Are Japanese people really shy?

It is often said that Japanese people are shy and not good at communication compared to Western people. I also think that Japanese people tend to be quiet from my experience of living in New York for 3 years. In particular, I’ve seen lots of Japanese people feel intimated when they are talking to foreign people. In fact, however, Japanese people are not as shy as it’s said they are.

In Japan, being quiet or calm is considered as a virtue which comes from Samurai period, so in the place, Japanese people tend not to be fond of being too friendly, especially when they talk with strangers. In my opinion, it seems that Japanese people don’t like to be aggressively approached as you could tell from the Japanese greeting ways. In addition, when speaking another language which you are not good at, everyone becomes more quiet. This is not because you are shy, but because you can’t tell what you want to say. Especially, most of Japanese people are not fluent in English, so that is why they look shy from foreign people.

However, it is true that Japanese people tend to observe others before we get closer to them. Conversely, once they open their mind, you can make strong relationships with them. So if you want to make Japanese friends, it is important to understand those natures that Japanese people they have and figure out the ways to communicate with them. But it is different when they are drinking. Drinking is the best chance to make friends with Japanese people.