A Close Shave

I had my first hair cut in Japan yesterday. I don't know why, but I'm always a bit anxious about going to the barbers, especially new ones. Lucky, Maki was on hand to translate and requests like “No not that short!” or “You've cut my ear off!” There is this quaint little local barbers new my home with the stereotypical spinning white, red and blue poles out front. The barber is an old-man, who looks like he's been working there since he could pick up a pair of scissors.

Speaking as someone who's had his hair cut in various countries/nationalities, I can say there is always something wholly unique about each. My Finnish hair dresser had never seen hair as thick as mine and was rather perplexed about how to thin it down. A Turkish barber I went to see, after cutting my hair, placed a rolled up cotton-ball on the end of a piece of wire, dipped it in some liquid, set fire to it and began flicking it near my ear! I now know of course he was burning away and excess ear hair (Which I don't have), but at the time all I saw was a man playing with fire way to close to my head. Italian barbers think their all salon hair dressers and have this expression on their faces like they are creating art. But, I digress.

The Japanese hair cut was pretty standard at the beginning; chair, normal; hair wash, normal; hair cutting with scissors, normal. However, then he took what I can only describe as a giant make-up brush covered in talcon powder and smeared it round the sides and back of my head! My first thought was he was so used to cutting old peoples hair that he was trying to create a distinguished look of an older gentleman who hasn't discovered 'Just for Men', though I assumed it helped him to see the hair lengths better. He was very insistent he shaves my ear hair, and we are not talking old-man in the ears but the ears themselves! Last time I looked I wasn't a hobbit, but I feel it would have offended him if I didn't let him. The line was drawn when he want to shave my forehead though! I don't know about you but I've never looked at a man (Or women) and thought “They really need to get their forehead shaved.” Maybe its a Japanese thing? Finally, when it came to cleaning up, he used a garden broom with no handle to bush off the trimmed hair off the gown, as you do. The hair was good though and I was very happy, until it came to pay and I was slapped with a bill of about 3,500 yen (Thats about £28); more like a salon price than a mens barbers. So what could I do, but pay the man, go home and check my forehead for straggling hairs.