Footloose??!!

Countries are often stereotyped around the world, some good and some bad.  Canadians are stereotyped as being friendly and saying 'eh' a lot, Americans as being loud, the Australians for maybe partying just a little too much.  Japan is known for really loving cute things, Godzilla, and being a bit weird.  I've maybe gotten used to seeing strange things in the year and a half I've been here.  I barely even bat an eyelid  when I see a Harajuku girl or someone walking around in a Pikachu jumpsuit, and I especially don't take pictures of these things like I did at first!  This past weekend, I have to admit I was a bit shocked when I found out a law I never knew about in Japan: 'late night' dancing is apparently illegal!  We've all heard strange laws: apparently it's illegal to catch a fish with your bare hands in Saskatoon, or to pay for a 50 cent item with only pennies, but NO DANCING!!??  Maybe I was so shocked because I HAVE been out clubbing since coming to Japan, so how is it against the law?  But then I learned the police have been cracking down on it a lot more in the last year or so (maybe they're bored because of the low crime rates here and have nothing to do?).  Even when I've asked a lot of Japanese friends about it, they had no idea this is against the law.  Trust a foreigner to know more about another country! (I say this because I know nothing about Canada)

The way I found out was this: It was a friend's birthday and we were planning on renting a beach hut on Nokonoshima (an island just off Fukuoka). We cancelled due to the threat of a typhoon coming through that night and maybe becoming stranded with no food the next day with no ferry to bring us back to the mainland (or in Japan, basically, the bigger island). Because Big Bang (a K-pop group) was in town for a concert, we could not find a hotel or hostel or anywhere for us to stay in (not even the Hilton had a free room, yes we checked), especially considering there were a dozen of us. So we discussed our options for the night: party on the beach till dawn and take the first shinkansen home (what if it rains??!!), rent a karaoke room and eventually sleep in it when we're all karaoke'd out (no shower, blankets, etc.), a love hotel for a few hours (not enough guys to go around, apparently they only accept heterosexual couples, so no same sex couples, no group orgies and no singles), manga cafe (basically sleeping in a wank cubicle, ew), capsule hotel (usually prejudice against women), calling every Japanese person we know in the city to see if they'll take us (no one wanted all of us :( ), clubbing till dawn (can't anymore, late night dancing is illegal in Japan now)....the options are literally endless in Japan....wait, WHAT!!?? How is dancing illegal in Japan??!! This must be some kind of joke! But, nope, it sure isn't.

So I thought I would do some internet research to find out why. It turns out the law is called the Entertainment Business Control Law (Fūzoku Eigyō Torishimari Hō) and it was made after the end of World War II in 1948 when Japan was basically going crazy with their 'hostess' clubs and gambling.  The no dancing addition was added in 1984. Businesses can allow dancing but they have to spend a lot of money getting permission and meet a lot of criteria, such as having a big enough space (66 square feet or more to be exact) which can be difficult in a country where space is limited and very expensive.  So most little 'hole in the wall' live music venues cannot even apply for the permit.  Along with a permit for dancing and serving liquor, they also need one for serving food...so because Tokyo is such a huge city, clubs do still but exist, but in smaller cities (even big cities like Osaka and Fukuoka) it's now less common than it was a year ago and clubs have closed down and owners been arrested for 'non-licensed dancing'.  Which maybe explains why I have gone clubbing in the likes of Fukuoka, Tokyo, Kyoto, and smaller cities in the time I've been here but now it's all changing and the cops are tired of turning a blind eye! Can you say Footloose???  So why suddenly start cracking down after ignoring it for 60 years?  Apparently the cops are using it as an excuse to get to more serious problems of underage drinking, drug use and the like, by sending in undercover cops and all.  But really...none of these things are a huge threat to society like they are in other parts of the world, which leads me to believe they are just bored with their nearly crimeless society....so along with all the other things I enjoy (they shall remain nameless) and can't do in Japan, I can add clubbing all night.

And in case you're wondering, four of us found a tiny hotel room at 1am that let us sleep on the floor in it, some went home for the night, some stayed up all night karaokeing, and all were safe and sound...this IS Japan you know, not exactly crime central!  Happy birthday Kris, it was one to remember if nothing else! :)