
Japanese Change Trays - lermontov
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/05/23/reference/change-trays/#.VW8ybJ-po0t
======
danbruc
They are also in use in Germany and it never occurred to me that they may not
be used all over the world. They are called [Zahl|Wechselgeld][teller|schale]
[1] which translates to [paying|change] [plate|bowl]. They can not be found in
every shop but probably in the majority. Some people use them, some don't. And
it is more common to present the change in them than the payment. The obvious
purpose is of course to easily be able to see that the amount is correct while
avoiding escaping coins. They also often show ads, nowadays on displays. And
nobody moves them around in Germany, they just sit on top of the counter.

[1]
[http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zahlteller](http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zahlteller)

~~~
lucb1e
I live in the Netherlands, only a few kilometers from Germany, but I've never
seen any. Is it everywhere in Germany, or only certain regions?

The only similar thing I've ever seen is at things like amusement parks or
where ferry tickets are sold: the cashier is behind glass and talks to you
through a microphone (and you to them). Exchange of tickets and money goes
through a rotating tray sort of thing that is below the glass and is moved by
the person behind the glass. I find it very impersonal and not a nice way of
doing business. Surely we can talk like normal human beings?

Of course that is different from change trays, there is no glass or
microphones involved there, but it's the closest thing I can think of.

As an aside, I can see why it might be more common in Germany than in the
Netherlands: you guys pay almost always by cash (taking forever when the
cashier goes "do you perhaps have 23 cents with that?" to make the change
round) whereas here bank card, and especially the quick wireless option is
more and more prevalent.

~~~
danbruc
I think it is not a local thing but I never really paid attention. Try gas
stations or small lottery or tobacco stores, they tend to have the ones with
displays showing the jackpot sum or cigarette ads. On the other hand you
usually won't see them say in super markets with cash registers with conveyor
belts. But even there is, at least sometimes, a small pit build right into one
of the surfaces. Solutions similar to the one in the amusement park are also
used at gas stations during the night hours, mainly at gas stations with low
customer frequency.

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ingsoc79
Pro tip: if you want to review the correct pronunciation of the word "gai-
jin," skip the tray and hand your cash directly to the clerk.

~~~
unsignedint
They may call you gaijin, but you get perks for being one. I look completely
like Japanese (well, I was born there; but I lived in the States long enough,
and I am gaijin by my definition, but it's not by theirs) -- so when I travel
to Japan, I'd naturally hand money to clerk, either he/she would either give
me this funny looks, or told politely (occasionally frustrated) to place that
money on the tray.

So sometimes I get the worst of the both status there...

~~~
pyre
I knew of a couple that went to Japan where the gaijin (her white husband)
spoke more Japanese than she did (100% Japanese Canadian). It apparently
confused quite a number of people, because they all expect her to start
speaking Japanese.

~~~
timr
I've experienced the opposite -- if I go to Europe, I look like everyone else,
and the most likely outcome when they discover that I don't speak their
language is irritation.

Whenever I go to Asia, I'm treated like a novelty if I speak even a few words.

~~~
unsignedint
The way I feel it works is, if their perception is that you are not one of
them you basically get extra credit for that, but if they don't see you that
way, then you basically get your points deducted for each of "mistakes" you
make.

This really hurts me sometimes, because I know this and put so much effort try
to fit in, but I basically get no praise for that, instead, I get nitpicked
for noncompliances.

In a case of some individuals like hotel clerks, that I actually spent some
time talking, seeing multiple times a day, they totally understand my
situation and didn't give me hard time. (And it was tiny hotel, that didn't
really caters to foreigner, so it not that the they were used to it -- funny
side story is a few year after that -- perhaps when their son took over the
business, they've completely changed to cater to foreigners instead :-) )

~~~
timr
Yep. And this has a downside -- expats in Asia tend to complain about "never
fitting in" \-- but it comes with a bonus dose of forgiveness for all sorts of
social problems that the locals have to worry about.

But it's also true that people in the service industry are gruff no matter
where you go. It's hard to be pre-school-polite to hundreds of illiterate
adults a day.

------
minikomi
Lived in Japan for 8 years and have worked part time in cafes .. The training
I got was to leave the money in the tray until you confer the change to the
customer. It prevents things like "hang on! I gave you 5000 not 1000!" \- the
money paid stays in plain sight until the transaction is complete. Shop staff
almost never put the money away before you get your change.

~~~
fenomas
I always assumed this was the main reason the trays are used. This, and the
fact that either party can easily tip the tray into their hand to gather
change, rather than picking up coins one by one or scooping them off the edge
of the table.

Whenever Japan comes up people assume some matter of politeness is involved,
but a lot of times the explanation is much simpler.

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jambor3
There is a much older custom that seems so similar it is hard to imagine that
it is not related. When passing an item to someone - say a cup to a house
guest - one is traditionally never supposed to hand the item directly to the
other person - i.e. never directly from hand to hand. Typically this meant
placing the item on a tray (お盆) and offering the item on the tray to the
person (or at least placing the item in front of the person for them to pick
up). You can see examples of this today in, for example, formal Shinto
ceremonies a ceremonial square tray is often used (折敷) or frankly at any fancy
kaiseki restaurant.

I'm not sure about the origin of the custom, but perhaps the action of taking
something out of someone's hand feels too close to taking it forcefully from
them - i.e. for the same reason it is considered impolite for two people to
hold the same piece of food by chopstick (for example, if passing food between
people from chopstick to chopstick).

~~~
DanBC
> I'm not sure about the origin of the custom, but perhaps the action of
> taking something out of someone's hand feels too close to taking it
> forcefully from them - i.e. for the same reason it is considered impolite
> for two people to hold the same piece of food by chopstick (for example, if
> passing food between people from chopstick to chopstick).

Isn't the chopstick thing related to funeral rituals?

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_funeral](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_funeral)

> The relatives pick the bones out of the ashes and transfer them to the urn
> using large chopsticks or metal picks, two relatives sometimes holding the
> same bone at the same time with their chopsticks (or, according to some
> sources, passing the bones from chopsticks to chopsticks). Known as kotsuage
> (骨揚げ?), this is the only time in Japan when it is proper for two people to
> hold the same item at the same time with chopsticks. At all other times,
> holding anything with chopsticks by two people at the same time, or passing
> an item from chopsticks to chopsticks, will remind all bystanders of the
> funeral of a close relative and is considered to be a major social faux pas.

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VLM
Think about the protocol in CS terms...

Hand to hand western style is 1:1 blocking I/O, both the payer and recipient
must be simultaneously active at the same moment.

At a restaurant/bar this tray is the worlds smallest FIFO and you put a packet
into the packet buffer at your convenience and the service worker clears the
buffer at their convenience, and this protocol is considered so polite that
even at convenience stores when you're in a line you still use the FIFO buffer
and pretend you're both not in a hurry and have plenty of time for proper,
measured, unhurried service, even when you don't actually have the time. Its
impolite to force a two concurrent processes to deadlock waiting a simple
packet buffer transfer, and even if they do, they like to pretend its not
happening.

If the trays looked nicer it would have been an obvious conspicuous
consumption opportunity. The cheap store has injection molded plastic; we have
marble trays; they have antique engraved ebony.

I wonder how or if they handle what CS would call transaction locks, to make
sure the other process doesn't grab the buffer to empty it while the filler is
still shoveling in small change. Not having been to Japan yet, I'm guessing
the tray moves and at least subtly you somehow indicate you're done filling
the bucket before the service worker starts emptying it.

I had another model based on traditional innumeracy, if traditionally payers
were innumerate you shovel coins onto the bucket until the service worker sees
enough and takes away the bucket. I find this model theoretically possible to
implement although highly unlikely in practice.

~~~
ohitsdom
Eh, that's a stretch. You can call the tray asynchronous if you want, but you
still have to wait for it to return.

~~~
VLM
I love to stretch... good for the brain. Its a concurrency design pattern,
never, never ever, create an opportunity for complicated deadlocks at the
protocol or implementation layer when you can just toss down a boring simple
well understood and easy to debug FIFO/buffer. There are times and places
where complication is needed in programming, but paying your sushi bill isn't
it. Or the meta design pattern of always make it as simple as possible and not
a bit too simple.

Even if this is total space cadet time, I like thinking about concurrency
issues. (edited to fix horrible phrasing: I like to look at Japanese currency
trays thru concurrency tinted sunglasses, just because its fun, even if the
Japanese themselves don't like those sunglasses, also its funny to talk about
currency and concurrency at the same time)

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beloch
Question: Is money considered "dirty" in Japan?

In North America, women keep bills and coins in their purses next to used
tissues, and studies have shown that men's wallets have an even higher
concentration of bacteria than women's purses. We sit on and, on hot days,
sweat on our money all day. Let's face it, the stuff is pretty disgusting.
However, if somebody hands you a twenty, your first reaction is usually not,
"Oh gross, now I need to wash my hands".

In terms of hygiene, it makes sense for waiters to collect currency on trays
so they don't have to wash their hands after every bill is settled (assuming
it's a different person's job to take the cash off the tray and put it in the
till). Could this be the reason the practice started? The connection between
disease and microbes would have existed around the time these trays appeared,
so it's possible a crusading doctor or someone similar convinced vendors to
use these trays.

~~~
shinymark
I'm not sure. One thing I can say from experience though is that bills in
Japan are newer and cleaner than they are in the US. My impression is that it
would be unthinkable in Japan to write on a bill with a pen or to crumple it
up. Also, I'd guess bills that start to get worn are taken out of circulation
much earlier.

Compare that to the US where I've seen a supermarket teller draw a line with a
pen across a bill after accepting it (why?) or people pulling wadded cash
balls out of their pockets to pay for a soda at a convenience store.

I don't know what accounts for the difference but I did like the typically
crisp and new bills in Japan.

~~~
mattlong
To answer your question, it was likely a counterfeit detecting pen[0] that
only leaves a visible mark on counterfeit notes. I generally only see them
used on $100 bills; rarely on anything smaller.

[0]:
[http://money.howstuffworks.com/question212.htm](http://money.howstuffworks.com/question212.htm)

~~~
shinymark
Interesting! Thank you for the link.

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donatj
I was with my friend at a bar in Osaka, and we'd had a few. The waiter came
over and set down a circular change tray. I being a little intoxicated assumed
he wanted me to use a coaster, so I picked up my glass and set it on it. He
was not amused by this and shot me a VERY stern look - and then it clicked. We
left soon after, quite embarrassed.

~~~
andoofthewoods
hah, no need to be embarrassed, that was probably the ONLY way you'd learn
about the custom.

~~~
donatj
We'd been in Japan for almost a week at this point, so we'd seen it all over
the place and knew full well about the practice. The tray was just usually a
rectangle as is the one in the article.

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peterwwillis
Restaurants in the US use small trays to confer bills and money all the time.
What makes this Japan-specific?

~~~
ZanderEarth32
These are used everywhere in Japan, not just restaurants. At a convenience
store, department store, the museum, train station, etc.

I've never seen them outside of a restaurant in the states.

~~~
Yizahi
But what is the point of using a movable tray in a shop or museum and so on,
where employee has a cash or cash machine right next to it? And if the tray is
just a place to put cash before other person takes it - such trays are used
everywhere in the world.

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mml
Department stores in the U.S. (At least in Minneapolis) used to ferry payment
via baskets on wires from the clerk up to an accounting room where the money
was counted, change made, and delivered back to the customer via the same
contraption.

~~~
ripter
Interesting, do you have a source so I could learn more?

~~~
philk10
Try the Cash Railway Website -
[http://www.cashrailway.co.uk/index.htm](http://www.cashrailway.co.uk/index.htm)

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devindotcom
Is it possible that it could be related to change needing to be weighed to be
determined legitimate, or simply as a way of measuring the amount? (like
paying with gold dust in the Yukon or what have you)

Beyond that I can see it being a result of extreme cultural stratification, as
the article touches on - that it would be seen as demeaning for a higher-class
person to put money directly into the lower-class person's hand.

It's quite interesting that no one has any clear idea! I love little mysteries
like this.

~~~
ZanderEarth32
Weighed as in with a scale? Possibly historically this might have been a
concern or a mechanism to check for counterfeits, but currently the change and
bills are placed in the same, non-measured, tray. It's just a generic plastic
tray, and it varies from shop to shop.

~~~
digi_owl
Customs have this odd thing about living on way beyond its practical use.

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tomjakubowski
Phillipe the Original in downtown Los Angeles has used these as long as I can
remember. Phillipe is an old school sandwich place (they claim to have
invented the "French dip"), not a Japanese establishment. I wonder now why
they're using them: I had mistakenly assumed it was some pre-WWII Western
custom that they kept alive for that authentic vintage feel.

~~~
pyvpx
if you watch closely (or really, at all...) the person serving you food
doesn't touch the money. the tray is to take your payment and change between
you and the central cashier.

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patja
This makes me think I should pick one of these up for my daughter to carry
around. She can't rotate her hands to a palm-up position, which causes no end
of hassle and confusion when getting change from retail transactions.

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ernie_
Wait, what countries don't use these? At least in Canada every restaurant that
isn't fast-food is going to give you the receipt and change on a tray or in a
leather booklet.

~~~
deciplex
How about at the counter of a 7-11?

~~~
lovemenot
Funnily enough I was just at a 7-11 in Tokyo about 30 minutes ago, just as you
were writing this comment, and before I had read this thread. I happened to
notice that such a tray was not in use there, which felt more efficient. Of
course 7-11 is mostly a franchise business, so it may the store owner's
decision.

~~~
deciplex
Which one? I think it is more likely you just missed it. I've never noticed a
convenience store without one, though now I guess I will be looking out for
it.

~~~
lovemenot
Just north from Suidobashi station, Mita line, North exit. The till nearest
the door. It was a male Japanese cashier (unusual at that store) who seemed
particularly dynamic. Possibly a management trainee.

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hasenj
When I was in Japan, I would always put the money in the tray, but the cashier
would always return directly to my hand. I didn't understand why.

~~~
lovemenot
When this has happened to me ( rarely ) I sometimes recall feeling a slight
tickle. Such as a palm reader might use to promote trade.

~~~
jeemusu
I've found the cashiers will often stroke the bottom of your hand when placing
change directly in your palm. Feels very reassuring.

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Yizahi
"Instead of handing your payment to the clerk, or setting it on the counter by
the cash register, here you are generally expected to put your payment into a
tray that is presented expressly for the purpose. The clerk takes it away and
returns it with your change."

Either I'm missing something from the context or author is mistaken. Trays and
boxes in multiple forms and sizes are used everywhere in restaurants in Europe
and ex-USSR countries. In banks and similar facilities people usually hand
over cash via some special trays built in the counter because of the glass
separating customer and clerk.

In fact I don't remember a single restaurant in 20 or so countries where I
could go to the counter pay there directly or leave cash on the counter. In
every case when I tried this (I wanted to speed up things) I was told to go
and wait for the waiter, who will bring a tray where I will put cash or card
(in cases when card terminal in not wireless).

~~~
drostie
I think you're confusing things a little: we're not talking about restaurants
per se here.

I don't know whereabouts in Europe you are, but you have to imagine a store
like H&M where you generally place goods on a countertop to purchase them. In
Japan, those countertops usually have a nondescript tray also lying on them,
and it is considered impolite to hand your payment directly to the cashier--
instead, while putting down all of your goods for purchase, you simultaneously
put your payment into the tray.

There are of course restaurants where they'll hand you a bill and you bring it
up to the counter -- at least in the US. For example, in the Kansas City,
Missouri region you'll see this both in the sit-down tex-mex chain-restaurant
El Maguey as well as smaller sit-down cafes (the one that's coming to mind is
City Diner, which is by the River Market). But that's not quite what we're
talking about here.

------
smegel
> “It’s an interesting question,” the curator I spoke to allowed

I wonder if non native English speakers find this expression (or the use of
"allowed") confusing.

------
ZanderEarth32
Was just in Japan and encountered these everywhere. We knew to use them from
our research prior to the trip. Initially I was under the impression it was to
prevent the spread of germs, but that didn't really line up because the money
comes into contact with the cashier's hand regardless if the tray is used or
not. I guess it could help reduce the amount of small hand-to-hand contact
that is sometimes experienced when you place money in someones hand directly.

It was easier for the cashier to glance at the amount we had placed in the
tray and help us count out the correct amount of money for our first few days
there while trying to get accustomed to the types of currency.

~~~
twblalock
It also prevents coins being dropped while passed from hand to hand. In a
county with coins up to about the $5 equivalent, that's pretty useful.

~~~
gergles
Just FYI there's been a huge devaluation of the yen/strengthening of the
dollar. ¥500=$4.

------
_mgr
Currently travelling through Japan for the first time. They ask if you have
now finished placing the cash that you wish to pay with. This means I have
been able to put notes in the tray and then shuffle through my coins
attempting to get rid of as many 5Y and 1Y coins as I can. Cash in such a
modern technology forward country is still weird. I have already broken my
wallet due to the over use of the coin pouch. Prior to coming here it had
never been used. New Zealand, where I am from adopted Eftpos over 25 years
ago. We are already chip and pin, and pay wave has found its way into most POS
areas. Japan is behind here but in a way I find to be very enjoyable.

~~~
waynedrops
Any chance you will be in Sendai? Ill buy you a beer :)

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timboisvert
The difference between the west and Japan in regard to change trays is that in
the west (US, Canada, Europe, etc.) they're often available in a small subset
of cash payment scenarios, but in Japan they're always available in every cash
payment scenario. Not to mention that even when they are available in the
west, they're rarely used, but in Japan they're always used. I've lived in the
US, Spain, and Japan for considerable periods of time, and the level to which
they're available and customarily used in Japan is what makes them such a
noteworthy use case.

------
paulsutter
In Japan, anytime you hand someone cash in personal life it's rude not to put
it in an envelope. Examples includes gifts or paying your Japanese teacher.

The tray avoids passing cash hand to hand. 20 years ago, clerks (or taxi
drivers) would be visibly surprised and slightly shocked if you tried to hand
them cash. But that's relaxed a lot now. Tourists hand cash to clerks and the
reaction is slight if at all. Taxi drivers often exchange cash hand to hand.
It's still more polite to use the tray but less strict.

------
obel1x
In the bar I used to work in we used to give the change to customers on a tray
to prompt the customer to give us a tip. So I always assume that's why they
are being used.

~~~
TorKlingberg
Japan though, has almost no tipping culture.

~~~
JoeAltmaier
But, every sushi bar has a tip jar? Or only in America

~~~
Flammy
Tipping, in various situations, is definitely a cultural thing which easily
changes - even from the US to Europe. Guidebooks almost universally will tell
you about what is expected. Different places handle different situations
differently as well, such as tipping in a restaurant, to a bellhop, or to a
taxi.

Similarly bargaining is diverse as well. You may not think of it, but in the
US you bargain back and forth for big ticket items (cars, houses) but not
little things. In many east Asian countries it is the opposite, you bargain
with street salesmen but not for a motorcycle or car.

------
seanccox
These are common in Turkey and generally used in both sides of a transaction.
I saw them in Syria as well (10 years ago). There, it seemed that part of the
purpose was to mitigate "accidental" physical contact between men and women.
Several women I knew there complained about guys getting fresh (touching their
fingers or hands) during transactions. The tray prevented this. In Turkey
though, I think it is more for transparency in the transaction.

------
microcolonel
We have these in Canada, I'm pretty sure I've used these in Pennsylvania and
Michigan as well, not sure where these aren't used actually.

~~~
ImprovedSilence
Yeah, when I was a kid I remember them being pretty common in restaurant/diner
type places. (I suppose more rural type places as well) Now that credit cards
are a pretty prevalent payment method, and a lot of the older establishments
have gone by the wayside, I don't see them as much. Interesting you should
mention Pennsylvania, that's where I'm grew up. I wonder if they weren't as
ubiquitous as I had assumed...

------
adolph
_And as one shopkeeper explained it, offering change in a tray feels more
polite than simply placing money in a customer’s hand._

See also English Victorian change packets:

[http://boingboing.net/2012/04/30/victorian-change-packets-
li...](http://boingboing.net/2012/04/30/victorian-change-packets-litt.html)

------
ChrisArchitect
come on, this is common in EU..Germany etc, too

~~~
TillE
Where have you seen this? I've lived in Berlin for six years and I have
literally never encountered anything like it.

~~~
Symbiote
I've seen them everywhere I've visited in Germany. An image search came up
with this¹, which says they're called "Zahlteller" (counting plates).

1: [http://www.schnitzelbahn.com/homepage/2010/11/25/the-evil-
za...](http://www.schnitzelbahn.com/homepage/2010/11/25/the-evil-
zahlteller.html) (scroll down a bit)

~~~
TillE
Oh ok. Yes, some places put your change in a tray (which I've seen in the US
too), but you still hand money directly to them. It's really not the same
thing that's discussed in the article.

~~~
ChrisArchitect
right, I guess it's a bit more 'both ways' in Japan, maybe because of the
aversion to phyiscal contact and love of politeness....but same thing
basically. I recall seeing them in Berlin/DE most often at train station
cafes/Bäckerei etc

------
ojbyrne
I remember these being common in Canada at least as late as the mid-1980s.
Usually branded with a credit card logo.

~~~
err4nt
I think I know what youre speaking of, my recollection growing up in the 90s
was that the bill at a restaurant would always arrive on a tray, and then any
change, mints, customer receipt, change would be returned on the same tray
after payment was made.

Now with debit cards (interac, not mastercard) being the norm its standard to
get the bill and then have them bring over a wireless debit machine (and has
been that way for at least 10+ years)

------
mml
Unrelated, but interesting custom: Koreans (possibly others of the Asian
persuasion) generally will hand you change with both hands (possibly with a
small bow), it's considered rude to hand cash with only one hand. No idea why.

------
byuu
Genuinely curious now ... if the trays are meant to avoid hand contact, how do
things work in drive-thrus there?

Fairly common to get some level of hand-contact there when passing around
money, credit cards or food bags.

~~~
hudibras
Hmm, good question. Part of the answer is that drive-thrus are very rare in
Japan. But there's at least one MacDonald's in the city where I live that has
a drive-thru, but I've never noticed what they do.

Pizza delivery guys will just pull out your change from a coin purse, though.

Edit: Just remembered that sometimes toll collectors on the highways use them,
but not 100% of them, so there's that.

------
tragomaskhalos
My favourite part of this article was the description of an entirely trust-
based retail economy that has now - sadly but inevitably - vanished.

------
kbart
I thought money trays were ubiquitous all over the world. Any examples where
they are _not_ widely used?

~~~
tonylemesmer
not common in the UK

