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Etiquette on slippers & sitting
Slippers
- A visitor is expected to leave his
footwear at the entrance of any Japanese edifice, especially
in houses and exchange
them for slippers provided by the hosts.
- Some places
however, have only chosen rooms in where to remove ones
shoes. One can discern such area by
looking if the floor
is covered by a tatami mat and of course following the
cue of your guides. On these mats, one is expected to
wear their socks
or tread barefoot on it.
- In washrooms and toilets there
are special slippers located at its entrance. These slippers
are solely used
inside the
comfort room.
Sitting styles
It is common in Japan to eat,
conduct rituals and business while seating on tatami covered
floors and with low tables
in the center
of the engagement.
The traditional way and most formal
style of sitting for both genders is the seiza position,
with a straight back,
one kneels
and sits on ones legs all throughout the course of the
meal or occasion. This is the most uncomfortable position
especially
for those who are not used to it.
Taking the discomfort
of their guests into consideration they let their foreign
visitors relax a bit by allowing
them to
sit cross legged for the men and for the women to fold
their legs
and position it to one side letting the weight fall on
the floor and not on the legs as tradition the style
dictates.
Seating order
The host is considered the least
important person in every dining occasion. He is placed
next or nearest
to the entrance.
The guest
of honor on the other hand seats on the opposite
direction to that of the host. The special guest seat is
called kamiza in
Japanese meaning the honored seat.
There are variations
in seating arrangement in different occasions and circumstances.
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