Quote Originally Posted by Psyke
The Japanese have been really friendly and polite, but maybe that's because I'm asian and look like one of them, so I can't comment on their so called "hate" towards gaijin or foreigners.

Anyway, here's a video of my trip to Tokyo last year, in case you haven't seen it already.
No offense Psyke, but I don't think you look quite Japanese. I make a sport of differentiating between Asian people, and I've gotten pretty good at telling people's nationalities apart.

I'm often mistaken for Japanese abroad and in Japan, but the situation turns kind of awkward when I ask a Japanese person if they speak English since I don't speak Japanese well. I've been told by other foreign-born Asians that it's because they think you're either lazy or showing off by speaking English. Of course, it could just be the language barrier that turns them away.

Probably a rash generalization, but in large cities, I think it's easier being a tourist for someone who is definitely not Japanese, since the locals think you're dumb anyway, and therefore will help you out. In smaller towns, I've seen instances where they help their own domestic visitors out, while leaving foreigners in the cold. Win some, lose some.