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    Default Different Experiences While Travelling II

    Just thought it'd be great to continue this thread since it was closed down

    the experiences were absolutely amazing and are inspirations

    here's part one

    http://www.nappturality.com/forum/sh...=87469&page=10

    keep posting please

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    Interesting!

    My first experience traveling ALONE was when I traveled to Japan while active duty in the Navy. (I'd been to Canada as a teenager with my father.) I was stationed in Yokosuka, Japan (which is less than an hour out from Tokyo). That city is used to military personnel, for sure. However, in more outlying areas and even some parts of Tokyo, Black people aren't very common. I remember walking through Harajaku (a "borough" of Tokyo) and getting stared at. Not merely because my skin was dark (and at the height of summer, I was EXTRA dark thanks to sunlight), but A) at 5'8" I pretty much dwarfed most of the population and B) I was (and still am) fairly thin, so they thought I was a model from overseas. Led to a lot of opening of doors, "parting of seas" while walking and free entry into clubs. Also led to getting hit on/picked up by a lot of working class guys AND "upper tier" businessmen. None of which I dated, but the attention was flattering. NOT ONCE had I encountered out-and-out racism from the Japanese at all.


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  4. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mikalia42 View Post
    Interesting!

    My first experience traveling ALONE was when I traveled to Japan while active duty in the Navy. (I'd been to Canada as a teenager with my father.) I was stationed in Yokosuka, Japan (which is less than an hour out from Tokyo). That city is used to military personnel, for sure. However, in more outlying areas and even some parts of Tokyo, Black people aren't very common. I remember walking through Harajaku (a "borough" of Tokyo) and getting stared at. Not merely because my skin was dark (and at the height of summer, I was EXTRA dark thanks to sunlight), but A) at 5'8" I pretty much dwarfed most of the population and B) I was (and still am) fairly thin, so they thought I was a model from overseas. Led to a lot of opening of doors, "parting of seas" while walking and free entry into clubs. Also led to getting hit on/picked up by a lot of working class guys AND "upper tier" businessmen. None of which I dated, but the attention was flattering. NOT ONCE had I encountered out-and-out racism from the Japanese at all.
    I had a similar experience in Japan. I went to Hokkaido Japan for a month as part of a study abroad experience. Before I left people who had never even been there before kept telling me how racist they would be and to 'watch out'. I also went there natural (during my first attempt with it). I wore cornrows and I remember a few members of my family not liking the look, but the Japanese really loved it. Everywhere I went girls oohed and awed over my hair and wanted to touch it. And of course I stood out big time being black and all, but people seem to really like that too.

    Once I was walking to my class and a guy driving by in his car literally stopped in the middle of the street, leaned out his window and was like "Hiiiii!" Another time I was heading off to class and a man stopped me in the street just to talk (and I suspect practice his English too ) But the best experience I had there happened in a classroom full of children. Since my study abroad experience was under the education department at my university, we were given tours of local Japanese schools at every grade level. One day while me and the rest of the American students were visiting a class of 4th graders, a cute little girl turned around, rubbed the hand of my classmate (the only other African American on the trip) and said something in Japanese. We asked our translator to tell us what she said, and he told us the little girl said that she wanted to touch my friend just to see that she was real.

    Both of us teared up when he told us this. That was when it really hit home that for most of those kids we were the first black people they had ever seen outside of TV. To this day I am so grateful that their first experience with people with black ancestry was a positive one. By the way, she was rocking natural hair on the trip too

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    yay Japan stories! XD

    woah, I honestly thought that Japan was kinda racist too...
    thanks for proving that to be wrong

    I definitely want to go when I'm older XD

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    trueimage15 I echo your thoughts. I was slightly obsessed with Japan in my teens are really wanted to go there during my year out but I just didn't have the money. It's really good to hear that black people are well-received.

    quick question, did you see any japanese people with thick curly hair ?

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    You'll find them more to the south of the archipelago, namely the smaller islands southwest of Hiroshima and further south like Okinawa. Keep in mind that just like here, MANY Japanese with curly hair also STRAIGHTEN because that's the aesthetic standard. So while there are curly haired Japanese, you'd never know because damn near everyone's hair is straight.


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    Visited Paris, the french were generally friendly especially when they find out you are american, my bro has a big ol fro like the Roots band member and they asked him if he was a singer..lol. the ladies loved him so he wouldn't hang out with me or my sister coz we were messing up his game. At the time, there was the buzz of the 08 elections and i had on my Obama tee...got a lot of compliments.

    Dubai 2010-had a great time but the Emirati did not seem to like our kind. I was hanging out with my Lebanese,Saudi friends and i stood out. we had vip wristbands to an event, they let everyone walk through but stopped me to look at my wristband...At a restaurant, the waiter would ask my friends if they needed anything but ignored me.
    At the mall..a couple dressed in their muslim garb stopped where i was leaning against a rail watching people (tired from walking really), the wife then stood beside me and her husband took out his camera...I thought I was in their way so I moved away but she said, "No, no stay". That still puzzles me to this day. There are a lot of dark skinned immigrants in Dubai, why were they acting like they hadn't seen one? I asked my Saudi friend what that was about, she said I stood out because of my hair, I'm very tall and slender wore a mini but meh! There were plenty of women in shorts, miniskirts, dresses so...ionno! *kanye shrug*
    Johannesburg South Africa and Victoria Falls (zimbabwe) I blended right in, i was traveling with white friends and everywhere we went the African girls would flock the white men, hawkers too...I like that I don't get pressured by hawkers in a foreign country because of my skin color, although they assume black pple are poor...oh well..whatever, leave me alone.

    I'm off to The Netherlands next month and The Dominican in Aug, I can't wait!!

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    Bump bump bump some body feed this thread please. One of my fav nap threads ever. Don't let it die ladies.

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    @Sahha were you able to go to the Netherlands and the Dominican? If so, what was it like there?

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    @trueimage15, Yes I did. I visited the Netherlands last June. It was a bit chilly and wet.It was work related and the location I was at is a small city, close to dusseldorf germany. My hosts took me to the floriade show in Venlo which occurs every 5 years, lucky me! It was beautiful..interesting and the food was amazing. The people were generally nice, did not experience any staring although there are very few minorities in the area. I flew in and out of Amsterdam which is of cause more diverse and vibrant. It was too crowded to visit the museums and I had limited time so I took the tram and explored the city. I didn't make it to the red light district either, although I was curious to see what it is all about.

    The Dominican was great. Treated like royalty, the darker the skin, the more attention from the men. lol. My friends and I stayed at Barcelo Premium in Punta Cana but I don't think I will do that again because there was no outside interaction with the locals except for the performers/vendors who come to the hotel. We did go out on excursions but again got bombarded by pushy hawkers. The beaches are breathtaking, white sand, blue warm water, palm trees...ahhh paradise indeed!

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