Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post your trip reports, travel experiences, and updates abroad. Or your expat story if you already live overseas. Note: To post photos and images, insert the image URL between the tags Image after uploading them to a third party site.
Devon
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by Devon »

What a wonderful trip report - interesting, full of insights and the pictures really helped tell the tale.

I'm glad you have started a website, good luck, I hope you make money from it.
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by Jester »

chanta76 wrote:Traveler,

We get it . You had bad experience in Korea. What happened? Some Korean dude beat you up? Some Korean girl cheated on you? There still a growing expat population in South korea. You want to be fair about racism..how about the Russian skin heads who kill immigrants and international students in Russia. Oh Yeah..that's right it's OK for the white people to be racist but if white person experience racism from Asians that is a big NO.
What you expect Asians to white worship you PUNK!
Apology to the original thread I don't want to hijack this thread.
If you are Korean, arguing here that Koreans are in fact nice people... and don't like to fight for no reason...

...I think you just failed bigtime.

Naw, I cannot imagine Koreans in Korea being this touchy. You must be Asian-American.
"Well actually, she's not REALLY my daughter. But she does like to call me Daddy... at certain moments..."
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Yohan
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by Yohan »

Everdred wrote: You pretty much just summed up Kamisu. And yes, I have noticed that at least out here in rural Japan, the local men are slaves to their vices - smoking, drinking, gambling, prostitutes, bingeing on video games, etc. In theory, I don't have anything against these things, but they should be done in extreme moderation. That said, it seems like the men here have trouble controlling their hedonistic impulses. This definitely hit me by surprise, as this is not quite how I had imagined Japanese men to be. And even though Kamisu is a relatively small town/city, there are countless casinos/pachinko parlors all over the place out here. And they're filled to the brim with customers 24/7...
Nice to read that there is another member of this forum living now in Japan.

Unfortunately you are living really in a corner of Japan, which is offering more or less nothing. Places near a fishing port are really the worst location for a foreigner. I also noticed your income is rather low. Not enough for a life with some fun, Japan is not so cheap and places to enjoy are pretty far away from a fishing/industrial area.

And yes, many Japanese men in such isolated places are like that, and in Japan in general it is much easier to approach women as a foreign man than to start a friendly relationship with Japanese men. Japanese men are often totally single-sided, biased, nothing in his brain except working and after work to play golf or gambling and drinking etc. Many Japanese never have been outside of Japan and have no idea about the world around them.

To settle down in Japan and to feel comfortably takes years, as you have to arrange everything slowly by yourself. Some few stay like myself, but many give up and move on - Japan is not a place for immigrants - this is for sure.

About myself, I could arrange my way of life as I managed to get a working contract from Europe with excellent conditions regarding payment and vacation.
House free from my late parents-in-law, own children grown up, so we have now a large home (old house however) for free - and I am only a few miles away from Tokyo central area, no problem with my motorcycle. I was also lucky with wife and relatives around her. No problems, since over 30 years.

But of course many who are entering Japan give up and leave again, understandable.
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by The_Adventurer »

Everdred. It looks like you replied to many of my comments on your Ness site, but they are invisible to me. If I click on the link, which shows "latest comments" by you, I go to the thread and there is only my comment. Are they showing up for you? Anyone else?
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by Yohan »

Traveler wrote:I've noticed that people who have experienced living in Korea first generally have good things to say about Japan. I guess Korea makes Japan look good in contrast. At least Japanese people leave you alone.
.....
"Is it any better in Japan?
This is a difficult question, it depends not only on SK and Japan, but also about who you are, what is your intention visiting both countries.
I also think, good language knowledge in both spoken and written plays an important part if you feel comfortable as an European in Japan or South Korea.

I am of course somewhat biased with Japanese family, living in Tokyo since more than 3 decades. For me Japan is better than Europe, but others might disagree.

I never had any problem visiting SK, and all people I met there were very kind and patient towards me. However I was always there as a tourist only.
It is not the same if you are a tourist or an employee.

In general I think Japan is the better choice for the Western foreigner, as the country is larger and the density of population is lower - despite both countries are clearly overpopulated, still there is more open space in Japan compared to tiny South Korea. I found climate in Tokyo better than in Seoul, by far not so cold during winter time. Also better chances for good employment as a foreigner. There is more business going on here in Japan.

Japanese people are however not so much communicative with foreigners, especially men. It is not easy to find friends in Japan. Daily life after work might be boring especially if you are out of the large cities and earn only an average income and are not good in Japanese.

Japanese are acting somewhat calm while many Koreans are getting angry easily etc. Somewhat the life in Japan is rather tolerant and more polite, compared to South Korea where people often fighting for minor issues at home, at the work place and even in public.

There is however no good answer to the question if nowadays South Korea is better than Japan or not for a Western foreigner - you have to try both of them if you want to stay longer and are looking for employment.

If you come only as a tourist, both are fine... Dating women? Well, South Korea and Japan are not Thailand or Philippines. Do not expect too much, especially if you are in a hurry.
The_Adventurer
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by The_Adventurer »

There other issues. When I lived in Korea, the pace of life was just TOO FAST. I have to wonder if all that hurried, frantic, everything must be done yesterday, lifestyle contributes to the explosive tempers and road rage we see there. It must have an effect on the visiting foreigner, especially after some time.

If one is around calm, non confrontational people, like in Japan, it makes it easier to go with the flow, and be calm and non confrontational. I like a peaceful life and environment, with peaceful people to be around. I like a slower pace of life, which is likely why I was happier in the Philippines. If there are phrases I can't stand, it's people yelling "bali, bali!" or "kuaidian!" ( 快点!) I don't remember experiencing any such thing in Japan.
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Yohan
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by Yohan »

The_Adventurer wrote: I don't remember experiencing any such thing in Japan.
I agree with you.

In Japan there are indeed government related programs to keep people calm. Many Japanese are still unwilling to follow such advice, but the younger generation is already thinking differently.

For example there is the idea since more than 10 years to add to every month one additional banking holiday to force people to rest. Now there are already 11 banking holidays of this kind and this year for the first time the 11. August will be added.

There are programs to ask elderly retired people to move out to not so crowded smaller urban areas (cities without any international connection) away from the large overpopulated cities like Tokyo (now all together with the bed-town around already 38 million people).

There are programs to act strongly against immigration and to employ local elderly people or women instead of immigrants as part-timer, so the population in Japan will decline. We really need more space and cheaper housing, and this is only possible with less people.

However South Korea is in a more difficult position, no question about that. It's also about the unclear North-South Korea position. These permanent war-games make local people feeling uncomfortable. Nobody within the government really cares about the ordinary people in Korea.

It is true, everybody is hasty in South Korea, not only because of their cultural background and typical behavior, but because of longer working hours and less pay compared to Japan, there is a shortage of rural area where ordinary Koreans could escape for a rest, it is said, that rich Korean family members are often arrogant and abusive to their staff and ignorant to ordinary Koreans. (as a good recent example see the Ms. Nuts of the Korean Airlines).

In Japan such families show clearly up with better behavior. They always try to avoid confrontation, Japanese rich people often prefer anonymity, try to marry their daughters off to other rich families but do not offer them positions in their own companies, their behavior towards the public is somehow better etc.

It's not really always about ordinary Japanese and Korean people themselves. It's about their political and economic organization too. Japan is functioning somehow better than South Korea.
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by zboy1 »

Haha...yeah, I guess Koreans are 'hot-tempered' as many suggested here. I think it's somewhat true--as Koreans tend to be more combative and confrontational than Japanese.

Actually, as a Korean American, I was very impressed by what I saw in Japan when I visited there a few months ago. I wish, actually, both Koreans, Chinese and Anglos had the etiquette, manners, mild-temperateness and cleanliness of Japanese people. I think the world would definitely be a better world if that was the case. (As an example, see the behavior of Americans in Katrina vs. the Tsunami and Earthquake in Japan, or Anglos behavior in bars and nightclubs).
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Everdred
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by Everdred »

Mini Trip Report: Tokyo 東京

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So I made my way to Tokyo last weekend for my third weekend trip there. While I'm certainly not claiming to be a Tokyo expert or anything like that, I think I can safely say that I've formed a solid first impression of the mega city. Let me just go ahead and say right off the bat that Tokyo is one of my least favorite cities in Asia. Give me Ulaanbaatar, Dalian, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, or Taipei over Tokyo any day. I just don't get what all the hype is about. Now I don't completely hate the city, but I don't have all that much good to say about it either.

Let me start this trip report by saying what I like about Tokyo. Just like the rest of Japan, the city is mostly clean. Litter is not really an issue in the city. People are well-trained to clean up after themselves, and the city looks nice as a result. I don't see how anyone could think that's a bad thing. The city is massive, so naturally there's a lot of entertainment and fun to be had, but this is true for most big cities the world over. Things go according to plan and run smoothly in Tokyo - we're in a developed country after all. None of the infrastructural clusterfucks that plague cities in developing countries. The subway seems to always be on time and running smoothly. That's a good thing. Customer service is also generally quite good in Tokyo and Japan, but it's robotic as hell. You likely won't encounter any of the bad attitudes in customer service that seem so prevalent in Thailand and to the extreme in mainland China. And in typical Asian fashion, no tips are expected for any of this good service, either. A big thumbs up for good Japanese customer service!

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There are lots of beautiful women running all around Tokyo, but of course naturally many of them seem very self-absorbed and tend to overdue their appearance out of extreme vanity. This is very similar to Thai women who could learn a thing or two about keeping their look more simple and natural. Nonetheless, there's plenty of eye candy running all around the city to keep your eyes busy. Also lots and lots of MILFS - Japanese women seem to age quite gracefully, and even after they've had children many of them remain smoking hot and in good shape. MILFs can be found all over Asia, but I think there are the most per capita in Japan. I also saw countless very good-looking foreign women in Tokyo. This is rare in any other Asian city, where usually the local women far outshine the foreign ones. Not so in Tokyo - many of the foreign women I saw easily give Japanese women a run for their money. And finally, Tokyo and Japan in general tend to attract a more decent crowd than some of the human slime that descend upon Southeast Asia, particularly Thailand, Cambodia, and the Philippines. Foreigners and tourists in Tokyo are a much more mainstream and clean bunch.

My praise for Tokyo ends there. Now let's get into the stuff that makes me want to leave Tokyo. For starters, for a city of its size (supposedly the biggest in the entire world), it sure is quite boring. Entertainment seems to revolve around going to franchises to eat, shop, or drink. I don't see much of any cultural vibrancy when walking around the city's streets. Rather I see millions of people dressed in dark-colored office clothing walking around like zombies/ants with their heads down on their way to work. The social vibe seems stiff, uptight, and very "mind your own business." You won't see much of anybody just lollygagging around on the streets while relaxing and chatting with others with a positive grin on their face. This is very common all over Southeast Asia, but we're in Japan now where work and efficiency are of utmost importance. Just enjoying your life seems like a pretty low priority here. During my three trips to the city, I've walked around the streets of Tokyo for what must be a grand total of five full days, getting off at multiple subway stations, and every time I was just bored out of my skull almost everywhere I went. This feeling largely doesn't exist when I'm in cities like Bangkok, Phnom Penh, Ulaanbaatar, Chengdu, etc. Tokyo just feels so sanitized and dull in comparison to those cities.

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And here's the big one I don't like: Tokyo is a f***ing rip off! It seems like there are very few bargains to be had in the city, especially in regards to food and accommodation. 3,500 yen ($30) a night gets me a shared room with eleven other people in a hostel or a ridiculously small "capsule" to sleep in for the night. Reminds me a lot of Singapore and its ridiculously overpriced hotels. And food in Tokyo was a joke to me. I tried a lot of different places, and everything was sub-par and expensive. Ulaanbaatar's food scene blow's Tokyo's out of the water - giant food portions, any foreign food you can think of, true to form foreign cooking, cheap prices, etc. None of that seems to exist in Tokyo. Just like in Thailand, everything served to you in Japan is absurdly small (think US child sizes), but the huge difference between Thailand and Japan is that the food in Thailand is actually full of flavor and relatively low-priced. Most of the food I've eaten here in Japan is bland as can be and expensive. One dish is not even close to enough to fill you up, and most dishes start at around 500 yen, but the average is around 1,000 or more. Paying 2,000 yen or more for a single half-assed meal is completely normal in Tokyo. Sure, you can get meals for 1,000 yen or less, but don't expect to walk away from your meal feeling satisfied and full unless you weigh 100 pounds.

Tokyo is a city where your money keeps disappearing, but you're never quite sure where it went, and you have nothing to show for it. Literally 90% of my time in Tokyo was spent simply walking around and taking photos, yet when the weekend was up, I could see that I spent more than 15,000 yen (excluding accommodation costs). All I had was a few bland and scraggly meals, ate a few overpriced snacks from Family Mart, and I rode the subway a few times, so where did all my money go? That's roughly five times what I spent in Ulaanbaatar back in December 2015, and that city was five times more entertaining, interesting, and cultural than Tokyo.

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Another thing I dislike about Tokyo is how faceless so many of the buildings are. I walked down street after street, and all I really saw was a bunch of dull-looking buildings that I have no idea what they are there for - they're completely faceless. And here's another odd thing about Tokyo - one minute you're walking down a completely deserted road where there's not a soul in sight, and then the next you're suddenly surrounded by literally tens of thousands of people. It's as if everybody in the city goes to the exact same places, so every other place in the city is a ghost town.

Just like practically every other Asian metropolis I've been to, Tokyo is severely overcrowded. Yes, there are the "ghost streets," but everywhere else is packed to the brim. Half the time I went to eat a meal at restaurant or cafe, there would be a massively long line of people queuing up to go inside. This was true for even the most obscure of places. This American guy I know in Tokyo and I went to go eat pancakes for breakfast on a Sunday morning at some regular-looking cafe in Harajuku, and there was a VERY long line of people queuing up to get inside. The queue spiraled down the staircase leading up the cafe for several floors. We would've probably had to wait almost 2 hours just to eat some petite, overpriced pancakes. We said screw it and just left, but we could see that pretty much every other place in the vicinity was just as crowded. I encountered this phenomenon on all three of my weekend trips in Tokyo. And not just the restaurants are crowded - walking streets, parks, subway stations, convenience stores, restrooms, you name it - they're all super crowded in Tokyo. I hope you enjoy waiting in lines, because they're a normal part of life in Tokyo. I lived in super crowded Bangkok for three years, and waiting in long lines was not that common at all. And I was living in central Bangkok (Chongnonsi, Saladaeng, and National Stadium areas), the most crowded part of the city. Sure, I had to wait a bit for the BTS, MRT, or BRT during rush hour, but that was about it. None of this waiting two hours to get into a mediocre cafe nonsense.

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And here's yet another odd thing about Tokyo: the city feels very segregated by gender. I've never seen anything like this in any other city in Asia, not even in Muslim-majority Kuala Lumpur. Several times my Chinese wife and I would go in some restaurant to eat lunch (whenever we could actually get a table), and she would literally be the only woman in the entire restaurant. Every single other person in the restaurant was a businessman wearing a dark-colored suit. Hell, even I felt uncomfortable just being a white guy in casual clothes. This phenomenon happened multiple times, so by no means was it an isolated incident. When there's only one specific kind of person in a restaurant, and all of those people are wearing the exact same clothes, it makes you feel unofficially unwelcome by looking and dressing different. It makes you stand out like a sore thumb which is awkward and uncomfortable. Also, many of the carts on the subway are women-only. I have seen this in some other cities, most notably KL, but it seems odd and out of place in such a "modern" and "progressive" city like Tokyo. Apparently women being groped on the subway is a problem in Japan, so they need their own "safe spaces" from creepy men. Side story: I got groped very hard by some random young dude on the subway in Beijing back in 2014. He grabbed my crotch very aggressively three times, and I was just seconds away from punching him in the face, as that kind of behavior is fight-inducing, but then he got off at the next station. It's odd that even men can be groping victims. Creepy as hell.

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And finally, tourist attractions are dull as can be in Tokyo. I went to several of the city's main attractions - Meiji Shrine, the Imperial Palace, Senso-ji, the Shibuya crossing - and I felt completely uninterested. I suppose the Shibuya crossing was the best. At the Imperial Palace, I kept thinking I had missed something, as all I saw was a big open park with a few trees inside. What was all the fuss about? Compare that to Bangkok's Grand Palace or even Phnom Penh's Royal Palace, which are just infinitely more good-looking and interesting. The only good thing I can say about all these places in Tokyo is that they all have no entry fee. I'll try more on each subsequent visit to Tokyo, but so far, I'm very unimpressed.

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Once again, I'm not in any way claiming to know everything there is to know about Tokyo, but my first impression of the city is not a very good one. It's clearly not a suitable city for someone with my personality type or travel experience. The absurdly high cost of anything and everything, the freakishly large crowds, the bland and tiny-portioned food, the dull and depressing atmosphere, the facelessness of the architecture, and the roboticness of Japanese people in general all kill any enthusiasm I would have otherwise had for the city. And there might be culture in Tokyo, but you have to go out and find it. The culture doesn't find you like in other Asian cities. I don't like that one bit. I'll continue going to Tokyo for the remaining time I'm living in Japan, but somehow I doubt my opinion of the city is going to change. I know an American guy who's lived in Tokyo for almost five years now, and he seems to think it's a great place to live, so of course not everyone's gonna see Tokyo the way I do. Like I always say - don't take my word for it. Rather come here and find out for yourself. I've been in Asia a fairly long time, and I've seen a lot while I've been here, and Japan and Tokyo are almost at the rock bottom of my list. Sometimes I think maybe I've been in Asia too long and this is part of why Japan is so lackluster to me, but that's a false assumption. After all, I went to Ulaanbaatar for ten days last December and had a great time. The city well surpassed my expectations.

I've got a week-long trip to Kyoto and Osaka coming up during Golden Week in May, so let's see if either of those cities can throw my opinion of Japan a wrench and make me do a 180. I'm losing hope in Japan at a very rapid pace, but I'm still willing to give the country a chance. I don't hate Japan, nor do I wish any ill will on the country or its people, but so far I just can't get into this country. At least I'm getting things done, building up a huge nest egg, and learning valuable lessons while I'm here. That makes it all worthwhile.

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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by cdnFA »

I go to Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. There isn't much to really do. I think living there makes a big difference. You get to know people, find out about sports activities and clubs for people with similar interests. Just showing up in a city as a tourist is quite different.

Maybe Tokyo would still suck if you lived there, but maybe it is more a liveable city than a tourist city.

I do hear that Osaka is friendly and Tokyo is well, cold.

So lots of reports, you didn't get tentacle raped once? I guess the Cephalopods are not attracted to you.
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

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“Booty is so strong that there are dudes willing to blow themselves up for the highly unlikely possibility of booty in another dimension." -- Joe Rogan
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by zboy1 »

Thanks for the trip report, Everdred.

I guess in comparison, Tokyo may seem sterile and uninteresting, but I found it anything but. It just goes to show you--people will have different experiences in different countries--something that some people seem to have great difficulty understanding in this forum (and in others). Lol.
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

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Everdred wrote: And here's the big one I don't like: Tokyo is a f***ing rip off! It seems like there are very few bargains to be had in the city, especially in regards to food and accommodation. 3,500 yen ($30) a night gets me a shared room with eleven other people in a hostel or a ridiculously small "capsule" to sleep in for the night. Reminds me a lot of Singapore and its ridiculously overpriced hotels. And food in Tokyo was a joke to me. I tried a lot of different places, and everything was sub-par and expensive. Ulaanbaatar's food scene blow's Tokyo's out of the water - giant food portions, any foreign food you can think of, true to form foreign cooking, cheap prices, etc.

.....

Tokyo is a city where your money keeps disappearing, but you're never quite sure where it went, and you have nothing to show for it. Literally 90% of my time in Tokyo was spent simply walking around and taking photos, yet when the weekend was up, I could see that I spent more than 15,000 yen (excluding accommodation costs). All I had was a few bland and scraggly meals, ate a few overpriced snacks from Family Mart, and I rode the subway a few times, so where did all my money go? That's roughly five times what I spent in Ulaanbaatar back in December 2015....
Living in Tokyo as an European man since over 30 years, I can only say, to compare Tokyo with Ulan Baatar does not make any sense, considering the population, size of the city, income per person etc.

You might compare Tokyo with London or Paris, with NY or Los Angeles/San Francisco, or here in Asia with Singapore or HongKong or Seoul, which offer a similar position in many international listings regarding its economic situation.

Hotels in Tokyo, my visitors usually stay in the large Our's Inn next to my home.
http://www.oursinn-hankyu.co.jp/ja/
(in english)
http://www.hankyu-hotel.com/cgi-bin2/cm ... 09oursinnh

It's about USD 60,- for singles, about USD 110,- for doubles.

Some hotels near my home show up with similar hotel-rates.

That's about you will pay in most major cities in developed countries.

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About food, I am using often the Coco's chain, as frequent customer I get 10 % discount, and often per mail additional discount coupons.
I cannot believe that anybody can claim they serve little food, which is not tasty but expensive.

https://www.cocos-jpn.co.jp/menu/grand/ ... ewrap.html
https://www.cocos-jpn.co.jp/menu/lunch/mix_lunch.html
A meal of around kcal 800 to 1100 + rice + drinks + lunch-soup is not a small meal, I can hardly eat it and I am not a slim Japanese.

I am also using frequently an Indian restaurant near my home in a department store, they have only lunch buffet, eat as much as you can, up to 4 PM for yen 950,- - there is safran rice, salads, 4 different curries, nan, tandori chicken, free milk tea...

I am using also other restaurants, like Shijan (Korean) or some chain restaurants like Denny's or Jonathan's, also a Japanese Sushi restaurant near my home, and prices are about the same, somewhat between totally 1000,- to 2000,- per person.

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I don't see any problem, how can this be significantly so much more expensive than in other large Western cities?

About USA, I have to point out, that in Japan there is no custom of 'aggressive tipping', which might change your bills 10 to 15 % up for sure.

-----

I don't know how you spent yen 15.000,- for 2 days (excluding accommodation) = approx. USD 135,- by walking around. Maybe you could create a list which is easy, as any restaurant, convenience shop etc. will give you a receipt. Subway, buses are starting around USD 2,-.

It's still cold, but what about to walk around in 'Okutama'?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okutama,_Tokyo

http://www.okutama.gr.jp/
Some more information, but of course in Japanese only with some pictures.

That's really Tokyo too, and not overpopulated... Tokyo, this is a very large area, you need months to explore it...

Just my opinion about food, hotel, sightseeing....

Best regards,
Yohan
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Yohan
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by Yohan »

zboy1 wrote:Thanks for the trip report, Everdred.
I guess in comparison, Tokyo may seem sterile and uninteresting, but I found it anything but. It just goes to show you--people will have different experiences in different countries--something that some people seem to have great difficulty understanding in this forum (and in others). Lol.
Everdred has a point however, considering Tokyo to be sterile/uninteresting.

For sure 20 to 30 years ago the city was more funny and with much more personal contact.

However mobile phones, internet etc. were cutting down personal services to a minimum, replacing it with machines.
Now just one example, when leaving and re-entering Japan, as a permanent resident cleared for automatic gate, I do not talk to any passport control or custom officer anymore. I am talking to a robot, which says 'Hello', looks at me with 3 cameras, takes my biometric picture, fingerprints, checks my passport and my resident card, smiles at me on the display and is wishing me either a nice trip or welcome home.

Another reason for less personal contact and mistrust between the foreigner and the Japanese was caused by foreigners themselves claiming something like 'international laws' 'politically correct behavior' etc.

What was the result for example regarding nightlife? When I came to Japan, all was open to everybody, but foreign do-gooders, women rights activists etc. complained so much about it. To avoid confrontation regarding discrimination etc., many of these nightlife activities were moved into membership, away from the streets often into the basement of houses, business owners require introduction and identification before newcomers are allowed to enter, girls often choose the internet to offer their services etc. Japan is totally open-minded regarding sex of almost any kind you can imagine, but shop-owners and the Japanese girls were forced to be more careful.
-----
Another example, foreigners were complaining about the word 'gaijin' so much, but when I arrived in Japan and made a short trip around Tokyo with my motorcycle, just walking in a public park where no Western foreigners were living, frequently children and also adults were calling on me as 'gaijin' without any bad intention. As I can communicate easily in Japanese, I was talking with many children and even ordinary Japanese, couples with children etc. - Women in Japan are much more into conversation than men, especially high school girls in groups were very communicative approaching me many times just for talking and fun.... but now not anymore.

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About yourself, your situation is for sure different from those of Everdred, and of course also from me during your visit in Japan.

No Japanese - except when talking to you - might recognize you as 'non-Japanese'. Same situation with my son-in-law (Canadian-Japanese, native English speaker). You are very anonymous when moving around in Japan, you can observe any situation easier as people around you presume you are Japanese.

You can compare not only USA with Japan, but also South Korea with Japan. It makes also a big difference in your judgement what is good or bad in Japan.

In general, I can say, I did not find Japanese people discriminating against me - of course some unfriendly people you will find everywhere, worldwide - but in Japan I really had very few bad experiences.
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Re: Everdred's "All About Japan" Living Report

Post by droid »

Fantastic report Everdread!!, thank you so much. I've done a few reports myself and i can appreciate the time it takes to write all the material and upload all the photos.
everdread wrote:While I feel completely invisible here in Kamisu, I do notice way more people taking a hard glance at me, particularly young women, when I'm in Tokyo. You'd think it would be the other way around, but it's not. I'm confident if I were a single guy living in Tokyo, I wouldn't have much lady troubles. And while I do find many Japanese women to be physically beautiful, so far I'm not really attracted to their personalities at all. I also don't feel like my personality naturally vibes well Japanese women, though it does with so many Chinese women. Just like with Thai women, I feel like I have to put on more of a show when I'm dealing with Japanese women, whereas with Chinese women I can mostly just be natural and we still hit it off really well. Nonetheless, Japanese women are probably still worth pursuing, especially when compared with American women. Anyways, more on Japanese women later.
Yeah that corresponds with what has been discussed on that other Korea thread. That NEA vs SEA gradient.
It wold be real nice to have an 'Everdred Report on Korea' at some point. Have you considered going there?
1)Too much of one thing defeats the purpose.
2)Everybody is full of it. What's your hypocrisy?
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