I'm Chinese American; my parents immigrated to the United States from China and Hong Kong. When we were little, we were told to finish every piece of rice in our bowl because each grain of rice we left in the bowl would become a mark on our future partner's face. And you didn't want a partner just absolutely covered in pimples, moles, scabs, etc. right? I don't know if this is a regional thing or just something specific to my family...
Regarding the grains of rice thing, my mother used to tell me that those grains of rice symbolises the beads of sweat that the farmer gave in planting and harvesting the rice. Leaving those grains means that you are disregarding the hard work that the farmer put in to grow the rice and feed you.
In Russia, we have the same feeling about bread that Japan has about rice. It was our "basic food" for centuries. It takes part in rituals, it takes part in proverbs (for example, "хлеб всему голова" - that means that bread is a head for everything, is the main thing). And we have a special respect for bread in Saint-Petersburg - it goes from the WWII, when our city was in blockade for almost three years, thousands of people died from hunger, and bread was almost the only food people could get. There were "bread coupons", portion rates... In museums dedicated to the war you often can find a small piece of "blockade bread" showing how small were the rates. Also a lot of people had difficult lives in the time of "Perestroika" and the 90s. So the older generation has a special respect for any food. And taught us the same. And for me to throw away food is ehm... soul disturbing. People under 30, especially under 20 has another feeling about any food, much more easier. 'Cause the economical situation in the country is pretty much better and is quite okay. Oh, and about phone talks in public transport. We don't have bans, except talking next to the driver, 'cause it distracts. But nobody likes (I can even say that everybody hates )) ) people who are loudly talk on their phones. Such talks are always very loud and it looks very uncivilized, indecent. And - how people can talk in the train with all it's noise around at all?! You can't hear your companion! P.S. Interesting thing about rolling eyed emoji ) I always thought that it was a little guilty face that guilty looked upwards at someone )
a fellow slavic country, poland has the same reverence for bread as the traditional 'basic food'. i think it's also connected to the christian religions in which bread is viewed as sacred. as to phone calls in public transport: i just had a quarrel in a bus with a man who decided it's okay to play a video on his phone WITH SOUND ON *eyeroll emoji - western meaning*
Same here in Algeria (north Africa) regarding the reverence for bread. I guess all the older generations around the world held a lot of respect for their basic food and food in general as they experienced scarcity and famine. The more economic prosperous times breed generations more leniant about food wasting...
OMG! My Japanese friend used to constantly send that eye roll emoji to me! 😆 I remember getting pissed sometimes because I couldn’t tell if he was being sarcastic or not. This is definitely a revelation!
@@SHUNchanjp In some game like Rise of Kingdoms I once joined a japanese Alliance,,,it was quite strange, I pictured all member werr girls or something,, they always communicated with those sms emojis ,,they were cute but quite strange..were in 2021 tech,,we have emojis on keyboards but japanese really seem to love these funny cute sms like emojis (-v-) something like this (`°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥ω°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥｀)
I’m honestly impressed you can still fit into your school uniform. If I tried wearing anything I wore in high school, I’d start cutting off my circulation. But I’m a fan of the blazer uniform, in my fraternity, the hardest part was trying to get these guys to dress formally or understand how to dress professionally. It would help in the students future on formal attire
if I understood correctly ,,,so this means that high class schools tend to have the badass lookin uniforms right? and the not so high class have the office look?
@ZXNOVA Blazer will get less and less usual because formal clothes are non sense. you can get chic non formal clothes and garbage formal clothes.... in the past was different but now the reality is that there is no reason at all to wear formal (except if you like it of course)
@@Grissinen I mean, if an event requires formality due to social-cultural reasons, formal wear will still continue to be a thing, as they have for thousands of years.
In the Philippines, having leftover rice -- be it spoonfuls or a handful of grains -- is a display of lack of respect for the farmers whose back-breaking work made it possible to have that rice on your plate to begin with. For context, Philippines is largely an agricultural country with traditional (read: less mechanized, hence more labor-intensive) rice-farming methods. But leftover rice isn't really a problem in the Philippines as every Filipino appears to be obsessed with eating rice anyway. 🍚
It depends. I'm from the Philippines too. We were raised a bit differently. If you are a guest at a friend's house, you shouldn't be finishing everything they offer you. Because you never know when your host is serving his only food. Since it's a filipino thing to serve your guest with the best things you have even if you're broke.
@@Chucks626 if your unsure about food supply, the idea is to leave "one bite" on the plate. That is to let the host know that you have had your fill, without throwing away a significant amout of food.
Aside from the rule of not talking on the phone in public transport, I also noticed Tokyoites stepping off the pedestrian/walkways to take their calls. It's a strange phenomenon for a country known for it's fast-paced culture and walking (they always seem to be in a rush to somewhere) that they choose to step aside instead of carrying on their journey while taking the call and I find myself adopting this habit too when back in my home country ☺️
It is same in Germany at the cafés and restaurants. I've seen them getting up and walking out of the eating area to speak on the mobile phones. My American friends were awestruck to see that.
I think I have to agree with the reasoning behind why phone conversations are disruptive. When someone is talkimg loudly enough for me to hear, sometimes I think they might be talking to me, and it takes me a few seconds to realize they're talking on the phone, because so many people use headsets. It makes me feel a little bit awkward listening to them to figure it out and heard part of a private conversation.
Regarding phone calls, the psychological/neurological reasoning stands, but also because cell phones do not allow the speaker to hear themselves and therefore recognize their own volume as the person on the other end hears it, they tend to talk much louder than necessary - much louder than if they were having a face to face conversation in a public space, or on a landline (for those who remember those); the ambient noise in a train also encourages “speaking up”, so it’s a perfect storm of nuisance for people to have phone calls on public transportation.
People in the US have absolutely no shame. They'll straight up have arguments on the phone standing in the middle of a store. Nobody wants to listen to your personal affairs.
I absolutely agree and people often don't realize how loud you are. On the train, you don't reliaze much but the background noise always there that makes it even harder to hear the other person, that will make you talk louder as you aren't confident if the other person can hear you.
Dude, just make any content that you feel like and upload regularly. Take a walk outside, go to a park or a shop or whatever you feel like doing. We'll have more information about you and Japan and you will be closer to do this full time, if you wish. Thank you for sharing.
About the rice: finally a group of people who understand me! I can never just leave those last grains of rice in the bowl. It's sort of sad, as if they get left behind. Most people here, when I eat those last grains of rice, tell me "You can't eat the bowl, you know."
Same with me, with whatever pieces of food you leave on your plate. I feel this is wasting food from laziness and anyway you need to clean the plate later before washing it, otherwise it would end up clogging the pipes. So just clean up your plate and eat your food ! And in Belgium, you're not supposed to put more food on your plate than you're capable of eating. You'd put a reasonable amount of food on your plate and if you want more, you take more from the serving bowls (that are in the middle of the table, for everyone to reach). Putting a heap of food from the start is considered selfish and rude as everybody is serving themselves from the same serving bowls and if you take too much there might not be enough for everybody. I'm talking about private meals here (family, friends,...), not restaurants where everybody gets their own plates and you can't decide on the quantity.
I've watched many videos on Japan and Japanese culture but somehow your videos always introduce me to something new. It's refreshing, I always learn more about Japan from you. 10/10 would recommend !
Yep, your point on 1-sided conversations makes sense. Because when you hear only 1 person talking, your mind tries to imagine what the other person is saying, so your mind is more engaged than when 2 or more people are talking.
When I lived in Taiwan my friends shared that there is a traditional belief that any food you don’t eat and waste, you will have to eat in the afterlife.
Chinese Malaysian here, yeah rice stuck on the bowl like that is kind of a 'no no' hehe. Either our parents say: 1) "THINK OF THE CHILDREN STARVING IN AFRICA!" (a kind of guilt-tripping that they do) 2) "You don't want pimples/marks on your future partner do you?" (Now that's just trying to scare us lol) Great video Shun-san! Looking forward to more!
So I have to ask. How many grains of rice is it acceptable to leave on the plate? 1? 2? If I'm not skilled with chopsticks (and I assure you that I am not) how do I get that last grain off the plate? In the U.S. it would be considered rude to pick it up with one's fingers or push it onto a fork.
As an American born Chinese, I was taught the same by my immigrant parents. I try not to let it offend me when my son leaves rice in his bowl because his chopstick skills probably aren’t as good as mine when I was the same age.
@@wickedcabinboy I think East Asians will be surprised if foreigners can even stick to using chopsticks for an entire meal so I think you’ll get a pass for effort. I know some were shocked I could even use chopsticks while in Asia since I was born and raised in the West
Here in Australia people talk on their phones in trains all the time. The conversation is different to when you're speaking to a friend on the train. It's always discussions relating to a work task, or someone's private life or social schedule. The rudest ones are when some business man holds a meeting on the phone and they sound arrogant and full of themselves or even humiliate a colleague, all for the whole train to hear. That's when banning phones on trains make sense 😊
8:04 as a Vietnamese, kinda yes. We have a believe that each bowl of rice is sweat and tear of a rice farmer. Therefore, we try not to waste rice, to show respect to farmers who made it.
I live in a country where it's considered perfectly normal to have a phone call on a train.....and I wish they would ban it. But that's mostly because the people that actually have phone calls on a train all seem to think they HAVE TO TALK VERY LOUD or the other person can't hear them. Which might also be the case since trains here usually make a lot more noise than most trains in Japan....
Same. Living in China and listening to people literally screaming their conversation down the phone as if they were also deaf makes me wish that not only is it banned, but also punishable. It's as if people automatically and suddenly become socially inept and unable to function like a human being once the phone rings.
THIS. There is always that one person shouting at the top of their lungs into the phone on the train here. It's so loud as if they want their ancestors as well as descendants to hear it, FFS. Noise-cancelling headphone is godsend.
Same here in Germany... but somehow mostly the Turkish people talk as loudly as if there were at there home ( hmmm 🤔 maybe those people can’t really talk much at home ?) And they use earpieces and talk for several minutes at a time .... I suppose those people don’t know the benefit of quite ... or solitude.... those people are talking constantly ... on the phone or in any public place... talking and screaming as if those individuals are alone in the universe!
@@talkingcup in HZ, China. Same SHOUTING DOWN THE PHONE AND WHO GIVES A CRAP ABOUT THE REST OF THE PEOPLE ON THE TRAIN?!!!!!!!!! I detest it. Moving to Japan after my stint here.
Sometimes I can not hear over background noise or the person on the other end. That being said I have seen several times people who yell at hallucinations through the phone and pretend they are fighting with a family member or ex-friend that have disowned them.
First time viewer here, and this is a wonderful content! I'm a Thai American, and when I was raised in Thailand, I, too, was told to always finish my rice, not leaving a single grain. Similar belief to yours, and I still follow that to this day. Ironically, I'm on vacation to Osaka right now and am watching this from a hotel in Osaka. Very lovely content and I'm glad to come upon it!
I like the look of the Bureza type uniform myself! When I visited my relatives in the Philippines back in 2007 their children would wear beautiful brightly colored school uniforms everyday to school and they looked so professional in them. I find it amazing how in Japan and the Philippines and in the rest of Asia how they tailor school uniforms for their students into fashionable neat looking styles. I'm half Filipino half American and I also noticed that both Japanese and Filipino people value rice a lot as part of their culture and diet compared to other Asian countries. I also noticed Japanese and Filipino love to eat a lot of vegetables and seafood as well given the fact that both countries are completely surrounded by water.
This was super interesting stuff. I'm someone who has lived quite a few years in Japan and a lot of this stuff I had no idea about, or even for the things i did know about, you still provided extra info or details I didn't know. Amazing video as always Shunchan!
We visited Tokyo in 2019 and loved it. We understood the expectations and culture enough to have no issues. We mingle with the people and went on no guided tours. We live in a pretty much Asian household in the USA so there was no shocker in Japan. We enjoyed our visit there and long to return to visit once again.
I would actually watch that whole hour Yankee school uniform video lol. I once had a Japanese school kid call me GTO while I was at Osaka Castle...I was honored 😭😂
Someone said you can literally walk around streets and shops and we'll watch it because it's true! It's showing the day to day things that we don't get to see!
I'm glad someone has confirmed my suspicions about eye-rolling. It seems like a huge cultural difference, but I never see anything about it online. Thanks for another great video Shun!
Eating all of your food is somthing that stayed with us after war and other difficult times. In Poland old custom is to never throw away the bread, if breadwas bad you should burn it and never let it rot. It shows respect towards somthing that kept you alive.
I think I remember reading some research that showed that a conversation that a third party listener can only hear one side of is more distracting because the brain of the listener tries to predict and fill in the other part of the conversation. Whereas if the listener can hear both parts, it doesn't require as much information processing. That's what I read anyway.
I never really cared about possibly offending someone by leaving food on my plate. If you place food in front of me that I'm neither allergic to nor have a strong aversion to, it will get eaten. That is also true for edible decorations on the plate you often get at restaurants such as a leaf of salad, a slice of tomato, or a stalk of parsley.
Ah yes, eating the decoration. I’m with you. Even the parsley. Japanese like using a small slice of orange. It’s funny because kids always seem to eat it and the adults often don’t.
My son-in-law eats EVERYTHING on his plate. Garnish, food, rice. I feel so guilty when I'm having a meal with him and the US has huge portions. Sometimes you just can't eat it all.
1. For the toilet thing the water comes from the pipe to the basin(where you wash your hands), then flows down to the tank, then what was already in the tank will be used to flush the toilet. Incase anyone wanted to know. 2. I was wondering what about making a sound proof train cart for cell phone use only? So if you need to make/take an emergency/important call you would move to this cart to make the call. People would already know what this cart is and would either stay away or stay close or be inside depending on their preference.
Hi Shun! Really love your videos. Was thinking if you could do a video on the atrocities of Japan during the previous wars (forced labor, comfort women, etc.). I know it might be a really touchy subject but I'm really curious how Japan teaches it to their people (if at all) and what ordinary Japanese people think about them in general and about how the government handled past issues regarding them.
He's unlikely to do that. Western schools don't generally teach their children about the colonial atrocities committed by their grandparents, or even how their own minorities were treated.
I actually have a japanese classmate who sent me this when I forgot to reply him back: *"its totally fine if u don't respond, since I owe u for colonizing your country back then."* _I guess they know? haha_ 🙄
@@faithlesshound5621 Worth a try. When I visited Berlin, I was pleasantly amazed by how aware the people were of Germany's atrocities and were very willing to teach others (us tourists) of the big and small memorials all around the city. Japan is such a beautiful country but been very disappointed of the news of Japan being against comfort women memorials in different countries and general lack of accountability to those who suffered under their rule. The only memorials I know of in Japan are for the crimes made against their own and not much of their own crimes. I honestly just want to know what ordinary Japanese think about it - though it's still up to Shun if he wants to discuss it or not, which is okay.
@@freidam.5055 don't mess with me! I'm absolutely sure USA doesn't teach all the actrocities they committed to the countries they colonized, annexed and stole co'z I have encountered a lot of americans who had no idea about the atrocities USA committed in my country, the Philippines, and when I tried to lecture them about it, those insolent americans were brushing me off, and those trashes were even proud about the colonization and atrocities they did while bragging, USA is just too strong whereas my country is weak while looking down on my country and treating us like little brown slaves! If you're american, don't try to play innocent with me! I f***in hate americans for playing innocent and being hypocrites!
the train/phone conversation thing actually makes sense, it is really annoying for most people if the hear sentences which they can not blend out as normal small talk, so you automatically are paying attention to someones phone call, while the same sentence can be "ignored" by your brain if spoken in context but not concerning you
Yes, banning phone calls in public transport makes complete sense. I hope they did it here in the UK as well. It’s so annoying! Some people tend to be very loud on the phone and some even use their speaker, which is unbelievably rude.
In Germany, you usually tell the story to kids: "If you don't finish your food it will rain tomorrow." Guess every country has their version of not wasting food
The about rice also applies to Chinese culture! We even have a say derived from a famous Tang poem for this. "谁知盘中餐， 粒粒皆辛苦“。Which is basically conveying the idea that every grain of rice on one's plate required much hardwork.
In some Asian regions, it's considered rude to leave an empty plate, as doing so implies that you weren't fed well enough and they should have given you more. Therefore, it's polite to leave a bit of food at the end of a meal to show you were full.
I had that experience in Spain, staying at a friends house. His mother kept refilling my plate even though I said thank you I've had enough. To be polite I would eat it as it's a waste in my country and impolite not to finish your food. Eventually someone explained to me that if you cleared your plate it said that you were still hungry, so you should leave something there to say, you have fed me so well I cannot eat anymore.
we have kinda reverse of that lol. if u leave food especially when you are at someones house, it is considered as food was not delicious so u left it, but if u finish the food you will give an impression of that food was delicious XD. Interesting that every culture has its own different interpretation
I’ve read that, but I have yet to find the truth to it. China has the rule, but dinner with a Chinese family showed me that was upsetting to them. Same with the Japanese, Vietnamese, and Thai. Looking at the comments, seems other countries are the same in that area. So what country is this done in? Or is it only in high class business settings? (Sorry for the rant. I have gotten into so much etiquette trouble trying to follow that rule when read as a match to the country I was in, and every time it has been a lie. Women everywhere want you to eat their cooking, not waste food, in my experience.)
Just subscribed to your video, really refreshing to hear a very individual Japanese view that is not with surface niceness which is more of being polite as opposed to the unvarnished truth! Keep it up!
I've never thought that yankees are cool, actually the exact opposite, but a gakuran worn unbuttoned looks cool as hell, so I definitely understand why school kids would want to wear it like that. I actually encountered the "old lady trying to lure you in" thing myself, but it was super obvious it was a red light district. I was staying at a cheap hotel in Okinawa, located next to a juvenile detention center and a red light district, and I was on my way to the Shuri castle so I walked through the seedy part of town. Luckily the old lady was pretty lazy about her work so I could just keep walking.
I find the "grains of rice left in the bowl" one reasonable as well. Like, it's not that much rice, just a dozen grains or so? You can easily eat that. Seriously, it makes it easier to clean the bowl if you finish it.
2:25 Germany still has that image as well and I believe that Japan might easily be more advanced in many aspects than the great inventor-rich technology-nation that our country is perceived as. Decades of conservative government with no drive for innovation can ruin any country. In other words: I feel you, bro.
1. Talking on the phone on public transportation. The regular talking you hear on trains in Japan is usually very quiet. Often even the people right beside them can't really hear what they are talking about. But when someone starts to talk on the phone their voice automatically gets loud. I am so happy that this is not allowed in public places. 2. Emojis. I agree that the eye rolling emoji is understood differently. So is the one with two hands with palms put together. In America it is usually used to mean "thoughts and prayers" or something like that. In Japan it usually means "I'm sorry".
As an American who is probably a little OCD I thought I was weird for wanting to eat every grain of rice and I have been lightheartedly teased about it by friends before. This video makes me feel so vindicated and relieved that I’m not the only one who feels that way lol
Regarding banning phone calls while using public transportation- for a country that teaches citizens to mind their own business, it sure seems like they can't mind their own business.
It's more like a prohibition on forcing your business on those around you who can't help hearing your side of a conversation, often too loudly. I think the vast majority of Americans find hearing someone loudly talking on their phone to be very annoying, particularly in a restaurant or in a captive space like a train or elevator. Seems the Japanese simply have a rule against offending others, whereas we choose the "freedom" to offend and end up with lots of pent up hostility.
@@sunsetsam33 they shouldn't be speaking loudly but I wouldn't take the no phone calls on a train ever I need to call my ride Freedom exists to ignore it
@@kokonots7311 Generalizing, of course, but I think American society is more "me", Japan's more "we". But America is very diverse, so there are many exceptions. I was raised to consider others, so admire that aspect of Japan. Very distressing to many of us, for example, that temporarily wearing masks during a pandemic is considered by many to be a threat to their "freedom" rather than something you would naturally do as being considerate of others. We pay a great price for this me over we.
I’ve been in this SHUNchan rabbithole for 2 days by now.. Your videos are hilariously funny (is that even a expression? Ww) but for real thanks for being this unique to share things about Japan.
From PH here. Since I was a kid all of my elders told me to finish all the food we put on our plate because we are lucky to have something on it while others are starving.
8:06 Filipinos have this special place for rice too. We even have different terms for it Cooked "Kanin" Uncooked "Bigas"( bigás) Sometimes "kanin" may get wasted ,yes this may be frowned upon specially by older people BUT when "bigas" is wasted or even accidentally spilled that is even considered a bad omen or something of a tragedy
I’m glad someone thinks the same thing regarding the rule of not talking on phone on train. The same logic applies to a lot of times where it’s okay when the locals do something wrong in public but when one gaijin does it people go like “さすが外人” and the idea of not letting gaijins with tattoos using public baths too. When you try to point out that some rules are illogical they say “if you’re not happy being here just leave”.
Also in Australia we're told to finish our bread including the crust so we will grow hairs on our chest! But it doesn't mean we will literally grow hair, that is an expression we use to say we will become stronger. "Eat this it'll put hairs on ya chest mate" Translates to "Eat this it'll keep you going / make you stronger" etc Again, times were tough and bread became a staple. "
When I lived in Yamanashi, my middle school still used the gakuran, aswell as most highschools, because apparently their brains are all stuck in the Showa era. Ever since I moved back to Tokyo, I only ever see smart schools use it lol
As an expat in Japan, I find the sink on the toiliet VERY useful as a cheap alternative to a bidet. Being able to have clean water on hand to wet the toilet paper is so nice. But yeah, never wash my hands in it.
About the rice - I'm an American and I lived in Iran for 10 years, so I know a little about their customs, lol. I was scolded enough times for leaving grains of rice on my plate that I learned it was a big no-no (they eat a lot of rice and most dishes are based on rice). It could be different in other parts of Iran (I lived in the city of Mashad in Khorassan state). So I thought what you said about rice in Japan was very interesting and I could relate!
Well, I'm spanish, and you already know we are extremely loud people. That's why we have silence wagons and 'soft hours' in some big grocery stores (those soft hours you can't make much noise, and have to put your phone in silence). It is supposedly to help neuroatypical people do their life without so much suffering, and I love that it is gaining a lot of popularity.
I'm from Taiwan, and we have a saying that each grain of rice represents a drop of sweat from the farmer. So don't let his hard work go to waste. Probably Chinese or Japanese origin since we were a colony.
Another thing to mention with the toilets, it also feels very cheap as they also feel the need to add a sensor to check if you're sitting that ends up moving the whole tank with it, so it's not even stable.
When I shower, especially in a small bathroom, I tend to put my fresh clothes I'll be changing into on top of the toilet. So my first visit to Japan, that's exactly what I did... Threw my clothes on top of the "tank" because I needed to use the toilet, used the toilet, FLUSHED THE TOILET, and hopped into the shower. Boy was I surprised when I got out... My towel was in there too...
I just happened to watch one of your videos 2 days ago and since then I subscribed and watched all your videos, I'm hooked on your channel, i like your type of humour, I like everything about your videos😄😄!!! Greetings from Athens, Greece
On the topic of finishing, or not finishing a plate~ Today I went to a conspicuously おしゃれ tsukemen restaurant in Kyobashi and while I usually try to finish all my food as a matter of course, THIS TSUKEMEN WAS HECCIN BLAND AS. The dashi was so mild, and the noodles were soggy and not chewy at all. Like a canned soup noodle. The chicken cutlet was rubbery and the chashu was chewy. I ordered a little 単品 dashimaki tamago that was deep fried with panko, kind of like kushikatsu, and it was like eating a nasty sponge of spoiled grease. I left a sloppy pile of 150g or so of cold rubbery meat in the bowl. It was horrible. Shun, if you get a chance, go to つけそばMaren in the Kiki Kyobashi department store (１F ). If you make it reply to this comment and let me know what you think. It has been bothering me all day lol (´-ω-`)
Humans are very highly socially driven beings.. we thrive on social interaction.. when you talk loud into a phone .. the desire to understand what is happening becomes overwhelming
hisashiburi Shunchan! I think little details of everyday life would be awesome to see here. Maybe VLOG style, or B-Roll with commentary on a typical day in Japan.
Japan faced several severe and a number of minor famines in the past, and barely avoided a major one in the WW2/post war era (45-52 was a hunger crisis, but avoided being an actual famine). I would imagine that is a good part of the cultural practice of not wasting rice. Especially since the food aid that the Allies provided in 46 wouldn't have included much rice.
honestly, any content you make with your spice to it seems like a good way out of this creative rut that your having. I genuinely like your character, so keep up the good work shun
That place that only pretends to be a restaurant reminds me of a line I read in a fictional story about a crime detective. "I've been in this place that claims to be a steak restaurant and tavern dozens of times in the past year spying on criminal suspects. However, I have never seen a single person eat one bite of solid food in this place"
Thank you. Very interesting. However when I first experience those wash hand basins over the toilets I was amazed because it is such a good way to save water. Actually soapy water will not harm your toilet cistern and it is so economical to use the water twice like this...especially nowadays with water becoming more and more expensive.
The tradition of not taking phone calls in the train is due to curiosity issues.. We used to analyze everything we hear including conversations between two people, that's why if we hear conversations thru phone calls, it makes our mind a bit conscious since we don't actually understand the topic that they're talking about since the one who is taking the call is the only person u hear talking..
