Scary moments like this?

Hi all,
Just thought I would share a story of traveling and one of those moments where you heart stops and sinks into your stomach. Recently I have moved to Japan from Australia. After being on the plane for 9 and a half hours I boarded the train at the airport to head to my new home town of Tsu in Mie prefecture adding another 2 hrs of travel. Feeling a little over travel by now I arrived at my station standing at the train doors ready to get off as the train stopped. Just as I was walking off the train I could hear what sounded like someone yelling at me through a window. Looking back through the glass I see a Japanese couple yelling at me with worry and they were pointing to where I had been sitting on the train. It just snapped and I had realised that I wasn't wearing my camera bag (wich had everything you see in my gear list below) and if anyone knows the train system in Japan it is precise and the train stops are very short. I managed to run back onto the train and get my camera gear and say a very meaningful "Domo Arigato Gozaimasu (Thank you very much)" and back off again. If it hadn't been for the polite poeple of Japan my photography would have come to end for a long period of time. I will never forget this moment and keep my gear close by every time I get on the train or go anywhere. Has anyone done anything this stupid with their gear? Please share you story. I count myself as one lucky person.

i love japanese people.=D honor and respect is their main recipe

thrash_273 wrote in post #9071183
i love japanese people.=D honor and respect is their main recipe

I also love the Japanese for this

Cool to hear that your stuff is OK!

I run into Japanese people in the camera store (imagine that!) sometimes and the ones I meet are very blunt, but pleasant. I was looking at a cheapish tripod and the guy just comes up and says "that garbage, buy bogen (sp)" He was right, but I ended up with a Vanguard

Also, he commented that "Canon shutter feel like toy, I like my Nikon (proceeds to produce awesome, clean clicks out of his Nikon, body unkown)"

That was a cool ass guy!

Erik_L wrote in post #9071226
Cool to hear that your stuff is OK!

I run into Japanese people in the camera store (imagine that!) sometimes and the ones I meet are very blunt, but pleasant. I was looking at a cheapish tripod and the guy just comes up and says "that garbage, buy bogen (sp)" He was right, but I ended up with a Vanguard

Also, he commented that "Canon shutter feel like toy, I like my Nikon (proceeds to produce awesome, clean clicks out of his Nikon, body unkown)"

That was a cool ass guy!

The Japanese love their cameras, off topic abit I went to Akame 48 waterfalls yesterday and everywhere I looked I could see canon bodies and red ring lenses everywhere . It's so cool being in the same country where canon make their gear.

Literally, the EXACT SAME THING happened to me on my trip to Japan last December. I left my camera bag on the train my last night there, and a guy got up and yelled at me, gesturing at my seat (but he didn't touch my stuff). I had just enough time to grab the bag and wrench the doors open as they closed on me on my way out. The conductor was yelling at me, but I got it all back!

The Japanese are perhaps the most thoughtful, polite, and respectful people I have ever encountered. My friend (whom I was visiting) said that had I not picked up my bag, there's a 90% chance I would have gotten it back at Lost and Found. Apparently, the Japanese simply do not touch other peoples' stuff. That cultural proclivity may have contributed to so many people getting sick during the sarin gas attacks of the 90s - no one would throw away those newspapers on the ground.

Another case in point: apparently, Christmas is like a joke holiday in Japan, and friends give one another funny little gifts. Walking down the street, maybe on December 28th or so, I saw a nice little shopping bag sitting on the ground next to a bus stop. As I walked by, I saw in the bag were wrapped presents. They had Christmas wrapping paper, and little Santa gift stickers on them (written on in kanji, of course). They had been sitting there for at least 3 days and no one touched them!

I loved Japan, and I can't wait to go back!

I use thin red electrical tape around the edge of my kit lens, no one can tell the difference

Zues wrote in post #9071259
The Japanese love their cameras, off topic abit I went to Akame 48 waterfalls yesterday and everywhere I looked I could see canon bodies and red ring lenses everywhere . It's so cool being in the same country where canon make their gear.

So were you in China, Taiwan, or Malaysia, then?

tkbslc wrote in post #9071274
So were you in China, Taiwan, or Malaysia, then?

look at the bottom of your camera, not your kit lens

leroy_sunset wrote in post #9071268
Literally, the EXACT SAME THING happened to me on my trip to Japan last December. I left my camera bag on the train my last night there, and a guy got up and yelled at me, gesturing at my seat (but he didn't touch my stuff). I had just enough time to grab the bag and wrench the doors open as they closed on me on my way out. The conductor was yelling at me, but I got it all back!

The Japanese are perhaps the most thoughtful, polite, and respectful people I have ever encountered. My friend (whom I was visiting) said that had I not picked up my bag, there's a 90% chance I would have gotten it back at Lost and Found. Apparently, the Japanese simply do not touch other peoples' stuff. That cultural proclivity may have contributed to so many people getting sick during the sarin gas attacks of the 90s - no one would throw away those newspapers on the ground.

Another case in point: apparently, Christmas is like a joke holiday in Japan, and friends give one another funny little gifts. Walking down the street, maybe on December 28th or so, I saw a nice little shopping bag sitting on the ground next to a bus stop. As I walked by, I saw in the bag were wrapped presents. They had Christmas wrapping paper, and little Santa gift stickers on them (written on in kanji, of course). They had been sitting there for at least 3 days and no one touched them!

I loved Japan, and I can't wait to go back!

Yeh, I have been caught in the doors before and yelled at . You are right about having something lost or returned, they say the only things that get stolen in Japan are umbrella's and bikes. Although I have left my umbrella outside a convenience store down the road from where I live and it was still in the umbrella stand 3days later.

you should never take it off of you! lol nice couple tho.

I forgot a camera in a Spanish restaurant once. The owner of the restaurant had locked it up in his safe, so I could get it back the next day. They didn't even want any finders reward.

Very bad trip to Spain, that time, since later during that same week the camera had an accident when it drowned in sweet soft drink. Never recovered from that, so I had to replace it.

I often carry a P&S in my backpack to work. Some time ago when it was time to get off the train I opened the backpack to put back my iPod and earphones: I took out my camera, put in on the seat next to me, put in the other stuff and got off the train. When I got to work I opened the backpack to take out my glasses and...where is the camera?! I walked/ran as fast as I could about 1.5 km back to the station and... Well, generally the train leaves as soon as everybody has left but this day it was still there. And the doors were still open! AND the camera was still on the seat. So I leaped in, got the camera, leaped out and 10 sek later the train left... Phew!

/Per

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