sempreio
06-03-2007, 17:39
Paris syndrome hits Japanese
The Guardian
Japanese tourists feel so let down by Paris shop assistants that they need treatment for a type of depression known as "Paris Syndrome".
"There are around 20 cases a year of the syndrome and it has been happening for several years," Miyupi Kusama, an administrator at the Japanese embassy in Paris, told the Guardian. Already this year it has repatriated at least four visitors suffering from hallucinations."Fragile travellers can lose their bearings. When the idea they have of the country meets the reality of what they discover it can provoke a crisis," Hervé Benhamou, a psychologist, told Le Journal du Dimanche.
Bernard Delage of Jeunes Japon, an association that helps Japanese families settle in France, said: "In Japanese shops, the customer is king, whereas here assistants hardly look at them ... People using public transport all look stern, and handbag snatchers increase the ill-feeling."
I find the whole thing really funny, but slightly surreal. The idea they have of "Europe" or any other place outside Japan, does not necessarely meets their expectations. Japanese media help building in their minds a certain stereotype, a fixed picture of what France or Italy would be like. Polite French men, well-dressed Italians, joyful people walking about, fancy restaurants etc. Some of the Japanese people I know, that have never been to Italy though, seem to think that on a daily basis, an average Italian sails a Gondola to go shopping at Armani`s, walks passed San Marco`s Square, goes to the local coffee shop for a typical Italian Cappuccino. Then again on a Gondola for a romantic cruise on Canal Grande.
This is what they expect! Reality though, is far too different...
The Guardian
Japanese tourists feel so let down by Paris shop assistants that they need treatment for a type of depression known as "Paris Syndrome".
"There are around 20 cases a year of the syndrome and it has been happening for several years," Miyupi Kusama, an administrator at the Japanese embassy in Paris, told the Guardian. Already this year it has repatriated at least four visitors suffering from hallucinations."Fragile travellers can lose their bearings. When the idea they have of the country meets the reality of what they discover it can provoke a crisis," Hervé Benhamou, a psychologist, told Le Journal du Dimanche.
Bernard Delage of Jeunes Japon, an association that helps Japanese families settle in France, said: "In Japanese shops, the customer is king, whereas here assistants hardly look at them ... People using public transport all look stern, and handbag snatchers increase the ill-feeling."
I find the whole thing really funny, but slightly surreal. The idea they have of "Europe" or any other place outside Japan, does not necessarely meets their expectations. Japanese media help building in their minds a certain stereotype, a fixed picture of what France or Italy would be like. Polite French men, well-dressed Italians, joyful people walking about, fancy restaurants etc. Some of the Japanese people I know, that have never been to Italy though, seem to think that on a daily basis, an average Italian sails a Gondola to go shopping at Armani`s, walks passed San Marco`s Square, goes to the local coffee shop for a typical Italian Cappuccino. Then again on a Gondola for a romantic cruise on Canal Grande.
This is what they expect! Reality though, is far too different...