Japan and smoking
I can comfortably say that the majority of people in Japan smoke - I don't know what the statistics are but going by my own statistics - I would say that 80-90% of people over here smoke. Even in Anime for kids you will see characters smoking.
Below is a pic taken at a Japanese Kentucky - the left side is the no smoking section and the right is the smoking section. As you can see - there is no partition whatsoever. Can any body tell me what is the point of having a no smoking section in this food outlet? Some other places are worse - many places don't have no smoking sections but the ones that do may just be a seat next to somebody who smokes.
I know that in the UK it is against the law to have smoke and the preparation of food in the same area (don't know how Benihana gets away with it though) but in Japan it is very common to see your cook smoking and cooking at the same time - smoke and ashes in yer food - lovely.
This has to be the worse thing about living in Japan - I can put up with the earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons, heat waves etc but having just about everybody smoke around you is rather depressing. But I choose to live in Japan so I try not to complain to much. If you are thinking of living in Japan and hate, loathe the smell of pungent filthy cigarette smoke then be warned - there is really not much you can do about it :-(
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Student
as a smoker myself Im glad to hear your country is still tolerant of indoor smoking, in the US (well rhode island and many surrounding states at least) has recently crammed no smoking signs down our throats everywhere and its usually too cold for me to want to go outside and have a cigarette, its one hell of an anti smoking policy. Also your cigarettes are like 3 or 4 US dollars cheaper!!!
Student
i wonder if you could answer as to how much marijuana is smoked there and the anti drug policy's of japan if you wouldn't mind, im sure they are similar to here but its not often im given an opportunity to ask a Japanese citizen.
Commentator
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Student & Working
As a smoker I don't mind people smoking around me, so I guess I would feel at home in Japan from this aspect. :) However I am against smoking in a restaurant or anyplace where food is being served, that is really disgusting. If I want a good smoke I don't mind going outside even if it's cold, or just wait until I get home.
Student
yeah, as a person who has aspirations of living in Japan, that's a huge problem. The way I think about inhaling smoke is that each moment I even smell cigarette smoke, I feel like I'm already dying a little inside or you know my lungs are deteriorating and I imagine it happening as I inhale. Cigarettes are cancer sticks, for goodness sake. I mean, sure, you can prolly smoke for a long period of years and not feel its effects immediately but when your in retirement age or earlier - depending on how much you smoke - you'd feel all of the effects of cigarette-smoking. You won't be able to enjoy old age - like doing tai chi early in the morning, breathing the fresh air without some type of oxygen tank or something or playing with grandkids. Smoking is bad!! I mean, although it's pretty to easy to eat healthily or just live healthily in general in healthy coz I can imagine all the fresh healthy stuff is pretty common - seafood, good veggies etc. the Japanese just had to wreck that pretty close to perfect way of living by being basically cigarette-buffs. Oh well, I still like Japan though :D