Only in Japan: ultra modern juxtaposed with retro relics

Before moving to Japan, I had the opinion that the entire country was a place of ultra modern technology - and that’s still true to some extent. Shinkansens zip their way from A to B, there are restaurants and hotels staffed with robots, and even toilets here are next-level in their array of features. If you looked at those few examples alone, you’d think Japan was 100% living in the future.

Yes, there are loads of incredibly modern things in Japan that make life here feel futuristic, but there are others that seem much more retro. These are just a few examples.

Payphones

While it’s fairly evident that payphones are being phased out worldwide with the prevalence of cell phones, I’m definitely more accustomed to seeing payphones here in Japan than in my home country of Australia. The ubiquitous green payphones are regularly by train stations and other areas in cities, but one of the coolest payphones I’ve come across was at Okazaki Castle in Aichi Prefecture. How unique is this one?

This unique payphone on the grounds of Aichi’s Okazaki Castle is definitely one of the country’s more memorable ones!

I have had to use payphones here a couple of times when my cell phone battery ran out of charge, so I’m grateful for the fact that they’re much easier to find here than back home.

Fax machines

The only time in my life I recall faxes being used outside Japan was back when I was a teenager in the late 1990s. Back then, my friends and I would send faxes to each other after school before email or things like MSN messenger (another throwback!) were widely used. Since then, though? I don’t think I’ve ever used a fax machine in any sort of personal or professional capacity outside Japan.

I still remember one of my first visits to Uonuma Kikan, our local and ultra-modern hospital. Once I paid my invoice and received my prescription details, I was told to visit one of the electronic kiosks in the lobby to fax my prescription to my pharmacy of choice. You can imagine my confusion at still having to fax things through in such a high-tech, state of the art facility!

I also see faxes used so much in a work capacity, which is odd to me given that email is so much easier to track and trace!

The last time I personally remember using a fax machine was when I was in my early teens in the late 90s. Since then, email has reigned supreme - outside Japan, at least. Pic Credit here.

Hanko

Whilst most places around the world have embraced electronically signing documents, Japan is still clinging onto the hanko stamp tradition. A number of companies have started moving towards digitizing signatures - especially in the wake of the COVID pandemic - and the benefits are clear. Less paper waste, less money spent on stamps required to mail documents, and less hours being spent by employees processing returned paperwork are just a few of them. Still, other places have been less welcoming of change and still require a hanko stamp to get things done.