A friend of mine who's lived in Japan for...oh dear, at least 14 years now made an interesting point a while back. In a lot of areas of Japan, especially rural ones, you might be the very first foreigner that the locals, especially kids, ever meet. He makes sure, as a giant, lumbering blond man, to be friendly and always smiles at the children because if he makes a bad impression, they might hold a negative image of foreigners for the rest of their lives. That's quite a bit of pressure! Any time you travel overseas, you're going up against a mountain of stereotypes.

It kinda made me feel a little guilty for the temptation to make silly faces and noises at staring children when I was in Japan. At least I never gave in to that impulse! Haha.