最近スミス英会話のオーナーミーティングに出席するため大阪へ行きました。スミス英会話相模原校から“ドアツードア(家を出てから目的地に到着するまで)”で約3時間、ＪＲ横浜線で新横浜駅へ、そして東海道新幹線で大阪駅という道のりです。とても行きやすいです。ミーティングは上手く行きましたが、今回書きたいのはミーティングについてではありません。

定期的に大阪へ行くと関東に住んでいる者として、神奈川県の相模原市と大阪の違いについて気づくことが多くあります。今回は関東と関西の違いについてお話しします。

Sagamihara Smith’s School of English to Osaka: Local Culture

Recently I traveled to Osaka to attend a meeting with Smith’s School of English owners. From Sagamihara Smith’s School of English it takes about 3 hours “door to door;” via the JR Yokohama Line to Shin-Yokohama Station, then the Tokaido Shinkansen to Osaka. It’s very easy. The meeting went well, but that isn’t what I want to write about this time. As I live in Kanto, I can’t help but notice some of the differences between Sagamihara local culture and that of Osaka. In this case, Kanto Region and Kansai region.

When riding local trains in Osaka, I see and hear many of the passengers talking, laughing, etc. The trains in Sagamihara and Tokyo are generally silent. When exiting the train and getting into Umeda, I notice a difference in fashion. Brighter colors in Osaka, darker colors in Tokyo.

Taxis come in all colors here in Sagamihara and certainly Tokyo. Many of them are black in Osaka. I don’t know why, but I plan to find out.

The food and restaurants in Sagamihara and Kanto are all very good. But Osaka seems to be “the food city” in Japan. This time I was especially intrigued by the difference in the display of some of the sushi in bento boxes at the train station. Tokyo and Kanto have what I thought was normal sushi, served in an oval shape on top of vinegared rice. In contrast, I noticed a special Osaka sushi bento that seems to be “pressed” fish on top of the rice, displayed in a square or rectangular shape. Later I learned that it is okay to cut it into bite-sized pieces.

I could write on and on about the differences. And I will, in a more detailed blog in the near future. Cultural diversity in Japan is vast and very interesting. I am never done learning about Japan, and even this medium size city called Sagamihara! Living in Sagamihara is good!