Nearly 13,000 Japanese will invade the Pink City on the occasion of the Rugby World Cup which starts on September 8 in France. For five weeks, the Japanese will be able to enjoy the beautiful air of Toulouse and all that Gascony has to offer outside the stadiums. But, if between wines, gastronomy, art and music, there is everything to please the Japanese, the city must still adapt to these new tourists with different culture, language and requirements.
“The Japanese need to have an irreproachable product. They don’t like delays either, so you have to say goodbye to the Toulouse quarter of an hour. They also need security and a lot of hygiene…”, lists Benoît Auvry, tourism referent of the organizing committee of the Rugby World Cup in Toulouse. The latter has been setting up training courses, since May, for shopkeepers, hoteliers and any establishment open to the public so that they can adapt to a whole new clientele. “We have worked on translating the menu, signage in the private sector and in the public square so that the Japanese can find their way around: in restaurants as well as in transport. You should know that they speak very little English and even less French. We must adjust our city to their arrival and their ease of life, ”adds the trainer.
Epicureans in Toulouse: it matches
A primer of useful questions has also been created to help hosts with all the problems of the Japanese. 150 Japanophile volunteers are also on the starting blocks to best receive these people. The plan: “The Japanese have to be driven as much as possible. This is what they expect of us”. And for good reason, if these Japanese come to enjoy their team’s matches and the collaboration between their country and Stade Toulousain, the latter are also there for tourism. “For many, these are their only vacations of the year, there is a big economic stake behind it,” says Benoît Auvry. And for these epicureans, Toulouse will be a real treat, if it is accessible to them.
Apart from rugby and matches, the tourist office, the city with the help of the organizing committee are working on the promotion of local heritage: a reflection has been made on The little Prince – a bestseller in Japan – and the history of aeronautics and Saint-Exupéry in Toulouse, for example. Our new tourists are also passionate about classical music and a program has been established with the Capitole chamber orchestra. In short, the Pink City wants to seduce Japan and goes out of its way.
Do’s and Don’ts
If the merchants of the city and the institutions are trained to welcome the Japanese, for the supporters, the inhabitants and other tourists, it will also be necessary to be careful. Alizée Golfier, Toulouse journalist at the head of the YouTube channel CultureJapan1 and his colleague Rémi Cazamea give us some advice: “Politeness is essential: have a smile, be kind, be welcoming, but keep a certain physical distance and space. They are not really tactile”, explain the two enthusiasts. “Respect for barrier gestures in relation to Covid is also welcome. The end of restrictions there is recent and it does not prevent them from wearing a mask. It will be beneficial for them”. Question behavior, it will also be necessary to be helpful and not to say no. “If possible, avoid saying a too frank, too categorical “no”. It is very violent for them. You have to know how to put the forms with them, ”add the journalists.
Finally, if you are invited to eat with Japanese people, here are some rules that could save you: “You should never stick a chopstick in the food, it is very badly seen. We don’t do without food from baguette to baguette either. We don’t say tchin-tchin (it’s the male genitalia in Japanese), we say Kampaï. If you have a drink at the table, the rule is simple: in Japan, they serve each other. If you serve a drink, you have to wait for one of the served to serve you back. There you go, you’re finally ready to welcome the Japanese, pamper them in town and beat them on the rugby field.