“日本ではきれいな車しか見たことない (Nihon de wa kirei na kuruma shika mita koto nai) — I’ve only seen clean cars in Japan.” That was the frank reaction from Nico, a French aircraft engineer, during his first trip to Japan. According to a Nov. 8 story from Hint-Pot, what surprised him most was not a famous sight, but the cars moving through the city streets.
The episode was shared by Mami, a Japanese YouTuber who lives in southern France, on her Instagram account. She introduced a visit by one of her husband’s 親族 (shinzoku), a relative named Nico, who 訪れた (otozureta) Japan for the first time and ended up noticing something very ordinary to many residents: traffic.
A French engineer noticed the cars in town
Nico works as an airplane engineer, and the sight that caught his attention was the automobiles 街なか (machinaka), out in town. He was struck by the number of clean, well-kept vehicles 行き交う (yukikau), going back and forth on Japanese roads.
He gave a 率直 (socchoku) opinion about what he saw: Japanese cars looked clean. He even praised them with the phrases “all clean” and “Japanese status,” impressed by their good condition.
Why the difference stood out to him
According to Nico, many people in France see a car mainly as an 移動手段 (idou shudan), a way to get from one place to another. Because of that, some do not mind even when the body of the car is badly worn or damaged.
He said there are cases where damaged parts are 補修 (hoshuu) with duct tape or even garbage bags, and the car is still driven that way. Since those sights are familiar to him, the well-maintained vehicles he saw in Japan stayed 印象深く (inshou bukaku) in his mind.
Comments on the post included people wondering whether France has no vehicle inspection system, or whether the system is simply different.
Learn Japanese from This Article
Vocabulary
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 親族 | shinzoku | relatives, family members |
| 訪れる | otozureru | to visit |
| 街なか | machinaka | in town, in the city streets |
| 行き交う | yukikau | to go back and forth, to pass each other |
| 率直 | socchoku | frank, straightforward |
| 移動手段 | idou shudan | means of transportation, way of getting around |
| 補修 | hoshuu | repair, mending |
| 印象深く | inshou bukaku | deeply, memorably, in an impressive way |
Grammar Spotlight: 〜ていても
Pattern: Verb / state in ていても + main clause Meaning: “even if…” / “even when…”
From the article: ニコさんによると、フランスにおいて車は「移動手段」という認識が強いそうで、車体がボロボロになっていても気にしない人がいるのだとか。 Niko-san ni yoru to, Furansu ni oite kuruma wa “idou shudan” to iu ninshiki ga tsuyoi sou de, shatai ga boroboro ni natte ite mo ki ni shinai hito ga iru no da to ka. According to Nico, in France cars are strongly seen as a means of transportation, and some people do not mind even when the car body has become badly worn.
Example: 雨が降っていても、仕事に行きます。 Ame ga futte ite mo, shigoto ni ikimasu. Even if it is raining, I go to work.
Example: 古くなっていても、まだ使える車があります。 Furuku natte ite mo, mada tsukaeru kuruma ga arimasu. Even if they have gotten old, some cars can still be used.
Use 〜ていても when you want to describe a condition that exists, but the result does not change.
Useful Expressions
きれいな車しか見たことない Kirei na kuruma shika mita koto nai “I’ve only seen clean cars.”
移動手段という認識 Idou shudan to iu ninshiki “The view that something is a means of transportation.”
街なかで驚いた Machinaka de odoroita “Was surprised in town.”
Continue Learning
- Te Form: Linking Actions Seamlessly: Want to use 〜ても from this article yourself? Our Te Form: Linking Actions Seamlessly lesson covers it.
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