Summertime Tips: Tattoos

Who doesn't love summer? Bronzed bodies at the beach, temperatures are going up and up which means people are wearing less and less. For many this is the perfect time to show off the hours upon hours that were spent in the tattoo parlor getting a piece of art permanently etched onto your skin. However, for those of us with tattoos there are some things that should be taken into consideration before you head outside.

Damage From Tattoos: 

Tattoos are made possible by sharp implements breaking skin and jabbing ink. Not very poetic but I think you get the picture. Long story short damage is caused to the  skin which starts to bounce back after a few weeks but take a bit longer to fully heal. Sometimes the only permanent change to the skin is the color where as other times the skin in the area of the tattoo may never really be quite the same again.

This is important to consider for both those who already have tattoos and those who are thinking about getting tattoos during their time here on Okinawa. If you already have tattoos it is important to understand that those areas which have been "damaged" from tattoos that you have received in the past may react differently than you are used to. For example you may have never found it necessary to wear sunscreen when spending a measly 5 minutes out in the sun while in the US but now that you are here in Okinawa your tattoos get burned even after limited exposure.

For those of you who are thinking about getting your first tattoo while here in Okinawa it's important to consider that the area will also be extremely sensitive during the healing process. This means that you're not going to be "beach ready" a short three weeks after stepping out of the shop.

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Keeping Tattoos Covered: 

Tattoos are like fine art. If you're going to go through all the trouble and money of getting one in the first place you might as well keep it in good condition. The best way to do that is to keep your tattoos covered. As a rule of thumb I always have either sunscreen or a UV protective layer of clothing to cover my tattoo (particularly the one on my arm because of its likelihood of being exposed) at all times.

There are a number of products which you can use to protect your tattoos. One of my favorites was the TattooGoo brand of tattoo sunscreen which came in stick form. I really liked it because it allowed me to almost paint on the protection where the tattoo needed it most rather than just lather up the whole arm right away. I also very much liked the stick form because being about the size of lipstick it was easy to carry and therefor not easy to forget. The only problem that I had with this product is that when the summer came around it started to get really mushy and clumpy when applied. I tried some other stick form sunscreens but finally settled for a nice Japanese brand of lotion which absorbed quickly and worked very well without leaving you sticky.

The other option that I often have with me during the summer months is a UV protective shirt which I can use as a pullover. The reason that I like this is because although it gets hot here in the summertime the facts are when you go into some of these stores the AC is enough to keep your freezing and wanting another layer. So having a UV protective shirt or pullover is like a win win. I can wear it outside if the sun gets hot and I want some extra tattoo protection but I can also wear it inside and prevent myself from freezing to death. These types of shirts are also helpful if you are out and about but might find yourself in a place where it may be more appropriate to have your tattoo covered.

Tattoos + Japan = Bad: 

One of the things on the list of grossly misunderstood topics about Japan is tattoos. There are a lot of things that can be said on this topic and I will be happy to talk more about that later but for the sake of this post I want to keep things short.

Tattoos aside, when you come here to Japan (regardless if it is Okinawa or Tokyo) there needs to be an understanding that it is not the United States (or your country of origin). There are going to be things that are done here which are different from your home country and since you are now here you need to accept those things. One of those things is taking off your shoes another is covering your tattoos when in certain social situations. There are a lot of people out there who will go on and on about how if you have tattoos you will be discriminated against while in Japan. I personally have never found this to be true during my years in Okinawa or travels to Tokyo. That being said let's go through some basics and clear up a few things specifically about Okinawa.

Believe it or not when it comes to tattoos 90% of what you encounter here in Okinawa isn't going to be much different than what you encounter in the US. Unfortunately there are a lot of people out there who prefer to skip over facts and history in order to build a case of "social norms are totally weird in Japan". The one we hear most often is that in Japan tattoos were reserved for criminals and yakuza. True? Yeah sure it is. However, tattoos being the mark of a "hard" person is not unique to Japan. In fact in our good ole' US of A there are a lot of the same stereotypes which associate tattoos with gangs, crime and all around tough guys.

Even with all of this being said most of the things you will find you should be covering your tattoos for when in Okinawa are the same things you would cover your tattoos for if you were in the US. (i.e. Formal restaurants, formal events, religious establishments). The only time that you may have to be even more careful if you happen to have explicit tattoos.

The other 10% are things which you may not fully understand but my short response is that you are now in Japan and just like taking off your shoes when going into a home, there are going to be some things you do without fully understanding why. This most commonly includes being in the water whether it is at select beaches, bath houses or water parks. In these cases you will still be allowed to enter (although not always in the case of bath houses because they are primarily nude bathing) but you will be required to wear something that covers your tattoos like a swim shirt or sleeve/sock. I cannot stress enough that this is not discrimination against foreigners, it is simply the way business is conducted for everyone.

Last Work & My Experience: 

At the end of the day having tattoos here in Okinawa is not going to be a bad thing. In fact during my years here the most inconvenient thing about having tattoos has not been covering them when it social situations but rather keeping them protected from the summer sun which is why I wrote this post in the first place. Actually generally speaking I have never had a problem with my tattoos exposed or not.

 

 

How not to stick out in Okinawa. . . . at least not as much

There has been a lot of discussion in the JVLOG community recently about racism and discrimination but some of you are most likely reading this and wondering how to simply make a good impressions when you get here to Okinawa. This was something that I was wondering when I first got here to Okinawa as well and there were various things that I had read but I found myself feeling as if I was reading information which was not necessarily up to date or simply not practiced.

In the interest of writing this post I have been doing a great deal of information searching among different JVLOGGERS who are out there from different parts of Japan. This allowed me to see what was and was not acceptable in different parts of Japan. Some of these things were big and others were small but nonetheless we will discuss some of them in this post.

The first thing and most difficult thing to transition to when coming to Okinawa is that indoor voices are used everywhere. I am sure that you are familiar with the "indoor voice" as we learn about it in grade school. Here people are all around just more quiet then you would expect. Even when I think I am being quite I a little too loud and need to adjust my voice. Of course this is not always the case, there are people who are louder than others, however, in general being quiet is the accepted practice. There is then the issue of actions that are taken in public. As an adult you are expected to conduct yourself as an adult. I realize that this is not always the case in the US and other countries I am sure when on a friday night people over the age of 18 or 19 are running a muck and painting the town with no consideration for people around them but this is extremely unacceptable here. Jumping about and running in public places like malls is not acceptable.

If you have children it is important to ensure that they are good listeners and by your side. Children who scream and run about is not acceptable here. Of course there are always exceptions to every rule and newborn babies tend to cry without warning at times however if your child is old enough to walk without assistance through a store they should be conducting themselves in a disciplined manner. This also carries out through restaurants and other entertainment venues (movies, live shows. . . ) as well. Children who are crying should be removed as to not disturb other patrons. Of course strollers are acceptable but I would not use a double stroller (where the children sit side by side rather than front to back) when inside shopping centers due to their size and the limited space in aisles. It will not only be inconvenient for you trying to maneuver it around the tight corners but you will find yourself blocking out others trying to get through the aisles as well. The best recommendation in this case would be an umbrella stroller which will most likely be easier to take around and move around the stores with.

Overall tattoos are accepted here within reason. If a tattoo is offensive in any way (such as nudity, gruesome or overly religious) you might want to have it covered when in certain situations. You should also always use discretion when showing your tattoos in certain public places which might be fancy or dressy especially when they are not around the central Okinawa area. There are times when having tattoos will mean that you have to cover them or you will not be allowed service such as some bath houses or pools. This is policy in various parts of Japan and this policy sticks here also. This also does not only apply to foreigners but also applies to Japanese people as well. The most important thing is to ensure that you keep in mind that tattoos have a different meaning here in Japan than then do in the US and therefore they are looked at differently.

One more thing about tattoos in Okinawa is ensure that they are covered by either an outer garnet or sunscreen at all times! The sun is hotter here and even people who never used to burn like myself find that it is only a few hours out in the sun on an overcast day and I am burnt to a crisp. Of course you should take time to sunscreen your whole body but ensure that you protect your tattoos with something. More often than not I like to put on a long sleeve shirt because it can be taken off without leaving an oily mess but of course sunscreen is also a good choice.

Finally I would like to close out with something brought up by another JVLOGGER called silent observation and this is the most important thing to do when you are here in Japan let alone Okinawa. Keep your eyes open and watch the people around you. Never act first. You could also say move with the flow of traffic if you are going too slow you stand out if you are going to fast this is the case too. Go with the flow and do as the Japanese or Okinawan people do and you will have a smoother transition.

To close this out I would like to ask for you to let me know your experiences. Has anything you have experienced been different from what I experienced? Put it in the comments below.