours.com/japanese-culture/social-conventions/ What are the different ways to say goodbye in Japanese? (2013, June 7). Retrieved February 20, 2014, from http://ruthcurley.hubpages.com/question/114732/what-are-the-differentways-to-say-goodbye-in-japanese