With the borders finally open, foreigners arriving in Japan are noticing some things here are different.

Dining out is a bargain, thanks to relatively low inflation and the weak yen. Once-familiar areas are now unrecognizable thanks to a building boom. And mask-wearing is still almost ubiquitous, even outdoors.

The Japanese public still prefers to mask up, despite increased prodding from the government to let their guard down a little. For many visitors from the West, for whom masks have become a long-abandoned battleground in the culture wars, it can be slightly disorientating.