The Rules in Japan for Sitting/Standing in a Closed Area
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- Опубліковано 4 чер 2024
- Out of the many business rules in Japan, the upper and lower seats might be one of the most complicated and troublesome ones. Many young people in Japan too are starting to say
that this culture is outdated and meaningless. Unfortunately, there are still many people, especially in the older generation who think of it as basic business manners.
Although on one hand I think we should change the culture and focus more on actual productivity, on the other hand I think it would surely be better for you to understand the basics then to not know anything about it for better communication.
So today, as a man who has worked at three different Japanese companies before and currently running my own, I will explain what upper and lower seats are and how this culture was born, as well as 10 different situations on how to properly choose where to sit.
By watching this video you will obtain basic knowledge of upper and lower seats, to the level that you won't be troubled in real life. This video is perfect not just for those who are willing to work in Japan, but also to those who will study in Japan and communicate with any sensei/senpai in the future.
If you enjoyed watching this video, I hope you can take a look at “Part 1” where I explain business greetings, and “Part 2” about exchanging business cards.
[Time codes]
0:00 Let's START!
2:13 What are "upper and lower seats"
3:37 The 10 different situations of upper and lower seats
12:54 An important message before the end
13:35 Today's conclusion
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Shogo teachs in a way that information stays with you, most educational content on this platform is forgetable, i love this channel!
As someone from outside Japan, I have accidentally followed these upper and lower seat rules without even knowing it.
I find that a bit facinating.
I think some of the "seat ranking" rules apply in other places too, although they're maybe less tied to the social hierarchy and more about which seats will be filled first when there are fewer people, e.g. the window seat on the train.
They all made intuitive sense to me, except for the "couch over free-standing seat with armrests" rule. To me, the free-standing seat with armrests was always the throne, and the couch just wasn't special. Also, when in a car, the seat closest to the pavement exit is the one my sister battled over.
As youngest of my parents children the seating was usually the most inconvenient for everyone else -- and once elderly the best armchairs were always for my parents. There's also the "head of the table" thing and other seating rules I'm probably not conscious of but still follow.
Shogo manages to take something that could be a really dry and dull subject and has made it entertaining and fun. Glad to give this a thumbs up.
Dunno, it's still pretty dry. The presenter doesn't seem to have a natural speaking style either.
distance from the door makes sense for other reasons, though. the lowest status employees are most likely to be the ones you'll use for errands or dealing with interruptions, etc. so putting them far from the door would make their ability to handle anything that might come up much more disruptive to the meeting.
I've heard that in switzerland they have rules for parking slots, in which whoever arrives the earliest is expected to take the first parking slot available they can find so that who arrives later will spend less time walking to the building, and thus be less likely to be late
oooh, thats amazing and very thoughtful!
Now this is TRUE courtesy. Not those other self aggrandizing senior vs junior bullsh!t rules.
Mhmm...I live in Switzerland and i never heard of this 😂😂
Seems like BS. Also if you are late you are late, no matter how close you park to the building, it wont take you 5 or 10 mins more walking a parking lot at the most its going to be less than a minute
no, there are no courtesy parking rules here
As someone from outside of Japan, I can understand and appreciate the reasons for these kinds of rules.
I do think these rules also still exist in western societies, though not quite as rigid as most people seem to adhere to in japan. You see it a lot in special occasion seating like weddings, birthday parties, family dinners... anything celebratory with clear indicators of hierarchy depending on one's proximity to the celebrant or main representative for the group of celebrants.
This seems to be a very primal thing to me, since humans are very aware of social hierarchies, much like other animal species who have close knit group social structures do in the wild.
But also mixing in the etiquette rule of alternating female and male.
I visited my daughter when she was teaching English near Kobe, she was also learning to play koto. I saw how the ranking of positions affects how we relate. When in the koto group the teacher was the highest rank but when I visited the koto teacher where my daughter was teaching her grand children the role were reversed and my daughter had higher rank over her koto teacher. In my culture the koto teacher would have had higher rank no matter where she was because she was an older person.
Your rate of speaking is great, no need to speed up playback. As always, thank you for covering the topics you do!
I am following shogo from the start and am really so happy with his channel and its so educatief. I wish him and his family the best and hope he gets very big. I recommend all japanese lovers this channel
I used to train in 2 different karate dojos at the same time in the US, and in one dojo, the high ranked students were to the right and the other dojo had the high rank students to the left. I had a high rank in one style and a low rank in the other style, so I was on the right side in both dojos.
Shogo would be a great teacher he could teach
-culture
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And much more about japan .
I still remember taking a bunch Japanese students and their teacher out on the river in Oxford and later being compared to Australopithecus, (there was a skeleton in one of the displays,) when when we were in the Pitt Rivers Museum, basically he was calling me a monkey and he thought it went over my head.
I'm not a huge fan of the Japanese or of Japanese culture and traditions and frankly I found them to be arrogant and deeply racist, but the Oxford collages make a fortune catering to their prejudices and snobbery.
@@Eris123451 Yes, East Asia has very different racial views. So does all of Asia compared to all of Europe if we are going to generalize. Let's cater to them for money until our culture falls over :D
Honestly, in my local area there is a top astrophysics university. The West on the whole doesn't like to talk about just how racist most of the human race still is, so we can wave happy flags of diversity, cultural integration, and all getting along hand-in-hand as a prosperous sharing global village.
The government doesn't trust local students to even pay their university loan, so they sign contracts with the Chinese government who pay up-front. Now, six blocks of the city are 100% rich Chinese who really don't like the 30% Indian population, or anyone who isn't Chinese for that matter!
I walk through parts of town I remember very well, but no longer remember them, because I am looked down at for being slightly brown and everyone within this area is an absurdly rich son/daughter of an entrepreneur. I'm mixed race and some Japanese see this in a manner of mongrels! Like I am a "lower-tier" westerner. I am used to this.
Got all of them right.
Though honestly, it does need to be reversed. The most important seat should be the one by the exit in case of a fire or earthquake/tidal wave emergency. Got to get the most important person to safety first, right?
that make sense
I was thinking the same thing. Same logic for emergency ladders.
Naaa, let the bastards die...
I remember when I practiced Taekwondo the higher belts would always train furthest from the door and the lowest would be closest to the door in order.
The reasoning being that if we were attacked then the higher belts would get more reaction time to defend the Dojang.
This is Korean culture but I'm guessing this particular facet has an identical origin as in the Japanese Dojo.
A friend told me (was from tradition oriented family) that it was like the maritime tradition, the leaders would make sure the people they are responsible for would be able to leave first in an emergency. In older times the leader would be protected by the younger and faster warriors that looked to them, until they could either be moved if they were too old to fight or be able to join the fight themselves. (Shoganate tradition) Business tradition ended up being the younger employees would be shields to the older/higher managers during a business take over. Usually the bodyguards and combat trained would be standing against the walls and near the doors. While the employees were sitting at their meeting. Tradition is a big thing for the elders of Japan, but the younger generations have for years more Westernized. Just like many traditions of the Natives of America have had their traditions slowly being over come by the European traditions and teachings, and the elders dying with their traditions and the oral traditions of passing on history of The People. This includes the moral and respect of the elders who have lived and learned the skills and histories. Native Languages are almost all lost. I hope Japan keeps their history and traditions, incorporating the new and old in ways that don't destroy a culture.
Mate, you are pure gold. I learned more about the Japanese state of mind and Japanese culture then during decades of books and documentaries. For such a rich and powerful country, there is not coming a lot out of it aside videogames and anime. So having more Japanese actually contribute to international communites is very very nice to have!
Cheers from Germany
"Left is supirior to right!"
Me, a lefthanded person: Finally, some recignition!!! x^x
Yessss 🙌
In USA, the same rules apply most of the time. In part from military view: clearer field of view, control of field of fire (gun reference). Person of highest rank farthest from door sees all entrances and exits. First eye contact is strategic advantage.
Same with Southern culture traditions.
I always thought the "far away from door for security" was kind of a thing everywhere, with modern office building layouts and security only changing this given less need for security and more priority for the exec assistant to be able to signal the boss or for the exec secretary or vp/dpm/ to be able to signal the head of state or secretary briefing him/her if some new info just came in as discreetly as possible just in case doing it that way was necessary.
I'd say it's not so much as distance from the door, but instead having the door in line of sight. So you automatically see whoever is entering the door first. And since in a meeting, everyone is generally facing the center of the room so that they can see everyone, it's a simple matter of geometry that the person furthest from the door would also be the person facing the door.
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Mandatory Japanese phrases in business scenes! Useful for all communication with a sensei/senpai
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Complete guide to business cards in Japan! Exchanging, choosing card holders, and managing cards
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Thank you again very much for watching!
Soho-san! Your explanation of seat priority was great! I knew most situations, but I definitely learned a few things especially about taxi seating.
Thank you for another great educational expirience regarding Japanese traditions. ☆
I enjoyed the quizes
Shogo san, thank you so much for this video. I learned a lot, and thanks to you I was able to write a whole page of notes on the seating in Japan. It's such happiness for me to learn about all of this. ありがとうございます。
Your videos are not only informative but also very calming
I really enjoy learning things from you ! and these things are usually interesting and educational, thank you so much!
I am a college professor. Your videos are SOOOOOOOO useful as teaching materials for my Cultural Psychology course!!!!!!!!
I love your channel!! I learn more with you than i will ever learn from my own teacher.
It’s so important to own your own business
It's crucial now more than ever. Workers are losing rights and money.
To be honest if suddenly someone wants a coffee or something... they're not gonna send someone high ranking to go get it xd so is obviously more practical that the one who's gonna be bossed around can have easier access to the door
Yeah, I find that a lot of this is intuitive and internalised at least on some level in the West as well, without there being strict rules for it.
very interesting knowledge to know about it, thank you Shogi.
this is actually a lot more intuitive to westerners than you might think. some of the details seemed pretty arbitrary like left vs. right, but the general principles are followed pretty much everywhere I would imagine
Even if you don't go to do business in Japan you need this knowledge in Yakuza-series sidequests
i've watched many of your videos, this is the first time i notied the speed up playback message...
Wow. After watching 2 of your videos, it's hit home how similar Japan and US actually are. The actual practices might differ a bit, but the ideas behind them are very similar. Thank you for the great content, you are a good teacher!
I like learning new things about Japan. Arigato gozaimasu, Shogo-san 🙂
No, I didn't know. Thank you for telling me about it.
Very interesting stuff ! I was able to get more of them right than i thought i would lol
Shogo i have a question, what will happen when a higher person enters the room? do the persons shuffle seats?
In my experience everyone stands up when the higher person enters the room and makes way for them ☺️
@@HappiAcrossCultures that reminds me of my high school (usa, but private). students were supposed to stand when an adult enters the classroom. which resulted in adults often opening the door a bit and gesturing to catch the teacher's attention so they don't have to enter and make everyone stand up, which seemed to be rather nice of the adult toward the students 😃
@@mm-yt8sf that’s so respectful!! I love that even the adults would go out of their way to be respectful to the students and not have to make them all stand ✨✨
@@mm-yt8sf So a hacky solution to a problem that shouldn't exist in the first place then? And of course these things can't be changed once they're implemented, because no-one wants to be the one who said that it's okay for students to "disrespect" adults, even though everyone involved knows it's stupid.
@@TonboIV I think the piece that you're not understanding might be that respect for everyone is a sign of a healthy society even when there's a formal hierarchy.
Most American examples will come from the military, because we otherwise don't formalize hierarchy so clearly. There's a US Navy story about a fresh lieutenant on one of the capital ships (battleship or carrier) taking the front of the mess line. Which is a traditional privilege.
The enlisted men couldn't say anything about it - there wasn't anything to say, really. But the lt didn't notice that he had passed the commanding admiral.
So the CO stepped forward and exercised one of his privileges, inviting the young officer to join him for a meal. Something like, "if you don't have an urgent duty to return to, I'd like for you to eat with me."
This would typically mean the wardroom or his cabin, but that day the CO had decided to dine in the crew's mess. So they returned to line, maybe even to the end of the line.
Now this isn't a Japanese story, it's an American one and there's the element of having privileges but choosing to not exercise them. I believe that element is more obviously prevalent in American military culture than Japanese business.
But the basic principle that superiors should use their position in a way that shows consideration and personal respect towards inferiors is universal.
5:51 - I would have guessed that the couch would rank lower than an individual seat. imagine a CEO sitting on the couch next to their CFO. the fact that they're sharing seems to imply that they're not as important. I would have ranked the single, individual chair in the bottom left hand side highest.
That was really interesting. I probably never need this in my life but I will remember it ^^
the taxi one surprised me because I thought it was also a rule that the most senior person pays for things so I expected them to be in the front (they would also have more room there).
Hey dear SHOGO, Kazu & Harumi, Another great video! I think I'll get a little memento of Japanese good manners before going to this beautiful country full of traditions. Really your videos are much better than a vulgar touristic guide and they will be much more profitable since they are extremely precise. It would be a shame not to learn the fundamental lessons in order to respect the Japanese people. Thank you for all and keep my deep friendship in towards you
I never thought about it before this video, but we kinda have the same unspoken rules about the middle car seat. Basically, you and your friends/family/acquaintances have to determine who is "the lowest in the hierarchy" and has to get the uncomfortable middle seat.
I have also heard that car seat priority can mirror survivability in the event of the most common types of car crashes, although I don't know if this is relevant or even true.
In the case of the general rule regarding door distance, I can also see in upper-class environments a possible theory that if a superior is holding audience or a meeting, you want those entering to begin in the area of lowest rank and then proceed up to their station rather than beginning in an area above their station where they are not allowed. This enforces the social hierarchy. Of course, if the superior will be arriving last, they might want to be closest to the door so they don't have to walk as far, whereas those of the lowest rank must trek to the far end of the room past everyone else upon arriving (which might be a subtle form of humiliation). I could see a culture evolving either preference, so it is interesting to see what each one chose.
Many of these rules would be the same in the U.S. for different reasons, or in the more practical cases, for the same reason. Of course, some of them would be different, but there are still rules here.
Why do you suggest to adjust playback speed? Yes lots of Feng Shui in Japan also. There is a myth, a saying, a thing, something where the person sitting watching the entrance is of higher rank to those with their back to it. So those further from it are in a more advantageous position if ever attacked and those with their back to it are more vulnerable and often first to be attacked and delay the attacker. Its a strategic position.
Very interesting.
I guess pretty good because my experience in dojo for aikido practice.
Even if I'm French
This may have helped on Friday Friday , gotta get down on Friday
It is easier for the host to go fetch something, make sure the food is ready, or run other necessary errands if the door is directly behind them. No need to walk behind the guests,. This is especially an issue in small rooms. The highest ranked guest is best seated across from the host, with his team around him. After that, however, it can get silly - for instance the translator should not be six seats down just because they are lower rank.
The host, being high ranking, does NOT fetch things. The lowest-ranking intern sits there so they can do it easily.
@@lazygardens I stand corrected. whups
Shogo, thank you so much for all of your videos. I have been a long-time watcher. I am curious how can we actually ask you a question directly? There are a couple of very specific questions I have on a couple of topics, especially in regards to tokonoma. How could I ask you these, please? ^^
Funny how it's the reverse. We always tend to reserve chairs closest to the door for elderly.
So they have an easier time taking their seat without having to shuffle into a corner.
One thing was not clear to me - while I understand left is superior to right, my question is - from which perspective? When looking into the room from the door? Or when considering from the viewpoint of the highest seat (which is most likely to be facing toward the door)?
Wasn’t this covered in Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan
Sounds more like a way to arrange the furniture in an office or meeting room. It would tend to make the presenter at a meeting, able to more easier to address those he is in charge of. We probably have some sort of throw back to this custom in the way offices in America are arranged as well.
this just made me think of Sheldon's seating rules on bigbangtheory. like ultimately it doesn't matter but he had a detailed strategy for picking his chair.
I heard that seat behind the driver was the highest because in the case of an accident, the driver will turn the vehicle away from the oncoming car and so you wouldn’t want the important person next to them.
Shogo, I saw your katana video recently, and as wondering if you're interested in talking about bigger swords like the Odachi
I learned this when come to Japan for the first time. But day by day I'm forgot, because I'm never going for the business meeting 😁
Love your videos, Shogo! I also like how there's a very subtle (Kyoto-esque?) message of "old people here are the worst, screw them" somewhere in each video. It's the same here in the US, stay strong, my friend - all we have to do is wait. Hahaha =)
- Jared
I see why this is outdated, but at the same time it’s fascinating
Most important point. I am a foreigner and people will understand if I look like I have no idea what I am doing.
Left/Right:
Is the purpose to have the right hand closer to the door?
The lower/right-seated would have to turn 180° toward the wall before aiming an arrow or extending their hand (like at 8:15).
Even if that's not the origin, is it an accurate rule guide?
well yeah its assigned seating .. we have that in America too
Things got weird for me on Shinkansen but I got the rest pretty well!
i guess it's more efficient if most people have the same "sorting algorithm" in their heads about how to sort themselves...then there's less of the "was he trying to be rude? or just had a positive reason for doing the unexpected thing...?" when one can expect people are on the same page then it's easier to know with more certainty when respect is showed....or not showed.. i guess it's a double edged sword 😀how fun!
Interesting
Wow... This counts for elevators too? I think I totally screwed this up with my university professor when I was studying abroad in Japan. This would have been a great channel to watch before studying abroad.
So, how do you assign the person to their seat? Do I just allow the highest ranking person to enter the room first, choosing their seat, or do I enter first do show them their seat?
As an American, some of the rules for protection I know from school. We had lockdown drills where the kids in a classroom had to move to a more secure position and the teacher in a less secure one to protect from a shooter or other danger.
Our BJJ professor explained this a while ago in relation how we line up on the mat by rank.
In my version; in video game terms if you storm a Dojo you need to get through trash mobs first (white belts)
Then tanky mobs (blue belts)
Then minibosses (purple and brown belts)
And in the end you get to the final boss/s (black belts)
Makes sense. so your HP could be reduced by the time you actually fight the boss. Conversely, it gives you time to charge the "special" meter
Having all the rules or customs, and more importantly abiding it, also helps your brain to be kept in a good shape :)
Are there similar rules for family situations (dinner table, living room watching TV, picnic, etc)?
Works for me, being close to the door is a big +. On second glance I feel like even tho you are near the door they would expect you to be the last to leave. Eshhh.
What about a round room with multiple entrances? Will a company of Japanese businessmen enter into a stack overflow state?
Wow. That is so much more complicated than I was expecting! I guess I need to adjust my expectations going forward.
I agree it should be loosened up a lot, the furthest away to the superior, ok, burt the rest, is , too complicatd.
Interesting and actually easy to understand, once basics are known. I don't personally even mind such rules, simply shows a deep culture and traditions. Not everything should always be simple to the point of being lame, not applying traditions or respect, like in western culture. Overly complicated is also not good, of course, but these "rules" aren't that hard (well, now that I've learned about them :) ). Basically, be proud of your culture and traditions and don't rush to apply western ways, as many western ways simply suck.
I understand why the rank in a train is higher when the seat in is the direction of travel, but now that I've been sitting opposite to the direction of travel I find it more comfortable. Also, opposite to the direction of travel is safer in case of a crash. Would the rule change if your superior would say such a thing?
Thanks for posting. I expect to be in Japan next year on business and want to show respect for the host by following proper protocol. I am the chief scientist in my company and expect to meet with scientists and engineers from a large Japanese corporation. I am probably higher rank within my company, but the Japanese partner company is 40X larger. How much does the size of the organization matter and how do scientists rank in Japanese society?
What about in a bus or a van? I assume sitting closer to the door is preferable to get off first?
Regarding the taxi seating, In America the front seat would be the highest value seat at that would be the most comfortable and the lowest would be the middle seat in the back which is sometimes called "sitting bitch". As in, "hell no I'm not sitting bitch, I'll call my own uber" 😂
in which direction should "shomen" be when starting training?
in america it's called "the gun seat"; where you have your back against the wall and no one can shoot you in the back 😁
Older Japanese have bought into an aspect of Samurai culture that is no longer fitting for where Japan is going, because it proves that the older generation and those who are at the top of businesses are self absorbed while at the same time giving the impression they are vulnerable so the use the Japanese Caste system to give authority to their positioning lower ranking men in positions where they would have to take the brunt of an attack. That militaristic culture of a caste system is no longer fitting in this day and age. Also those higher ranking individuals need to stop acting like put-upon narcissistic children who truly believe they are entitled to use others to do their dirty work.
There was a reason the Knights of old England used a Round Table for their meetings so that no knight would be considered higher ranking than any other.
The Round Table is mythical lol, as is most of King Arthur (they are even given a name "Arthurian Legends") because when Rome withdraw from my dear nation we were in complete ruin and did not document our history properly, struggling to come up with even consistent ways to spell words. Knights directly served the monarch, and the monarch was completely powerless to Papal wishes, until Henry VIII formed the Church of England. We were approaching the 1800s and still did not agree on how the world "the" should be used and spelled! Whilst Japanese samurai education kept the nobles consistently literate throughout this period.
Militarism and a caste system and not particularly related. Highly militaristic less caste-based societies like say, the British Empire, did not have serf-peasant-lord caste systems. In fact, discarding this was useful to adding more hands to the operation, allowing low-born men to become accomplished sailors and military men, discarding caste systems for a meritocracy which saw us rule half the world.
I do not see how older people following the manners and politeness that their culture taught them in their time as "being self absorbed." I think frankly this is a low and shitty way to insult many, many older Japanese who are trying to be polite and civil. Imagine in 30 years when the way that you have been taught politeness is considered self-absorbed. Very rude.
Many business owners are self-absorbed; most of those people are not following any kind of samurai culture, they are American businessmen and Hollywood LA nonsense cliques!
Respect and etiquette are fitting in all days and all ages. Everything must be adapted and the old ways always become outdated, I agree, but the complete discarding of samurai culture will lead to self-absorbed businessmen with even less respect for their clients in the manner of American hotshot venture capitalists. Once-militaristic cultures can still exist with their militarism symbolically represented. You, as a foreigner, kind of can't decide that Japan's samurai culture is barbaric. In England, we do this thing called "keeping it to ourselves" so we don't look rude, opinionated, or stupid.
Japan's degradation began with the introduction of Western culture, where Westerners are ignorant enough about their own origins to believe that the round table actually existed in consistent practice hahaha...
@@AdamOwenBrowning
Oh my, a history professor, I used the round table as an allegory. I don't give a rats if it actually existed or not.
Your arrogance is showing as you are so proud of your education.
True civility leaves people living like robots for fear that their opinions will offend everyone else. That is not freedom. It is being a slave to a culture that lives off the fears of its highest ranking members who live by stealing the working efforts of others. That is what a caste system is my friend.
@@benth162 I'll be your Huckleberry. You are an insufferable and entitled child. You may call me arrogant all you want because I know I earned mine. Your are just uncouth and uncultured.
Sheldon Cooper: "That's my spot."
Japan: "Nope."
ive noticed that a lot of cultures do this without there being rules for it even the car and elevator based
hi shogo am a big fan from kyoto
Does this apply to classroom in Japan too?
So in a taxi the away from the door rules no longer apply?
Interesting that the couch is "higher" than a single chair with armrests. I would have thought having to share the seat with another person would lower the rank
I can understand you can determine seniority within a company. How do you determine where to stand in a lift if you dont know the other people (is it by appearance of age). Not sure if this is a silly question, also, as people get in and out of the lift do people shift around based on the seniority.
I would assume it's a little universal here, whoever enters first always operates the buttons. Anything after that is based on guess and doesnt make sense to be shifting about due to the space constraints.
My notes for visiting Japan: If you're always the most important person, then you won't have to worry.
When you're the most important person you do have to worry: about not letting that importance disrespect and badger people.
Something: exists
Japanese: we gonna complicate it hundreds times for now particular reason because "wa"
Interesting. I would have thought that the seat closest to the door would have had the highest ranking, as the person who sits there must travel the least, and so that person's time is considered most important. I would also have thought that the elderly would have preferred the seat closest to the door as that means there is less distance for them to cover on weak legs, too.
In kendo, not sure if this is true or made up, they told me this is because if someone was to attack, the people near the door would be murdered first. Meatshields, of sorts.
Luckily I am very considerate due to early family.... events.
Hypersensitive. Luckily for me those rules are naturally understood.
Given my own situation, my question is how these rules would be applied if an employee/person was disabled? Using my own Stage I Cerebral Palsy as an example. I walk with forearm crutches. These videos are often the most fascinating to me, Shogo-san.
I've heard in martial arts dojo, at the contrary, the most skilled students are closer to the door cause they are more able to defend themself. Is it true?
Would imagine there's also things like draft from a door and people coming and going past you to consider. Placing an important person to such a position would be disrespectful.
so basicly what you mean by on the left is the seat thats on the right hand side (litterly right hand man)
Why in 8:23 numbers 2 and 3 are in those positions if "left is superior"? Is that because of the door?
Yes
I'd expect that in a bullet train, the order of the 2 and 3 would be inverted. It seems to me that facing opposite direction of train would be more nauseous than facing the direction of train directly, thus being more important than sitting close to window.
Yeah , I watched Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan
I'm not sure, but denying all the tradion isn't good too. Of course, times never stop, but keeping tradions make Japan unique country.
I hope, future Japan will be able mix tradions and productivity as did it many times before. This is only-Japan ability, i think