owlectomy

Yeah, I think it's largely a matter of conditioning and how we were brought up... it's not a bad thing to be nervous, particularly when bad stuff happens close to home. I'm only offended by the idea that it's stupid not to be afraid.

I adored Nagasaki. It is a smallish and cute city and it just feels friendly. I've been to Fukuoka two or three times, and I wasn't as fond of it; it was grayer, and more industrial, and I got lost in the red-light district. But it has a much better English bookstore, and the shopping is more varied in general and in terms of the options for people who speak English and wear larger sizes. Unfortunately, that's where I lost my train ticket (on a Sunday, with $15 in cash on me) and panicked that I was going to have to sleep in a park or beg entrance to a hostel or something, so I didn't appreciate it as much as I could have...