In the aftermath of the recent devastating Tsunami, lines were painted or cones put up for the people needing aid, and they kept to it. I saw some pictures of the area 1 year after the Tsunami juxtaposed with pictures of New Orleans 5 years after Katrina. I don't need to tell you which one was in much better shape.
My daughter spent her early childhood there. She had a difficult time when we came back to the states because she was use to the order of Japan. With her it was the playgrounds. The Japanese kids line up to go down slides or for swings or such. Here the kids would bully her back and she did not know how to handle it.
Once when I was over there while in the service we went up on a pedestrian bridge to watch all the people showing off in the intersection below with their cars and motorcycles. There were a whole lot of young Japanese kids up there on the bridge. All these young folks started to suddenly move off the bridge. My buddies and I were wondering why when along comes this little old Japanese guy with a uniform on tapping the rail with a club. We moved off to of course. I doubt a little old guy could move a whole group of young folks off a pedestrian bridge by simply tapping on the rail in this country.
I was at Yokota AB in 1983. A friend lost his wallet one night while ‘out on the town.’ He went back the next day to the bar. Someone was sitting on the bench outside, guarding his wallet. He tried to give a reward, but it was refused.
Of course, the same guy was out another night, and looked down an alley where three men were beating on another. The three came after my friend, and beat him, as well. The police told him that it was yakuza, likely collecting money.