Prague vs Hamamatsu: Round 1

Hey there, folks. It's been a long time, but I'm very excited to see that I'm still getting page views and comments.

As you know, I'm not in Japan anymore. It's sad. Sometimes I really, really miss being there so much that I want to cry, and other times I think how glad I am to be away.

Well, here I am in Prague, and while we all might like to pretend we don't compare our hot new lover to our previous one, it's only natural to draw up a little list of similarities and differences in our heads. Right? Well, this is what I've been doing recently with Prague and Hamamatsu, anyway. I would say the Czech Republic vs Japan, but I haven't seen enough of this country to truly decide. So, let's take a look at some of my recent observations...

1 - Restaurants

This...

For value for money, Prague has anywhere in Japan beat hands down. Starving and hungover in Denny's on many post-sake mornings, I would find myself scouring the menu for the cheapest item. Usually, apart from salad, it was a plate for 800JPY or so - which is about £6 in my estimation. The dish would usually be tiny and unfulfilling, although occasionally I might order a massive, amazing katsudon that would fill me up. On a typical excursion to an izakaya I'd spend 3000JPY just on bits of food and a few drinks. Here in Prague you can order a full meal for around 90Kc (about £3.50), although in touristy areas it's more like 120Kc or so (maybe £5, tops). These meals are usually so immense that you won't need to eat again for days. On top of that, they taste amazing. Sorry, Japan, as much as I love okonomiyaki and sushi, the chicken stuffed with blue cheese and goulash soup and krokety have won me over....

...or this?

One point to Prague! But wait... let's look at the food again. There's a lot of cream, a lot of bread, a lot of meat, and the Czech seem to be allergic to adding vegetables to their meals (apart from pickled cabbage). Perhaps it's cheaper, but I've certainly felt all the weight I lost in Japan creeping back over the last few weeks. Hamamatsu's food may be more expensive, but it wins a point for healthiness... right? Then again, I do seem to recall eating a lot of kare-raisu, a lot of fried things and a lot of huge starchy slices of white bread.


There's also something else I miss about Japan... the little waiter-summoning button that stops overly-keen waiters from hovering over your indecisive shoulder and snooty ones from ignoring you. That's right, a little button - and when that wasn't available, it was perfectly acceptable to shout "SUMIMASEN!" across the room to get their attention. Not here, alas (and this is a pain in Europe in general). To put it plainly, the service in Prague - and I hear in the country as a whole - sucks. You come in and seat yourself, only to wait for ages until a sour-faced waiter wordlessly takes your order. If you ask for the English menu you might get an extra side order of attitude on top. I don't think they're deliberately rude, I just think that "service with a smile" has yet to catch on here. People just get on with their jobs without having to paste on smiles and extreme politeness, and I've seen plenty of customers treating waiters like dirt, so it's a two-way street. In the touristy areas they tend to be a bit friendlier, probably because they write recommended tips on your bill. Tipping isn't necessary in Prague, but it's a huge difference from Japan, where waiters will act horrified and chase you down the street should you leave behind 1 yen on the table.

It's definitely quite a shock to go from being greeted with "irashaimase!" and thanked as I leave by every member of staff, to a place where the customer feels like an unwanted bad smell (although they'll take their sweet time bringing you the bill). For customer service, while many might see it as fake, Hamamatsu (and Japan) wins a big fat point.

But... most restaurants in Japan are part of big chains, whether it's the "family restaurants" like Denny's, Royal Host, Cat's Cafe and Saizeriya or the izakayas like Watami, Doma Doma etc. There seem to be very few unique, privately owned places, which generally contributes to that "lack of soul" feeling I often had there. Over here in Prague I've found a restaurant that doubles up as an aeroplane museum, a medieval banquet or two and a whole bunch of private restaurants with their own charm and amazing food. So, for atmosphere (without service) I'd give Prague another point!

2 - Aesthetics


Yes, Japan has cherry blossoms, beautiful autumn leaves, mountains, rivers, the ocean, temples. But they are not the only ones with those things, and the way that they have treated their country in recent years has put quite a damper on this beauty. Just have a read of Dogs and Demons to see what I mean. The flowing rivers of Japan are paved with concrete, the cities nothing but urban jungles sprouting neon fruit. Hamamatsu itself might be fun, the beach might be pretty and good for surfing, and there may be some gorgeous views, but Japanese cities are generally ugly. I'm sorry, but it's true - just look at the view from Tokyo Tower. Grey boxes and massive adverts everywhere (as a result of little regulation), turning into a neon nightmare when the evening comes.

Prague would be perfect if it were by the sea. We don't have oceans here, but we do have the beautiful countryside all around it, and most of all we have an amazing ancient city that has managed to modernise without losing its character or defacing its buildings. I know that Japanophiles may be outraged by such a suggestion, after all - the Japanese are so concerned with aesthetics, beauty and balance, are they not? Well, just look at these pictures and decide.

The Neon Nighttime

Prague's eerily lit buildings..

I also have to admit that I love the fact that some of the buildings here are over 1000 years old, while most of Japan's castles are modern reconstructions. Admittedly some of that is due to the fact that Japan suffers from a lot more natural disasters than the Czech Republic, so they can't rely on building structure as much.

3 - Things to do


OK, there were plenty of things to do in Japan as a whole, but when friends came to Hamamatsu from other parts of Japan, well... this happened. Prague has more historical attractions than you can shake a stick at, if that's your thing. There are walking tours, river boat rides, museums, and a whole ton of nightlife. We won't compare the nightlife for now, because while Prague has a ton of massive clubs and a whole host of interesting bars, I really miss going into one of three places (No Name Bar, Liquid Kitchen and Tunnel) and seeing a sea of familiar, friendly faces. There are so many expats in Prague that it would be impossible to hang out in one place. But in Hamamatsu, almost everybody knew each other in some way, and it was nice.

But... I really miss Japanese style karaoke. I've tried it in Prague, but it's the old scene - loud, obnoxious people who I don't know hogging the microphone, and being unable to line up 40 Disney songs in a row. Plus people here can't hire out a lunchtime karaoke booth and just sing alone for hours even if they wanted to... and they don't... how crazy are they?! (For the record, I never did that.) Then again, it's free to watch people attempting to sing here... not sure where the point will go for now.

So, as you can see, there are plenty of pros and cons, differences and similarities. Stay tuned for more!