Japan Visit 2026
My wife, daughter, and I visited Japan for a nine-day family vacation, during which we spent time in Tokyo and Kyoto.
After reading Made in Japan, I became deeply curious about the country and its culture. I wanted to see it for myself and experience it firsthand, and my wife planned the trip.
The trip was an eye-opener in more ways than I expected.
Trains and Trains Everywhere
My main experience with a vast and busy transport station is Bengaluru’s Majestic Bus Stand (my dad told me that Mumbai has even bigger and busier stations). It is an integrated hub where the local city bus system, inter-city and inter-state bus system, auto stand, and train station are all very nearby (recently, even a Metro station has been added to it). If you go to Majestic during peak hours, it is very busy and chaotic, with a large number of buses and people.
Japan operates on an even bigger scale, with seamless integration between metro trains, bullet trains, and buses. The stations are crowded and busy, yet they feel remarkably orderly. The trains arrive almost to the second; every two to three minutes, trains come and go. Huge numbers of people move in and out of the trains, while the stations themselves are filled with shops and activity. People stand in line to get on trains and enter elevators, and train station workers are very cooperative and help people reach their destinations. They are professional and, to borrow a Sanskrit expression, स्मितपूर्वाभिभाषिणः, smiling as they speak. That brings calmness to confused or distressed passengers and helps disabled commuters. There were many facilities to make things easier for passengers, like coin lockers to store luggage, regular announcements of trains and delays, color-coded directions to help with navigation within the station, and a large number of escalators and elevators (some places did not have them, but the majority did).
I expected bullet trains to be rare, probably twice a day, but they were also very regular, like every 10 minutes. There were simply so many varieties of trains (rapids, local, limited express, and shinkansen), and it felt as if everything was connected by rail.
Shrines
They were massive, well-maintained, and built of wood. Overall, they were aesthetically very pleasing, with gardens, trees, and structures. Though I felt they were more touristy than spiritual (maybe because there were lots of tourists). Everyone had the same entrance fees and the same level of access. Only those who were performing certain rituals had extra access. The crowd control and management were very professional. The streets leading to these shrines were very small and yet fully crowded with tiny shops and people. Yet these streets were very clean, and even the shops looked well-maintained. There were fees for fortunes and dedicated spaces for popular rituals (100 yen to get a fortune, tie the amulet at a dedicated place), and everything was well-maintained. Seeing these shrines also made me reflect on Hindu temples and temple streets back home.
This made me think of my own Hindu temples, temple streets, and commercial streets in my cities (Bengaluru, Chikkamagaluru, Udupi, and any old commercially important streets of India). I always thought they were badly managed. I thought that because there are so many people and these places get crowded, it is not possible to maintain them well. I always felt these old commercial streets needed to be widened to make them breathe. Poor crowd management in temples felt inevitable because there are so many people. How wrong I was! Even these small streets can have world-class facilities if the people and the government want them to. Kyoto was the best example of how small streets, lined with modest shops and major brands, can still be well-maintained and economically vibrant. Our Hindu temples need better and more modern people management as well as facility management, carried out with professionalism and empathy.
Seeing those shrines made me think about how grand many Hindu shrines might have been had they not been neglected or ruined over the centuries. If there had been no invasions over the last thousand years, how would these temples, palaces, and cities have grown? I had heard that many wooden Hindu temples and Indian wooden palaces were burned down. I always felt that, because they were wooden, they might not have been that great. No, they would have been architecturally magnificent, and in every way they would have been grand. Entire cities, along with temple structures, were ruined by invasions and apathy. How much we have lost!
Many shrines in Japan have been restored. So, I wondered why Hindu temples, palaces, and forts are not restored.
Automation
One strong impression I came away with was that Japan takes automation very seriously. They had so many sorts of vending machines: drinks, fresh on-the-spot orange juice, soft-serve ice cream, and animal-feeding food. You name it, and they have it in the form of a vending machine. That massive train network cannot be managed without a massive amount of automation.
My wife and I kept joking that one thing we would definitely miss after returning to the USA or India would be the Japanese toilet. It had water for cleaning, heated seats, and an automated cleaning system. This was the norm everywhere, from public parks, tourist places, trains, and aircraft to restaurants and hotels.
Language & Culture
One thing that stood out to me was how strongly Japanese language and culture remain present in everyday life. The train stations had a little bit of English along with Japanese, either on signboards or announcement boards. Most things were in Japanese. We hardly met anyone, barring only two or three people during our entire stay in Japan, who could converse in English beyond three or four words. We relied heavily on Google Lens and Google Translate for conversation and translation.
People are very down to earth. They were very friendly and helpful. Just because I do not know Japanese, they did not dismiss us. At least in our experience, very few people treated us dismissively for not knowing Japanese (maybe that was because we were tourists and only went to tourist places). There were many instances in which they went beyond their responsibility to help us. We have a saying, “Athithi Devo Bhavah!” (Guest is like God), and we truly felt that in Japanese hospitality. The taxi services were very good. They were very professional, taxis were kept clean, and there was no haggling or random price quote. If I stopped a taxi, it would stop and take us irrespective of our destination. They were dignified, wearing suits and calmly asking clarifying questions to understand clearly where we wanted to go.
Japan also felt like a high-trust society. Rarely did anyone check whether you had paid and had valid tickets for reserved or first-class seats on the train (I am not sure if they have other means of validating). Even in shops, hardly anyone was watching whether you had paid before taking things out (yes, there are CCTV cameras, but still). Hardly any police officers or security personnel were visible.
So, at least for me, these sayings, “English is needed to become a global power” or “English is needed to civilize” or “English is needed to adapt to global standards” or “Due to English we have an advantage” or “English is needed for access to modern science,” are all just propaganda or myth. I have seen living proof that people can be very cultured, disciplined, and advanced in every way even without English-language education.
Food
There was an incredible variety of food, and it was clear that people in Japan take food seriously. I especially liked the ramen. Though, as a vegetarian, finding a vegetarian-only restaurant was difficult. We were looking for vegan restaurants. There were many, but there were fewer near the places we were visiting, and they were always crowded.
Conclusion
I would recommend Japan to anyone who wants to experience a country through its culture, people, language, and everyday public life. It is a place that leaves a strong impression.