General rule in Japan

I've heard about some disputes between foreign residents and Japanese neighborhoods over 2 issues. Garbage and Noise. It simply come to a cultural gap or misunderstanding.

<Garbage>

Japanese government is trying reduce the garbage quantity and recycle resources as much as possible but garbage collection is controlled by local governments. 


You have to be careful because each region has different garbage disposal rules because there are no nation-wide rules. Your apartment complexes might hire a private garbage services for their residents and have more rules you need to follow.  Don't forget to ask about how to sort your garbage.

Sorting  garbage is a headache for new comers (I can understand that feeling because when I was working in Shizuoka the separating garbage rule was much more complex than in Osaka so I had to think about how to separate it before throwing anything away every time.) and you may feel like too much trouble but when you learn the rules and get used to them, it becomes easier for you.

As an example, you need to purchase designated garbage bags to throw away garbage in Kobe, but not in Osaka.  Find out more here:


Osaka city
http://www.city.osaka.lg.jp/contents/wdu020/kankyo/english/life/life01.html

Kobe City
http://www.city.kobe.lg.jp/life/recycle/waketon/img/english.pdf


<Noise>

When I lived in Australia, I didn't mind the noise from neighbours but when I came back to Japan, I sometimes had trouble with neighbours' noise such as washing machine, vacuum cleaner, high heel sound in the corridor etc. I wonder the building materials and environment are different?
You may need to lower the volume between 10 pm to 8 am. Talking on the balcony is also not a good idea. Balconies echo your voice to your neighbours and they can hear your conversation quite clearly.

I don't say that all Japanese are quiet but I noticed that Japanese rarely have visitors and when they do, they tend to have a smaller group of visitors. (It is not always true though.) I think that complaints occur mostly because there isn't enough communication due to the language barrier. If you know each other, you or neighbour don't mind the noises which come from next door. So my suggestion is to try to greet your neighbours when you see them.