Vehicular traffic here is like that in Britain and a few other countries: keep to the left. Not a big deal really, especially since I get everywhere by foot. You'd think the adjustment needed would be limited to crossing the street while being sure to check in the correct direction.
But foot traffic is actually more complicated than driving!
At least cars are ALWAYS on the left. Foot traffic, on the other hand, is on the left. Except for when it's on the right.
I've heard that in Kansai (western Japan / Osaka region), foot traffic is actually on the right, just like in the US. Here in Kanto (eastern Japan / Tokyo region), theoretically it's on the left. But maybe the fact that people from all around have settled in Tokyo explains why it's such a mix.
Most of the time I'm walking down the sidewalk, people stay left. But sometimes, it's the opposite. So you don't dare not watch where you're going, or you could walk right into someone! (This happens especially on rainy days when everyone has their heads ducked under umbrellas.)
Riding escalators, the standers are always to the left and the walkers are always to the right. Hey, some consistency! But then there's the orientation of the escalator itself. Theoretically the up/down pairs would be oriented such that traffic flow keeps left. But it's totally random. In fact, just within my commute there are a minimum of 4 escalators (assuming I don't choose to go up or down a floor just for different scenery). Half are oriented such that traffic flows left; half are oriented such that traffic flows right. Why?
This certainly isn't a huge deal, but certainly is one of those little observations that makes me shake my head and laugh. And a warning - if you're here in Japan as a pedestrian, don't trust in all those "keep left" signs; they're not 100%!
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