(1) customs and habits
Japan is called "the country of etiquette", and it is the custom of the Japanese people to pay attention to etiquette. When people meet, they usually bow to each other and say "hello", "goodbye", "please take care of me" and so on.
Japanese people attach great importance to exchanging business cards when they meet for the first time. Not only is it impolite to meet for the first time without a business card, but the other party will think you are unsociable. When handing business cards to each other, you should bow first and hand them in both hands. After receiving the other party's business card, read it carefully to see the identity, position and company of the other party, and nod your head to show that you know the other party's identity. Japanese people think that business cards represent a person, and treat them as if they were themselves. If you take a business card and put it in your pocket without reading it, it is considered rude. If you want to attend a business negotiation meeting, you must give your business card to everyone in the room and accept their business card. You can't leave out anyone. Although it takes a lot of time, it is a way to express mutual friendship and respect.
When visiting a Japanese family, you should make an appointment with the host in advance and ring the bell to announce your name before entering the door. If there is no doorbell in this house, don't knock, but open the sliding door on the door and ask, "Excuse me, is there anyone inside?" After entering the door, you should take the initiative to take off your clothes and hat, take off your scarf (but even if the weather is hot, you can't just wear a vest or barefoot, otherwise it's rude), put on spare slippers and give your own gifts to your host. When you sit in a room, it is polite to sit with your back to the door. Only under the persuasion of the host can you move to a distinguished position (distinguished position refers to the seat with various works of art and decorations in front of the niche, which is specially prepared for VIPs). Japanese people are not used to letting guests visit their houses, so don't ask to look around. Japan is particularly taboo for men to break into the kitchen. You have to ask the owner's permission to go to the toilet. When eating, if you don't know how to eat a certain meal, you should ask the owner's advice and turn your chopsticks around when you are holding vegetables. When saying goodbye, let the guests ask first and thank the host. When you return to your residence, you should call the other party and tell them that you have returned safely. Thank you again. Don't forget to express your gratitude when you see your host again after a while.
When the Japanese hold a banquet to propose a toast, they often put a bowl full of clear water in the middle of the table and put a clean white gauze in front of everyone. Before pouring wine, the host will rinse his glass with clear water, press the cup mouth down on the gauze, let the water droplets be sucked up by the gauze, then fill the wine and hand it to the guests with both hands. After drinking, guests do the same to show the friendship and intimacy between the host and the guests. This is the traditional way of toasting.
Whether visiting relatives and friends or attending banquets, Japanese people always bring gifts, and a family spends 7.5% of its income on gifts every month. When visiting Japanese families, you must bring gifts. Japanese people think that giving gifts is much more meaningful than saying "thank you", because it is to express gratitude with practical actions. When giving gifts to Japanese people, we should master the "sense of value", and the gifts should not be too heavy or too light. If it is too heavy, he will think what you want from him, and thus infer that your goods or services are not good; If it is too light, it will be considered that you look down on him. Generally, it is more appropriate to take some packaged food when visiting Japanese families, but don't send flowers, because some flowers are used for courtship or funeral. Japanese people pay attention to the decoration of gifts. Gifts should be wrapped in several layers and tied with beautiful ribbons or paper ropes. The Japanese believe that there is a soul in the knot, indicating the sincerity of the giver. People who receive gifts usually give them back. Japanese people don't open gifts in front of guests, mainly to avoid embarrassment because of the discomfort of gifts. Japanese people don't mind giving gifts they don't need to others. Japanese people generally don't use even numbers to give gifts. This is because the "four" in even numbers is the same as death in Japanese. In order to avoid bad luck, "four" is not used in many occasions. Over time, even the second, fourth and sixth figures are simply not given. They like to pronounce singular numbers, especially the three singular numbers of three, five and seven. But "nine" should also be avoided, because "nine" and "bitter" have the same pronunciation in Japanese.