Foreign Flicks

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So, here's how cool my friends are. Right now I have one friend in Paris doing a Fulbright study (Hi Ash!) and basically living the Parisian life of crossaints tous les jours and another old schoolmate who is taking a year to travel the world - starting in Japan and moving west (Go Jessica!). So I'm incredibly lucky to be following along on their adventures via their blogs - the next best thing to actually body snatching them and taking their fun adventures for my own!

The crazy thing is yesterday they BOTH posted about a seemingly simple experience: going to see a movie. But, of course they were both doing that in a foreign country (lucky dogs)-so naturally, their experiences weren't quite what they expected.

Ashley, in France, was disappointed that the popcorn was not accompanied by our compulsory neon yellow liquid artificial butter and that car ads displaced her favorite previews. Jessica, in India, enjoyed the assigned seating in her 1500-seat theatre - plus the crowd participation!

I love going to the movies in countries I visit - some tourists may think it's a waste of time when there are so many sights to check off the list - but if you're someplace a little longer it's a great break from the hustle and bustle. Plus, as these two bloggers experienced, it's a great way to discover nuances of a foreign culture that you might not otherwise see. In India, I remember the assigned seating (awesome!) as well as one particularly enjoyable snack - boiled corn (not popped!) with a variety of flavors. Of course, being me, I spilled mine all over the steps. I also remember seeing Avatar in a Tokyo theater where everything was super super modern and super super crowded. I got sick from the 3-d glasses and the heat of all the people in one small theatre. Anyways, just thought I'd share the coincidence of these two bloggers writing about the same kind of experience thousands of miles apart - and pass along their fun blogs to you!

Blood Test Your Personality

I'll admit it. One of the first things I read when I get my monthly magazine subscriptions is the horoscope in the back. No, I don't really hold stock in what it says will happen to me -- which usually is something vague and flighty that probably happens every month without me really paying attention -- but I do like thinking about overall astrological personality trends and who is compatible with who, and reverting back to middle school cootie-catcher predictions. In some countries, especially in South Asia, horoscopes are taken very seriously and important days like weddings are planned around auspicious astrological dates. (It's a huge regret of mine that I didn't get my professor in India, who as an astrologer, to do my star profile. Guess I'll just have to go back for that one!)

Say you're in Japan, though. When you open your ladies mag instead of the traditional horoscope you might find predictions based on your blood type. While reading the Mental Floss blog the other day, I came across this interesting tidbit: in Japanese culture, your blood type is often believed to have an impact on your personality traits and even your future. If I even knew my blood type, I would check the chart below to see if it's accurate.

Via Mental Floss

Wikipedia has some cool background on this trend. Apparently, it all started in a pretty dark place with the questionable science popular with early nineteenth century racists including one Adolf Hitler. The Japanese used studies of Taiwanese rebels in the 1930s to determine that certain blood types common to different ethnic groups caused anti-social behavior.

Nowadays, the study has become less of a racist tool and more of a cultural conversation piece. Celebrities list their blood types in magazine articles, matchmakers ask for the data to match couples, even politicians use it to explain away their mistakes. Back in May, Ryu Matsumoto was newly appointed- and quickly ousted - as Reconstruction Minister after the tsunami. He was canned after making disparaging remarks towards a colleague - an act he blamed on his blood type: "My blood's type B, which means I can be irritable and impetuous, and my intentions don't always come across." You can read the whole article at Reuters. Wish I could use that one sometimes, sheesh.

Anyways, I don't really think blood type is any more or less ridiculous than horoscopes or reading tea leaves or whatever else. I think everyone likes to believe they can predict or see the future (and it's also nice to have something to blame bad habits on.) So.... food for thought.


Any readers from Japan (ahem, Gena) have any insights on this trend? Any horoscope readers out there? Fellow Sagitarians... I hear we are due to have a very fruitful month!