One of the big problems of commuting by public transport, is the cellular phone. We've grown accustomed to being able to stay in touch with eachother, no matter where we go.
While this comes in handy at some moments, on other points, it really becomes a nuisance.
In Japan, it is custom to switch your mobile phone to silent mode (or off, when you're near a courtesy seat for elderly or disabled people), and to refrain from talking over the phone while travelling by train. You are constantly reminded of that rule by numerous signs and messages over the train's PA system, by the way.
But indeed; almost every Japanese person while sitting next to or near me which received a phone call, clearly apologizes to the caller, and asks him or her to call back later because the receiver is on a train.
Added bonus; unlike Holland, Japanese people don't spend their money on expensive and annoying ringtones, either.
There are no such rules in Holland (other than common sense, but common sense is not that common, unfortunately), so the Dutch Railway thought it would be approriate to assign certain train cars as silent cars, and marking them as such, by applying stickers and frost foil on the windows, clearly denoting the car as a silent one.
This guy apparently didn't care:
Because of the light, you can't really make out the Silence-sign on the top window, but it's there.
When I asked him whether he was enjoying the silence to make several phone calls, he kind of ignored me. A pity, really.
Cheers, K.