Japan is full of things that foreigners find strange. From cuddle cafes to vending machines selling everything you can think of, there are numerous aspects of this country that leave tourists agog — and locals trying their best to explain that there’s more to their country than the tentacle stuff you see online.
One of those oddities is women-only train cars. They were introduced to combat reports of harassment and groping of women on trains. However, there’s one flaw to them: They work on a trust system. That means any dude who wants to enter the car can, and there’s usually no punishment for doing so besides social stigma.
I say “usually,” because one guy from Australia appears to be causing an international incident after entering a women-only car.
Visitor to Japan declares himself to be a “Woman Inspector”; barges onto train carriage designated as women only
byu/Reddituser0346 inTikTokCringe
On September 5th, Australian TikToker Turan Spidey (@shearingshedvlogs) posted a video of himself entering one of these cars. Rather than just look around, he opted to make commentary. “It’s like Saudi Arabia in here,” he explained. “I am the woman inspector, checking there’s only women on this carriage.” As he did so, he was met by stares from several women, presumably hoping that he’d quietly leave and not attempt any of the things that caused these cars to exist in the first place.
According to Insider, this isn’t the first time that Spidey’s been reprimanded for his disregard of cultural norms. “Spidey has been accused of being disrespectful in his other travel vlogs, like one from Saturday where he filmed a street performance in Japan that had a no-filming sign.” That video shows him filming people who are clearly telling him to stop. He apologizes but continues to film anyway.
Users on Reddit didn’t take too kindly to his behavior. “What should have been obvious, if you even took three seconds to research the culture, is not to make a spectacle of yourself and film others,” wrote one. “Closest he’s ever been to a woman in his entire life,” added another. “I wish he'd come to Delhi, India. We’ve (got) women-only carriages in our metro. However, women do not take it this lightly when a man enters, and he’d enter on two legs from one gate and exit on two hands and his a-- from the other,” stated a third.
There’s plenty to see and do in Japan — so please, don’t do this. Just be a weeb at the Pokemon store like everybody else.
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