Random questions

Hello again,
Have encountered some more questions on my trip in Japan.

I notice that train conductors and station staff point on stuff, train, timetable or something when the train is ready to leave I suppose or is leaving. Why is this?

I also notice there is a train conductor looking out of the rear coach window when the train is leaving. Is there any explanation for this?

Then I have encountered at the big budda hall in Nara (Todaji temple?) they sold a stone buddha of "jizen" stone if I recall it correctly. I have tried to find info on this stone but I might have gotten the name of it wrong. Is it any specific material of some sort?

I was also wondering if there might be a book or guide or something for the amulets and different things like ema, etc. at the shrines and temples. They are in Japanese (except for at Todaji where they had English signs) so it is quite hard to get a hang of it.

There are a lot of ravens in Japan too I have noticed. I am just curious if they are considered bad or good or something like that by the Japanese people. They are like everywhere, I see many in the parks and so..

Thanks in advance!

@Jojo

I notice that train conductors and station staff point on stuff, train, timetable or something when the train is ready to leave I suppose or is leaving. Why is this?

It's called "Pointing and calling", and is a way to reinforce everyday safety checks. Very common in Japan.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pointing_and_calling

I also notice there is a train conductor looking out of the rear coach window when the train is leaving. Is there any explanation for this?

It's to watch out for the safety of people on the platform - making sure that no one is trapped in a door or slips into the gap between the platform and the moving train.

@Jojo

There are a lot of ravens in Japan too I have noticed. I am just curious if they are considered bad or good or something like that by the Japanese people. They are like everywhere, I see many in the parks and so..

They are crows, and they are generally considered a pest, as they make a mess on streets and buildings with their droppings, tear open rubbish bags looking for food scraps, and actually attack people if they have a nest nearby.

Hi!(^-^)/

As Danny said, Žw�·Šm”F(shisa-kakunin; pointing check) or Žw�·ŒÄ�Ì(shisa-kosyou; pointing and calling) is a way for prevention of human errors, to give cleary attention.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syLy13I092s&t=23s

If it's Ž©‘R�Î that be able to read as "jizen-seki", curious to say, it's pronounced "jinen-seki" and means "unprocessed stone", "stone in the rough" or something.

English signs... as foreign visitors increase, maybe.
But in some case, in some place, it's a bit unsuitable for the religious/traditional atmosphere or something, I think?
Because it's not there in ancient times.

ƒJƒ‰ƒX(karasu; crow) is, if anything, disliked and sometimes considered a bird of ill omen.
But they are very clever...

Wow, they are certainly having high Security in this country. Thanks for the answer :)

Are they really crows? They look so huge compared to crows at home. Godzilla syndrome?

I believe the birds are these "jungle crows":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jungle_Crow

Personally, though, I'm with you: it would be more culturally accurate to call them ravens, even if scientifically they are crows. It's like calling uguisu the "Japanese bush warbler." "Japanese nightingale" is not scientifically accurate, but more much appropriate culturally.

Another thing the train conductors are checking for is things (bags, strollers, people!) stuck in the doors- I saw a woman start running along the platform at Shinjuku recently because her bag had got stuck in the door as she got off the train. Luckily someone pushed the emergency stop button on the platform and I assume the conductor informed the driver what was happening- that's a major part of their job.

If you are used to Japanese crows then the ones you see overseas look too small to be crows- it's just a matter of perspective! In some parks you have to be careful because they can carry off a plastic bag with sandwiches or toys in it quite easily, have seen it happen!

Speaking of the train conductors, we had a terrible accident in the subway many years ago. New subway trains doors made it hard if you got stuck with something thin like clothing in the door it would be hard to get it out. An old man got stuck with his jacket and was dragged by the train into a wall and killed.

Those emergency buttons have I seen on many places, but what do they actually do? Will it make the train automatically stop or just a signal to the driver?

They should put up (more) safety barriers like the ones in Fukuoka on busy subway stations. Maybe also on the shinkansen planforms?

From what I've gathered, those buttons would stop all the trains in the area of the station. I've never experienced one being pressed.

All I know is that it wouldn't take but a minute for them to be "tested" as a prank here in the States.

God lord, what`s so fun in that? Prankstopping trains. Bad luck if the trainplatform was full of gangsters or anything...

Anyone knows about this buddha of "jizen" (?) stone by the way? Sorry if I bump it.