While restaurant portion sizes in Western countries have birthed a custom of taking leftovers home for a second meal, this is not the case in Japan. If you are considering asking for a take-home container, the answer, unfortunately, will almost always be no.
Food Items You Can Bring
As a general rule, processed foods like chocolates, candies, cookies, and canned goods are usually allowed into Japan. However, they must be declared upon arrival, and in some cases, you may be asked to open them for inspection.
Don't leave food behind. It's considered bad manners to leave even grains of rice behind, so be sure to clean your plate! If there are some foods you cannot eat, ask to have them left out of the dish.
Always finish your meal!
The Japanese consider it rude to leave food on your plate, and even more so to order more food when you haven't finished everything you've already got.
Don't eat while walking
If you've ever taken a stroll outside in Japan, you'll probably notice that nobody is eating anything. It's also very rare for the Japanese to walk outside holding coffees. This is one of Japan's cultural “rules” that I still can't get used to.
Eating and Walking in Japan: Stay Where You Are!
Eating while walking is a big no-no for most Japanese–even children enjoying an ice cream are often told to sit down before consuming food. That being said, summertime sees an explosion of street food stalls, especially during the festival season.
Crossing your feet in some cultures is considered very rude. In Japan you are expected to sit erect with both feet on the floor and never cross your ankle over your knee. In Singapore, as in many Asia cultures, the foot is thought to be unclean and should not be used to point at someone.
Don't point. Pointing at people or things is considered rude in Japan. Instead of using a finger to point at something, the Japanese use a hand to gently wave at what they would like to indicate. When referring to themselves, people will use their forefinger to touch their nose instead of pointing at themselves.
Hara Hachi Bu: Stop Eating When You're 80% Full
If you've ever been lucky enough to eat with an Okinawan elder, you've invariably heard them intone this Confucian-inspired adage before beginning the meal: hara hachi bu — a reminder to stop eating when their stomachs are 80 percent full.
While the Japanese are generally considered to be very polite and welcoming people, there are still some things that can be considered rude in their culture. For example, at dinnertime it is considered impolite to make noise while eating, and it is also considered bad manners to leave food on your plate.
Sometimes, this rule is conflated with a Japanese one that has to do with slurping. At restaurants in Japan, it's considered proper to slurp noodles while eating. However, it is not polite in Japan to burp, nor is it polite in China to slurp.
Rice Tips. Rice is sacred in Japan and leaving uneaten rice or even morsels of rice in a rice bowl are frowned upon. While visitors will be forgiven, if you don't plan to finish your rice, ask for small portions, decline rice or make an effort to eat every rice morsel.
You don't need to overthink it; there is no rude way to eat ramen. If you want to drink the soup straight from the bowl, by all means indulge. Just enjoy the bowl and you are doing it right. And don't worry if you can't finish all of the soup.
PROHIBITED ARTICLES (EXAMPLE)
Explosives, gunpowder, materials for chemical weapons, germs such as anthrax. Counterfeit, altered or imitated coins, bank notes or securities, and forged credit cards. Obscene or immoral materials, and child pornography. Articles which infringe upon intellectual property rights.
Items designated as prohibited by the Civil Aeronautics Act cannot be placed inside checked baggage. (Examples include toxic gases, flammable gases, flammable liquids, compressed gases.) Although dry ice, alcoholic liquids, and cigarette lighters fall under the “Prohibition for Carriage of Explosives etc.
The likelihood that credit cards are accepted decreases in small cities and towns, and thus it is advisable to keep cash at hand when visiting rural areas. Cash is often the only way to pay for small entrance fees at tourist sights, smaller restaurants and small shops. Many lockers also require coins.
When eating from shared dishes (as it is commonly done at some restaurants such as izakaya), it is polite to use the opposite end of your chopsticks or dedicated serving chopsticks for moving food to your own dish. Blowing your nose at the table, burping and audible munching are considered bad manners in Japan.
Under the current '25/5' rule, an non-resident investor is subject to Japan tax on capital gains from the sale of shares in a Japanese company if the investor (a) owned 25% or more of the company's shares at any time during the preceding 3 years; and (b) sells 5% or more of the company's shares during any one fiscal ...
There's also no cultural relevance that prohibits people from eating while walking. As long as you are following TPO guidelines, you should be good. While it's okay to eat while eating, it's not a common practice. Japanese people are mindful of having cleanliness and respect for public spaces.
You can use the phone for texting or surfing the internet, as long as it doesn't make any noise. If you want to listen to music, you should wear headphones.
Perfume is complex and subjective by its very nature. In Japan, the cultural state of mind around fragrance simply doesn't exist. In fact, it's considered culturally offensive to wear strong scents, so light, clean, dry, understated scents are the preference.
In Japan it's considered rude to yawn openly. Happily, you at least get to cover your mouth if you can't stop that yawn ... Prolonged eye contact (staring) is considered rude. Don't show affection, such as hugging or shoulder slapping, in public.
Those exceeding government limits - 33.5 inches for men and 35.4 inches for women, which are identical to thresholds established in 2005 for Japan by the International Diabetes Federation as an easy guideline for identifying health risks - and having a weight-related ailment will be given dieting guidance if after ...
While tattoos are not illegal, they can prevent people from getting the full Japanese experience. When using public transportation in Japan, such as trains, tourists with visible tattoos will want to keep in mind that their ink may be offensive to some of the locals.
Walking around town is perfectly fine, especially in the big cities. However, you're going to want to cover up when you visit anywhere that is traditional, such as temples, shrines, and ryokan. Even if there isn't a posted rule, it is respectful to cover your tattoos in these places.