There have been a lot of reports of foreign tourists doing stupid and disrespectful things while visiting Japan. From doing pull-ups on a Shinto shrine’s torii gate to urinating on shrine grounds, every week seems to bring a new story of traveler shame.
But as we should all know by now, “stupid and disrespectful” is a character flaw that transcends borders. One man drove that home recently with a stunt in Hokkaido at a Shinto shrine that’s causing heartburn for the head priest and city officials.
The report from HTB News in Hokkaido says that the Japanese pro snowboarder (whom it doesn’t name) uploaded a video of himself in December to his social media. The clip shows him boarding down a hill within Oyachi Shrine in Sapporo’s Atsubetsu District. At one point, he rides up a wall, generating sparks from his board. The video also shows him jumping a sign before boarding off onto the street.
The video was just discovered recently, it seems, by HTB. When they asked head priest Mitsuhashi Hitofumi about it, he confirmed that the individual hadn’t sought permission from the shrine for the maneuver.
“This could leave marks on the wall. The wall’s old, and there’s no way we can guarantee this is safe.”
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According to HTB, the snowboarder’s also filmed himself riding down railings across Sapporo. City officials interviewed by the news org say the unsanctioned use of city property may be illegal.
HTB reached out to the snowboarder in question for comment. The man didn’t reply as of press time. However, the report says that he has since deleted the shrine video from his feed.
Beyond a little discussion on social media, the video doesn’t seem to be generating the sort of attention you’d expect from such a disrespectful act. To be sure, many people are lambasting the snowboarder for his disrespect – and the newspaper for hiding his identity. However, a few commenters are defending the maneuver as “cool.”
City officials say some tourists also engage in disrespectful and dangerous behavior, such as skiing down stairs. They’re calling on all residents and visitors – foreign and domestic alike – to knock it off.
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