With the borders finally open, foreigners arriving in Japan are noticing some things here are different.
Dining out is a bargain, thanks to relatively low inflation and the weak yen. Once-familiar areas are now unrecognizable thanks to a building boom. And mask-wearing is still almost ubiquitous, even outdoors.
The Japanese public still prefers to mask up, despite increased prodding from the government to let their guard down a little. For many visitors from the West, for whom masks have become a long-abandoned battleground in the culture wars, it can be slightly disorientating.
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