– Los Angeles is reasonable and suited to my nature in its divisiveness in its course of action. When I came here at the end of last year, I was still dragging my corona, but this time it is about as good as if it had never happened. First of all, I no longer need a mask in my daily life. Even though the number of infections is much higher than in Japan, a vaccine and medicine have already been developed, so it is treated the same as a cold. Japan has created a surveillance society (shurahachibetsu) where masks cannot be removed forever by failing to make them obligatory (rules) and asking society to do so. This shows that Japanese politicians are not good at making rules. Maybe Tokyo and other urban areas will not be able to take off the masks for the rest of the century.

– Los Angeles is a completely car-based society, so I spend so much time traveling that I probably spend most of my waking hours driving. When you have a well-developed subway system like in Tokyo, it is easy to get around and you can use your phone to complete various tasks in the meantime. People in Los Angeles (Jerina) spend about half of their brain on getting a parking spot and a validation (free ticket) for a restaurant. On the other hand, with the Tesla craze, sensible self-driving is becoming a reality on routes where the amount of data acquired is large. It is also convenient that countless low-speed scooters such as Bird and Lime are becoming popular and can be ridden off the road.

– The energy of the city is great, so it is easy for energetic people to spend time there. However, the perpetrators will claim to be the victims, so you need to train your diaphragm just enough to refute every single one of them. There is also room for individuality there, which is great in the sense that you can always have your own ideas. Furthermore, there is a culture that praises those who work hard. This is very different from Japan, where it is taken for granted that someone can do well. However, job descriptions are too clear, and there is no success in seeking services beyond the scope of the job description, and there is room for improvement in the overly rational aspect. In this respect, Japanese people are able to think and act based on the feelings of others, which may be good or bad, but I like this aspect of Japanese people.

I think the major difference between Japan and the U.S. is the difference and balance between the amount of individuals and others within oneself. Well, I think it is important to go around the world as much as possible to learn the differences, and I think traveling is the easiest way to understand diversity.