Back in the 1980s I made three trips to Japan on religious pilgrimages. Volunteer drivers ferried the visitors from central collection points to the homes of local members. On one of those trips, most likely an early one, the driver ushered us into a Toyota Crown Saloon, a model sold only in Japan and select Asian markets. In this case I suspect it’s a woman’s car, with crocheted antimacassars on the headrests of every seatback. Perhaps the Japanese who most often rode in the were still using the oil on their hair that Americans once favored or it’s just a preferred style. Not a subject for polite inquiry in any case. A large car, larger than the Avalon sold today in America. No doubt a sign of financial success.

Approaching a traffic light in the busy city, the driver dims the headlights in favor of parking lights only. The oncoming traffic does the same. A courteous custom unknown to Americans, some of whom don’t bother dimming high beams. Later, on one of the buses we traveled between airport and central points, I noticed the white gloves worn by the driver. Even some truck drivers could be seen wearing white gloves. Another unique cultural artifact. As for trucks themselves, in the congested traffic of Tokyo and Osaka the vehicles were often on the small side compared to those in America. Rear-compacting trash trucks compared to those plying neighborhood streets of America were as mini-pickups to full-sized. While the businessmen there all wore Western suits, there were still kimono clad women here and there. In the 80s the local youth had yet to adopt the colorful and divergent hairstyles common to the 21^st century. There were no pinks, greens, yellow or purples to be seen atop any teens or twenty-somethings then. Today, of course, there are plenty.

The trains, commuter and long-haul, even then were way beyond the esthetics and the performance of American counterparts. They were as crowded, however, as news or documentary features have shown. Uniformed “train-packers” did assist in squeezing the last few commuters onto already packed cars, pushing them with two white-gloved hands. While not something done in America, the crowded commuter railcars are and have been common to big cities everywhere.