1. Really cheap shipping. It cost about $6.50 to overnight meat from our internet butcher halfway across the country, and roughly $3 to overnight this from Amazon:
2. No tipping. If you're in a restaurant, you don't have to wait for your server, any server will help you out because they're a team of well-paid workers who don't have to grovel for tips. No trying to figure out what you should pay, and no wondering which types of workers have tips factored into their income (hair stylists) or not (some delivery men).
3. Public transportation. All kinds. We've been able to jump on a train to get where we want to go, anywhere in the country, pretty much any day of the week and for most places, any time of the day, for a reasonable (not cheap) price. Airlines are also easy. One-way is one price, and round-trip is almost always double that. Even taxis are better, the doors are automatic and they have a service where they will bring two drivers, one in the taxi, and one to drive your car home, for not much more than a typical taxi fare.
4. Health care. Insurance is mandatory, and while many clinics and practices are private, prices are pretty much set by the government for various services. You pay for 1/3 of your visit and can go anywhere, any time, because your insurance works everywhere. There are assistance programs for the elderly and others who can't afford that much, but I paid roughly $65 for two MRIs of my knee and some pills. Not bad at all.
5. Simple Prices. There are taxes on things, but everything costs what it says it costs, tax is factored into the price of the item. Typically, it's priced so that it's a nice, even number with tax as well.
6. ATMs. This is a cash-based society (mixed blessing), so the ATMs are fairly advanced. You can, on the same machine, withdraw cash and coins, put in a card for a different account at a different bank, and deposit that same cash and coins of any denomination into the second bank account.
7. Customer Service. Here, they take "the customer is always right" to another level. At one restaurant, I put on a shawl and the server immediately ran over to close the windows so I wouldn't be cold. You pretty much always get pleasant service with a smile. Also, things like package delivery are great because if you miss them, you can call them right away and they'll redeliver your package that day, even from the Post Office. Of course, it helps that everyone is living so close together so going from the Post Office to do the rounds and back again can be a fairly quick run, and this service probably wouldn't work so well in suburban USA. One caveat - if the service isn't outstanding there is a good chance that it will be strange or creepy instead.
8. Dramatic Terrain. Lots of scenic natural beauty, pretty much everywhere. On a clear day, you can see a mountain range from just about anywhere I've been in Japan. The coastline is also amazing. Of course, the small size of the country has a lot to do with that, but it is still nice.
9. Fresh fruits, vegetables, and chicken. Japan places a lot of emphasis on seasonal everything. You can get seasonal beers, some foods like candy are season-specific, of course fruits and vegetables are best in-season, and you can even find seasonal milk. While the zucchini season the first couple of years was much too short for my taste, the fruits and vegetables you can find here can be simply amazing. Strawberries are grown in greenhouses, so are in season February through April and are probably the best strawberries I've ever eaten (Edit: Lee agrees, equal to field grown NH berries). Everything is usually very fresh and flavorful, even if variety tends to be lacking (no parsnips, fresh raspberries, pumpkins, tart apples, many fewer choices overall). The chicken is also top notch in size, flavor, juiciness, and pretty much any metric you'd want to compare, except that you can't get anything but breasts, boneless thighs, and wings. Grocery stores are also common enough where you pass near at least one walking home from work; we'll miss being able to run in and grab fresh things for dinner so easily.
10. Appreciation. We appreciate the US a lot more now that we've been in Japan for so long. A root beer is no longer just a beverage option when you're in the mood, but a sublime experience. Shopping in any grocery store is heavenly, and I'm not sure I could handle a Wegman's run now - sensory overload. Large portions of red meat, a whole aisle of cereal products, a wide variety of vegetables that aren't locally in season, and raspberry flavored anything-I-want? Bliss! Sure, there are some foods, like okonomiyaki, katsudon, and delicious, delicious sushi that I will miss from Japan, but you can get nearly all the required ingredients at most grocery stores or Asian markets, and the rest are on the internet. The appreciation for these things probably won't last forever, but we'll enjoy it while it lasts!
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