When visiting other countries, we have to abide by their laws. Otherwise, our actions would result in online backlash, especially when they’re filmed for content.
This was the case recently when a YouTuber visited Japan and got away without paying for most amenities.
His actions included hiding from a ticket collector in a bullet train and pretending to be a guest at a hotel to enjoy free breakfast.
Many netizens have since criticised him, prompting the YouTuber to apologise for his behaviour.
On 21 Oct, a content creator known as Fidias on YouTube posted a 23-minute video titled “I Travelled Across Japan For Free.”
In the footage, he tours Japan for free, competing against three other YouTubers to reach their destination the fastest, with the winner getting S$10,000.
Source: YouTube
His first attempt at getting a free ride doesn’t go well when he tries to leave a bus without paying 680 yen (S$6.20).
Source: YouTube
Fidias eventually capitulates and pays 600 yen (S$5.48) after being confronted by the bus captain.
Unhappy, the captain brings him to the police station, where officers confiscate his phone and interrogate him.
Source: YouTube
Another clip shows him hiding in the toilet of a bullet train to escape the ticket collectors.
Source: YouTube
When they confront him after he leaves, he pretends to be ill.
Sharing that the collectors had called the police on him, he escapes them by catching another bullet train.
Source: YouTube
A third part of the video showed Fidias entering a hotel and pretending to be a guest to receive free breakfast.
“I just have access to a five-star Japanese buffet,” he said. “We’re leaving the hotel without getting caught and without any problem.”
Meanwhile, the other three YouTubers continue their journey by hitchhiking and asking locals for favours to get them to their next destination.
Fidias has since received a significant amount of backlash in the comments of his video.
Many netizens called the YouTubers out for disrespecting Japan with the blatant flouting of the law.
Source: YouTube
Some said they did not want tourists like them visiting Japan, as it is one of the safest countries in the world.
Source: YouTube
A few netizens went so far as to label the YouTubers as “criminals.”
The South China Morning Post reports that regional train operator JR Kyushu addressed the incident, stating that they were reviewing the footage before determining if they should contact the police.
“We are aware of the case and investigating facts around it,” a spokesman stated.
Responding to the criticism, Fidias posted an apology in the video’s comments.
Source: YouTube
“I apologise to the Japanese people if we made them feel bad,” he said. “That was not our goal!”
“From now on, I am going to be doing more research on the cultures we go to and try to prevent this from happening again,” Fidias added.
Of course, this isn’t the only viral incident of people running afoul of the law in Japan this year.
Earlier this year, a boy licked a soy sauce bottle in a Sushiro outlet in the country, resulting in the restaurant suing him.
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Featured image adapted from Fidias on YouTube.
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