Traffic Lights

Now this isn't the biggest of all differences as the traffic lights in Japan still mean the same things: red - stop, yellow - caution and blue - go.  Wait.  What?

Yes, in Japan, blue means go, not green.  Looking at traffic lights all over Tokyo, it is hard to tell what color the "go" light really is.  Sometimes it looks green to me and others it really does look blue.

But I think that the Japanese know deep down that the light is supposed to be green because they never argue when I say things like, "the light is green."  Try telling someone in America that the light is blue and get ready for a whole lot of mocking.  Seriously, they'll be calling up friends they hadn't talked to in months just to say something like, "Homeboy said the green light was blue, I ain't kidding!"  (Cue rude laughter).

In America there is a different meaning to the term "blue light".  In some old towns across the U.S. there are laws that prohibit some activities on Sunday, a traditional Catholic day of rest.  Depending on the town, there could be a law against the sale of alcohol on Sunday, or in the case of Edgewater, NJ there was a law against selling appliances on Sundays.  Yes, that's correct, we weren't able to purchase a rice cooker because it was Sunday, thank God that we were still able to buy a huge bottle of saki, though.

I guess at the end of the day it doesn't really make a difference whether the light is green or blue but I still smile inside every time someone in Japan says "blue light".