About Clothing, Food and Shelter -Clothing- From a Myanmar, American and Filipino Perspective

It is hot all year round in the Philippines, so everyone likes to wear T-shirts and jeans. You can go everywhere wearing a T-shirt and jeans. Even in business districts, not many people wear suits. Polo shirts and shirts are fine in the office.

Myanmar has four seasons, but is basically warm. The basic clothing is the longyi, which is the national costume. It is like a skirt with a long piece of cloth wrapped around it, and there are two versions; one for men and one for women. Longyi is worn for both daily wear and formal wear, so it is different from Japanese clothing.

My home state of Michigan is located in the northern part of the United States, and it has four distinct seasons. The latitude is about the same as Hokkaido, but winters are much colder. In winter, I wear about four layers and a ski jacket. One pair of socks is not enough. Summer is totally different, with temperatures ranging from 23 to 25 degrees Celsius, which is pleasant.

Japan is very fashionable. It depends on the city. For example, Shibuya and Omotesando have different types of fashion. I like that. I am also enjoying various fashion styles in Japan right now.

When I came to Japan, I was surprised to see that men also carry large bags like tote bags. Men in Myanmar only have backpacks. It is embarrassing for men to carry big bags in Myanmar.

American men are the same. They do not carry large bags. They carry only their wallets. Since they don't carry a bag, they force their large wallets into their pockets.

In Japan, people wear long sleeves and long skirts even on hot days, which I feel is conservative. When I first came to Japan, I heard that "you should not show too much skin," so I bought jackets and clothes that cover more. I think they choose mostly neutral colors, colors that would go well with their skin tone and hair. If we take the color yellow, for example, the popular yellow in Japan is a neutral color of mustard, while in the U.S. it would be a bright and more colorful yellow.

Many Filipinos like bright colors. Most people don't care much about fashion, but when I recently returned to Philippine, I saw many young women wearing short dresses, so I guess they are in fashion.

Young people are energetic no matter which country you go to, and they are trying their best to enjoy fashion.

In Myanmar, young women also wear mini-skirts, but most of them wear a longyi. In junior high and high school, only longyi are allowed. University students are free to wear anything they want, but most of them wear longyi. Even in business situations, people usually wear longyi.

In schools in the Philippines, short skirts are not allowed and must be below the knee.

In the U.S., Christian schools have uniforms, but other schools have neither uniforms nor strict rules.

In Japan, the temperature varies with the seasons, so we inevitably have to wear more clothes. Even my underwear and socks change with the seasons, so I have to change my clothes every seasons. In the Philippines, I never had to change my clothes depending on the season.

In Myanmar we don’t change clothes with seasons either. In Japan, short sleeves, long sleeves, coats, etc. are needed to adjust the temperature, so the number of my clothes keeps increasing.

I have less clothes, because they don’t fit in my suitcases and I can't keep them in my apartment. Now I live lightly with only the clothes I brought from the U.S. in two large suitcases. I brought a lot of one-piece dresses because I don't need to coordinate them with anything else. I didn't even bring a coat because it doesn't get cold in Japan even in winter.

I buy clothes, so I spend more money on clothes here.

My clothing expenses are now zero yen. Japanese clothes don't fit me because my body shape and skin color are different from theirs, and my muscles are also built up, so clothes don't fit me here. You weren’t allowed to try on clothes in the stores during the pandemic, which made it even more difficult for me to buy any. I have large feet, and in Japan I can only get men's shoes with this size. If I find shoes in the U.S. that fit, I will definitely buy them, no matter how much they cost. I will wear them for five or ten years.

Filipinos have the same body shape as the Japanese, so sizes do fit. I love Japanese clothes.

Myanmar women have wide feet, so Japanese shoes don't fit easily. That is a real problem. For men's shoes, there is not much difference.

The other thing that surprised me was that even though it was hot in Japan, everyone was wearing layers of clothes. I was very surprised because I am hot even when I wear only one layer.

It must have something to do with food. I think our body temperatures are different.

I envy Japanese people because they don't sweat. In summer, it is too hot to wear a T-shirt, so I prefer to wear a tank top or camisole. If I have sleeves, I get soaked with sweat.

In Myanmar, when you go to a temple for a wedding or an important event, black is not allowed. They think black brings bad things, so any color is fine as long as it is not black. For funerals, black or any other color is fine. Some people wear Burmese ethnic costumes for events and weddings. Ethnic minority people wear those of their own ethnic group.

In the Philippines, we don't like to wear black because it gives the image of someone passing away. For weddings, entrance and graduation ceremonies, it’s a celebration, so no one wears black. When my child entered school, I was surprised to see everyone in Japan wearing black. I didn't know anything about it, so I wore a red dress that my husband bought for me. There were not many foreigners back then, so I stood out.

There is no school entrance ceremony in the United States. We do have graduation ceremonies. Family members come to celebrate, but they don't wear black. The graduates themselves wear beautiful dresses and suits, but their families wear everyday clothes. In my graduation picture, my whole family is there, but my brothers and sisters are wearing jeans. But weddings are different. White is a color that only the bride wears, so you never wear white. Also, a wedding is a time of celebration, so you also never wear black.