Japanese city life and country life are a world apart. In this video I discuss my experiences of both lifestyles and weigh up the pros and cons. ► NHK World Episode: www.jibtv.com/programs/explor...
In my girlfriends neighborhood in the US, some dude moved in and saw me walking around and chased me down. He gave me a single peach and told me he was new to the area and pointed to his new house. I never saw that guy again which is strange because he pointed to a house 2 doors down from my girlfriend. Pretty sure that dude drugged those peaches. I threw it in the trash. I'd never trust something like that given to me by a stranger in the US
@@jamesvelazquez1004 I was saying that he likely gave some to other people as well. He only gave me one peach but likely had a few and gave them to others. Very pedantic haha
I don't think people understand how inspirational this guy is. He went overseas to a whole new country and took on a whole new life. Truly amazing. I hope to build up the courage to explore new places one day, especially japan. He makes it seem like a truly wonderful place. I'm only 13 now but I hope to learn the language and culture and try new things when I'm older.
Nubeto As you grow up you'll realize that he's even more inspirational than you think he is. Life chews you up as you grow old. Take risks, dare to change, never turn down an opportunity. Of course it's never too late to change, but it only gets harder as you wait.
Just remember to always do a lot with life. I’m going into senior year, and I decided I’d join marching band because a lot of my friends are in it, cuz why not? It’s my last chance to do something big in high school so I figure I might as well do it. We regret what we don’t do, not what we do
Same but I’m 16 and in my junior year of high school I’ve been going to a tech school for computer engineering but now I’m also considering getting a degree in linguistics while perusing my dreams of integrating into japan
Why not start now? Start learning the language, take all the information about the culture and language you can find and learn! xD I started learning Japanese when I was 13 and now I can easily communicate with Japanese :)
@@xiangelw if you already have a job lined up they are gonna put you in that area, but if you don’t have a job already lined up it’s basically like “who needs some diversity y’all”
Have a similar experience about missing the countryside-ish... Applied to go to school in Osaka for a year... Got sent to Hakodate Hokkaido instead. Super bummed out initially to be sent to a small port town. Fell in love with the small town after a few months(friendlylocals and fresh seafood helped..). Ended up on the local newspaper and got interviewed by nhk for being like.. one of only few people there teaching English and people would give me discounts or extra servings of stuff/service randomly. When I left, I felt like I was losing a part of me and it was heart breaking.
@Zeronality Reverse culture shock is a thing for people who move back home. It can be very crippling, especially if your experience in Japan (like the original poster) was eye-opening and rewarding.
@@BetoTorrero610 there are better people to ask than me about that! Very sorry! The reason why I say that is, I went there as part of an exchange program for school. Being a broke student, one of the previous exchange student passed on his old teaching job to me as a hand-me-down. It was quite casual and unofficial, although our university coordinator made us get a casual "work permit" from the city. Sorry again! Most of my friends went on to teach through JET...including one who was teaching in Sendai for several years until recently so these kinds of people would have better information than me. :) Best of luck.
For me that depends on how big my town would be. My village is so small that if I was an hour away from the next biggest city I'd be a bit miserable. But if it was a bit bigger, and I had friends closer, I wouldn't mind being an hour away. XD (Currently I'm 30 minutes away and most of my friends are as well so we meet up in town cause otherwise it's 1-1.5 hours to each other's towns LoL)
I live in Miyazaki prefecture and once I had tendonitis in the neck. An old woman walking her dog insisted she take me to the local hospital and then paid for my medical bill. She absolutely refused to let me pay despite my insistence. The people out in the countryside are amazingly kind. You should travel to Miyazaki some time!
I was living in a rural Japan(Beppu, Oita) for about 4 years and it was the best years of my life. The local people were so friendly and despite their a little weird accent, I felt welcome everyday. Then I moved to Tokyo to work for about a year. It was such a horrible life there honestly. So many people, so chaotic, and you suddenly felt tiny and not important anymore. I am moving back to Japan again this November, and it will be another rural area again, around Kobe too(sorry mate haha) and I am so excited to explore a new life and find myself again there :)
win541 Laughed because Peppu is butt in finnish haha. Anyways, everybody is always in such a hurry and so busy in big cities. I wish I could experience both, city living and countryside living in Japan! Maybe one day... I wonder if it is impossible to get a job as a english teacher in Japan if I have tattoos and I'm not a native speaker.. Must be difficult.
I hope you made it back safely! I also have been to Tokyo maybe 2-3 times and the first few trips were very literally the most miserable and regrettable time in my life. I wish I never went to Tokyo. On the flip side, in my 4 years, I now regret that I never went to Beppu! I had friends go to the hot springs and I wish I could have went too. I am thinking about returning to Japan and making a special trip.
+Susanna, I taught for 2 years officially and met a variety of people who taught as well - all I can say is that at the very least *You should try!* I knew people who literally only knew Konnichiwa and Arigatou, and they even messed those up sometimes but still made it fine several years in Japan. Japan will decide what is best, because sometimes they are specifically looking for people who don't know any Japanese so the students will actually be forced to speak in English. It can be challenging and a bit lonely though unless you really put an effort to learn Japanese. As for the tattoos, I knew someone who had a large tattoo on his forearm and I think as long as he JET didn't know, it didn't matter. As long as you don't have a face tattoo or hand tattoo - you'll be alright. It was very very strongly frowned upon and my friend had to make sure his sleeve was rolled down at all times while in proximity of a school, but he was able to manage as long as he didn't try to flaunt his tattoo. The main thing is if you speak english - I think you would be able to be fine!
true, it reminded me of my own sendoff from the university i was staying at. the people were so nice, i didn't want to leave lol. hopefully i can meet them again in the future
Konnichiwa! I'm Japanese and really enjoyed your video. For me, I would love to live in a house surrounded by the beautiful nature of the countryside, but I would never dare to do so because that's a kind of place where Japanese people can get racist to Japanese people as outsiders! People would suspiciously and persistently watch any newcomers and wouldn't let them do what locals do, a very typical "mura shakai" (village society) social structure. I hear many stories about people who move to the countryside in search of a dream life and have to move out shortly in order to escape from the awful realities. Travelling there may be nice, but living there is another story. I wonder if people from outside Japan experience the country life differently. Or maybe it's your personality that broke the ice with close-minded locals. In any case, you are very lucky to have had a good time in Yamagata! Cheers! I'm from Okayama.
@@dawid77777 Japaner besonders die ältere Generation halten sehr viel von Deutschland, unserer Sprache und Kultur. Jüngere Generationen finden lediglich die Sprache noch sehr interessant.
I'm Polish and I heard Japanese people generally like us for Chopin and our history in which we had to fight for freedom multiple times and never gave up. I heard that it's an admirable trait for Japanese people. All the fellow Polish people that went to Japan generally had very good experiences there. I also think that our cultures might be at least a bit more similar than for example the British or American one, especially American. Polish culture is like that equal balance between collectivism and individualism so I think we do find it easier to adjust to the more collectivist way of thinking and thus, manage to fit in better.
I know that is an ancient comment, but I think you would really like Nara-Shi. Is a good mix of modern city with ancient history. And it's really near to Kyoto and Osaka.
Whilst I was in Hiroshima on holiday, walking with friends, an old Japanese grandmother tapped me on the shoulder when we had stopped at a crossing. As I wondered what she wanted, she pointed at my feet to let me know my left shoe was untied. That is how friendly the Japanese are. Great memory from years ago.
Dude yes! I was once sitting along the Arakawa river in Tokyo and it was super serene and quiet and then this old man just spots me and talks to me and then hands me a bag of veggies xD
I joined the U.S. Navy when I turned 18 years old; 5 months later after some basic training and school for my MOS I was in Yokosuka, Japan. I basically broke all of the rules and got an apartment out in town off base because I couldn't stand the barracks. I was there for 7 years, traveling the world on deployments on a couple of different aircraft carriers, but while in Japan I went all over, from simple nights out to Tokyo, to Mt. Fuji, to hiking around Hokkaido, to eating everything I could in Kobe, to riding ferries around to different parts of the Sasebo area. I've been back in the U.S. since the December 2010, but I've saved up enough to move back to Japan and buy a house and maybe even some land somewhere as well, just gonna end up narrowing down where I want to live.
99% of people I talk to don't even know what the hell a 'rate' is, so I have to explain to them it is the same as an MOS. I was an ABH stationed on the Kitty Hawk when it was in Japan as well as the Lincoln when I decided to come back state-side.
I saw a shirt once that said, "I am not sarcastic. I'm skilled at pointing out the obvious." My mum found it and said it sounds like me. Now if she doesn't get a reference I make she assumes I'm being sarcastic and wants me to apologize. Oh, I am SO sorry she didn't get the inside joke. That was SO rude of me. 🙄
Lived in Tokyo near Shibuya first 2.5 yrs. Great for partying and convenience but cost of living is a bit high. The locals in my Tokyo neighborhood were just as friendly as those you see in the Yamagata part of this video. Moved to Yokohama for a year and was kinda bored and always went to Tokyo when I was off. Afterwards moved further south into the "country" part of Kanagawa and the balance is good: Kinda quiet in this area but can get to the city in less than 2 hours. I also spent time living in the Nagasaki area and prefer Kanagawa better for the balance of convenience, climate, and scenery. Over 20 years later and I'm still living abroad in Japan. I don't think of this as living abroad though--it's home. I'll probably be buried here some day.
That's a very broad question with no clear or easy answer. If you like crowds and don't mind waiting in queues then Osaka or Tokyo may be a good fit for you. If crowds aren't your cup of tea and you prefer the great outdoors then perhaps Yamagata, Hokkaido, or Niigata. If you're aiming more for a "middle of the road" spot then choose a suburb of Osaka or Tokyo. There are also popular smaller cities such as Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Sendai (if you don't mind being close to Fukushima), or Naha in Okinawa. When you ask "which is best newly abroad guy" if you mean you can't/won't speak Japanese then I'd have to recommend you stick to a larger city that'll have more bilingual services: very generally speaking this would be cities with a population over 2 million.
@@daveinjapan Nice, so many thanks for the advice, actually I was going to Japan later, well.. yeah I dont know when exactly but Its my goal to live in Japan and tried to become a permanent citizen, do you have any tips before moving there? thanks.
Glad to help. Actually I think you're on the right track watching Mr. Chris Broad's vids here. This channel and Life Where I'm From are my personal favorite Japan vids for the "Western perspective" of life here and the vids often contain good-to-great info and helpful tips. My favorite Japanese-Culture-in-English vids are on That Man Yuta's channel. I wish you luck. Live long and prosper!
"Whilst I know that I'll look back fondly at both my life in the countryside and in the city, it's in the countryside that will feel like the home I left behind, whereas the city just feels like somewhere that I lived for a while" ^^^this
Our thoughts are very much aligned on this. I used to live on the outskirts of Noboribetsu in Hokkaido, with nothing but sprawling fields of grass, picturesque mountains, and somewhat disturbed deer lurking beyond the windows of my apartment. It was a 25 minute walk to the nearest convenience store (which closed at 9:00PM each night) and winter was tough, but the beautiful surroundings, connections I could make with the locals, and overall peace of mind and sense of happiness have since been unparalleled in my life. I came to Kobe for business and it's a great city, but nothing beats those nights spent under clear, starry skies breathing in the fresh country air and really feeling alive.
It was a wonderful segment of my life! To keep sane with the "big city" life these days, I live up on the mountain overlooking the city. A bit of a hike but worth it to get the best of both worlds. :)
Nommifest That's awesome! I love the cliffs in Muroran. I wish I was YouTubing back then so that I could have taken many videos to show people of a relatively unknown (to foreigners) but stunning area of Japan.
i once visited Japan for 10 days under their Jenesys 2.0 program, visiting Tokyo, Sendai, and Kitakata. I must agree that living in countryside (in my case Kitakata), even it was only for 3 days i experienced what Chris has told in this video. Strangers being very polite and helpful to me, an Indonesian man during my participation in local activities (i stayed with a farmer family so i visited their farm and helped them farming with other people). They taught me how to plant potatoes, even though i couldn't speak Japanese and they couldn't speak English. There was only one teenager who had smartphone and installed Line Translator to help me communicate with other people. That was truly a great experience and i do miss them 😭😭😭 If you had a chance, please visit Kitakata. My host family said that their ramen is the best one in Japan. It is sad that i cannot eat pork due to diet restriction
Lmao I have literally been watching your vids for the past 6 hours. I should be doing homework but watching a Brit in Japan is a thousand times more interesting. Ugh why am I addicted to your channel. I need help.
Great Vid!! I've been here in Tokushima for the past 26 years. It's different! Not too much SPERM as the population is well over 65 on average. Hardly any busses and a train once an hour. Very rural and very beautiful if you're here to retire. People are a bit strange and never change. It's cheap and the food is great. But the nigh life is everyone in bed by 10:00 pm. Anyone else have a similar situation? Love to hear it.
Stunning temples on tap! Best thing ive heard all day. I live in the concrete jungle of Tokyo and really miss the countryside peace and quiet but also love this city to death.
Personally, I plan to move to Japan in few years; I'm a cook who wishes to learn as much as possible about the Japanese cuisine directly from the source, and experience a different culture I'm very curious about. The general idea is to live somewhere like Tokyo for a year, but then move to countryside after that for few years, and then make a decision if I'll stay or return home with the knowledge and skills gained in Japan.
I live in Hokkaido in a tiny little village and I just couldn't be happier. I feel as home here as I did in the States. Of course I miss things and people, but it's been amazing here. The people are so kind, and my schools are wonderful.
I lived in the middle of nowhere in Akita for half a year. At first, I thought I was too isolated, but after a while, I came to love it. Just like you said, there's something incredible about the peace and quiet. I would read all the time, walk around, visit hidden temples, and just really have time to reflect and grow. I miss it every day and can't wait to find an excuse to move back
When I was in Japan, I got out of the cities as soon as possible and just seemed to relax more and enjoy things more out in the country. I was after the older Japanese culture. Been that way with all the countries I visit actually--when in England, I could not get out of London fast enough. Spent most of my time in the small villages talking with locals and visiting old ruins. I guess being from the states, I can see big cities here. Why travel abroad to do so.
Ditto, the mercantile nature and pace of the city leaves you less chances for human connection ironically. The relationships you make in the countryside feel a lot more genuine and get deeper with the level of civic engagement you're prepared to put in. If you want to get the best possible experience in Japan, learning Japanese is a must. Not withstanding the fascinating peculiarities and chances for miscommunication that rural dialects hold I found learning and interacting in Japanese far easier in country Japan. Like rivers we often tend to take the line of least resistance. Language can be the same in that the major metropolitan centres make life too easy for the english speaker(Yes I know they have the best intentions) Living of the country often means the only other foreigner you'll see will be the one in the mirror. You're forced to dig deep and when you do it's reflected in the relationships you build with the locals. Sure you might get better money in the city(but you spend it)but I'd rather the experiences and memories over the money any day. Who goes to Japan for the money anyway?
Chris, I'm very grateful for having your videos to watch and get inspired to do things out out the normal way. Your humour is amazing and keeps all of us happy and entertained! Thank you for all the good quality videos!
My wife & I visited 5 Japanese cities (1 day each) while on a cruise. The only place that sticks in my mind is Aomori. The others just blend into each other. Seeing Mt Fuji at sunrise was mind blowing however. Must go back.
As I get closer and closer to being able to go abroad for about a year after college, the more useful these videos become. Thank you for the very useful video!!
Just came back from 5 months in Japan. I chose to live in Tokyo because I thought that's where the REAL JAPAN is at... after a while I realized the real Japan was everywhere but there. It was pretty bad. Tokyo is a city you might wanna visit for a weekend with friends. Living there is a total nightmare. Learn from my mistakes people and don't waste your precious opportunity of staying in Japan.
I stayed in Tokyo for one month. I equally enjoyed my two weeks in Fuchū and two weeks in Chiyoda. I think it depends if you're a city person, which I totally am. The only time I really hated being outside was in sunshine city on a Saturday. Tokyo is still worth staying at for longer than just a weekend! :)
I'm just curious why you thought Tokyo was "real" Japan. Never been to Japan but usually big ass cities with lots of people bring diversity, not authenticity.
This is still one of my favourite videos from this channel. Watching it gave good insight into the experiences akin to living in the city versus the country... and now that I'm on a year exchange program in Kumamoto it makes me want to make the best out of the opportunities that I have here. May Japan be never stale!
Lived in Tokyo for two years, now living in Fukushima. Loved this video, it covered a lot of things I’ve been thinking about recently and I couldn’t agree more with your final conclusion. Thanks!
Filip Mrcela "Hey Natsuki. I'm just calling you because one of the comments on one of my recent videos said I should say hi to you for him. So yeah, that's basically it. See ya."
hi there! I'm white but I was born in Aomori and raised in nagasaki so I also feel like I have a bit of experience on both ends of the spectrum albeit I'm only 18 but i grew up here. The city is beautiful, there's always something to do and there's an almost high in the air as everything is new and exciting, but living in the country is magical, the never ending hills and bamboo that you can get lost in and an almost trancelike peace you can't find anywhere else, I have to agree with you on living in rural prefectures
Countryside all the way for me. I was living in Kōnosu, in Saitama prefecture 23 years ago around a similar age that you are now. My situation was different as I was starting a family. So my priority's were quite different considering what the area would like for a forth coming child. I found it very hospitable and friendly and only very rarely experienced any negativity at all. BTW, I was teaching embalming, so my company handled practically all of my necessities. Our landlord was a great guy who frequently gave us fresh vegetables from his garden. Though, officially he didn't even rent to foreigners. My wife is Korean, so I always thought perhaps he thought her a western raised Japanese who didn't speak the language. For whatever, reason he was just super nice to us while being fairly stern with my Canadian co-workers. My Japanese was pathetic for at least the first half of my 1.5 years there. I always felt like the locals always made the extra effort to accommodate us. I even had a band of cool friends to play live music with from around the area. We toured around the regional coffee shop scene and performed. It was an incredibly fun time and apart from occasionally missing home, I really enjoyed living there. Thanks for making these videos. I am really enjoying watching them and reminiscing about my own time in Japan.
Brent Bowers amazing I’m actually moving this year in August to the Saitama prefecture to Hanno. I’m very excited that it’s near the city but not IN the city.
I love watching these videos. I am 45, and having learned what I have over the years about Japan and the culture and then watching videos like these makes me wish i would have had more direction and vision when i was younger. I would give anything for a do over and move to Japan.
I find Kyuushuu to have the perfect combination of both city and countryside. Fukuoka was my favorite city, and it had everything one could ever dream about in a city, without having that suffocating overpopulation of Tokyo. But Most of my time was spent in Nagasaki, which was my favorite place by far. My room looked out over a stream running between two mountains, and there was never a shortage of greenery around. I lived just on the edge of the city, and so a quick 200 yen bus ride would take me to the streecar, which would then take me deep into Nagasaki city. Sumiyoshi had all the izakaya I could ever want to drink at, all the malls I could ever want to shop at. But taking a stroll in the other direction would take me to the beach, and a stroll in yet another direction, would take me to rice farms. For a trip outside the city, I could ride the street car to the central bus terminal, and buy a ticket to go to Mt. Unzen, which is very much out in the middle of nowhere, but in the best possible way. It felt just like the ryoukan from Spirited Away, and the whole area had volcano steam seeping out of the roads and walkways. Everything was covered in a fog of volcano steam that gave the whole experience a completely surreal feeling. The ryoukan was amazing, and their food was the best I've eaten in Japan. There were indoor and outdoor baths, and sitting under the freezing rain in the winter, while submerged in the onsen really helped cool me off, and allowed me to stay in the water almost indefinitely. Once I became too hot, I sat on the edge, with just my feet submerged, and let the rain cool me down. Nagasaki is absolutely fantastic. Definitely come here if you have the chance~!
As an aspiring JET, I feel the need to thank you for this video. I've still got a few years to go until I can apply, but this video highlights some of the things that I'm going to have to consider when moving to Japan. I've been working through some of your videos and I'm actually quite jealous of what you've been able to experience, and I look forward to seeing more from you. -Random Internet Person.
Blazewing Firebird From one aspiring JET to another, I wish you the best of luck, easy travels + lodging, and lots of good food! Hopefully, in a few years time, we may bump into one another both as a JET. :D -A big 'ol dork
I would live in the country, and visit the cities. Your home is your castle, your fortress of solitude and your temple. Which means it has to be the place that makes you feel safest (Castle), feel satisfaction (Fortress of solitude), and mentally satisfied (Temple). The city is to chaotic, to busy and not close enough to our ancestral homelands of our ancient primates, green nature.
Your videos are the reason i wanna move to Japan.Moving there was always my biggest dream,and with your videos it doesn't feel as impossible as people present it as.
Great video, and I also watched the video at the link in the description. Very nice. Makes me want to drop everything and just live there, simply and contentedly, exploring all the beauty and meeting the nice people. I love how Japan takes such care of their land.
Hi, Chris - I really enjoy watching your videos. I lived in Japan (Tokyo) from 8/1981 til December of 1983. I made many close friends there and I have been back 5 or 6 times since. I miss it terribly, and I have a lovely recurring dream where I'm sitting on a train in Japan - I have no idea where it's headed, but I don't care - I'm just happy to be there. When I first arrived in Japan everything was in kanji or hiragana - there was very little katakana and certainly no English. What a stark contrast to today! I struggled with the lack of "personal space" and with the way business is conducted (ie - decisions are group events). However, I found deep joy in the cultural reverence for nature and art, and how incredibly kind everyone was. My willingness to learn as much as I could and my desire to speak Japanese was rewarded daily by kind strangers. The city offered me something I could never find in the US - the freedom to go out at night alone, and bar hop. I had some favorite bars (an Aussie dart pub, a bar that featured bluegrass live music, a disco - hey- it was the 80s - and a bar with a band that sounded just like the Beatles) where I had bottle keeps and it was like Cheers - where everyone knew my name. I didn't have to wait around for my bff to be ready to go somewhere else - I could just go when I felt like it. That freedom was priceless. I started out teaching like most gaijin, but by the time I left I had a prestigious job as a producer at a film company. It was hard to come home, but I did miss my family and ultimately I fell in love and married. We took a trip to Japan shortly after getting married because I felt that he needed to know why I love the place so much (and why I insisted on no shoes in the house, lol). I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to travel as much as I did, and to make such lasting, wonderful friendships. I miss it all the time, and I would not trade my experience for anything.
Funny, clever, and even quite beautiful! Thanks Chris. I am weighing up Kyoto versus Akita for my next study exchange location, and this video will certainly contribute to my final decision
For me, a small town always wins. I recently moved to a town just outside of Portland, Oregon, USA, and I find I have no desire to ever go into the city anymore. The most depressed I've ever been was living in downtown Portland, and the happiest I've ever been is living in the woods in a National Forest. When I get to Japan...I'm heading straight for the countryside! Thank you for this, Chris.
I don’t know where you are now but I am out in Beaverton and wholeheartedly agree! I’ve lived in portland proper for a few years once and can’t remember ever being truly happy, but once out here I felt I could BREATHE.
@@TATOOINETABLEFLIP @Connie Wow, I didn't realize people had responded to this. I live in Tigard and finally feel like a real human being. Now I kind of want to meet you guys. Are either of you studying Japanese?
I’m planning to move to japan in about 4 or 5 years time I’ve always seen japan as this heavenly paradise how beautiful it is just no other place in the world can match up to it in my eyes.
You know you've made it big on RU-vid when you're friends with Joey!! :) In all honesty I really enjoyed this video and I wouldn't mind living out in the country as I'm the opposite to many people I hate the busy rush of the city and prefer the peace and quiet of the country, I can see myself going for a ton of walks to explore when I get placed in my chosen area next year!
Hey, Chris! Sara asks a sensible question. I fear it may be lost among all this BLAH BLAH BLAH. So Chris, do you think you will live in Japan for the rest of your life? Great question, Sara.
I can almost feel your love for Japans countryside through your words. I think I even felt a bit at peace just hearing you talk about it. If I ever get to visit Japan, I think I’ll opt for the country as opposed to the city.
You've actually inspired me to learn Japanese and some of the culture to eventually visit there when I have the money. Thank you for opening up my cultural horizon and my comfort zone to get myself to get ready to visit Japan.
I lived in rural Shizuoka-ken and also in Tokyo. I agree with your experience. I found it easier to make relationships in the rural areas and appreciated the nature. The hustle and bustle of Tokyo was exciting for a while, but eventually it wore off.
Wow, this really makes me think about where I want to live when I teach English. I've always been a little inclined to try for the countryside because I live in a small town (less than 6000 people). Thank you for making this video!
I started out my first time with Japan, exploring the countryside which I didn't really particularly realize I was going into. East Japan, including Sendai. That's the Japan I know. Not Tokyo or the other cities. However, due to time limit, it was more of a "have been there" for many destinations than a real exploration. Thanks for your videos. Wish I were you. Yes, the countryside people--those I met along the way--are very kind, generous & self-sacrificing. And very intelligent in the midst of my broken Japanese. I feel the same as you do: feeling of contentment & sense of adventure in the countryside. It's odd that we should feel a sense of adventure in the countryside since the idea tends to be that the countryside is boring.
I lived in Fussa and worked in Fuchu for over three years. I loved living in the outskirts of Tokyo. I never liked city life until I moved there. I wish I could have experienced the country though. I worked strange hours and shifting days off when I could get them but every time I had a day or two off I would hop on the train and get off at a stop I had never been to before and see what was in the area. At the end of my adventure days I would stop in at my friends bar and report to him and his wife what I saw. I would go back to Japan in a heartbeat if I had the opportunity.
"sad face" sometimes I really miss Japan. I lived and travelled in a variety of mainly rural places which was awesome. One of the best places I lived was a small seaside village near Nagoya, where I went several times a week for work (as an English teacher, duh). That's a great combo - plenty of opportunities to shop and drink coffee but the peace and quiet of the village, the river and the sea at home. By the way, I am one of those people who will teach English until the end of time, or until I have enough money to retire, which is the same thing really......
Hey Chris, nice video with good perspective. I've lived in Osaka for 4 years now and I look forward to the day I can relocate to a more rural location. I feel a city is a city regardless of where you are in the world. Like small town New Zealand that I grew up in, there's so many aspects you lose living in the city. Thanks for your content!
wow this was surprisingly insightful chris! I plan to apply for the JET program in a few years after college and this has really put in to perspective the potential outcomes. It's also set my mind a bit at ease knowing that even if I'm designated to a rural countryside, I can still thoroughly enjoy my time there
So for me, I lived almost 11 years of my life between Misawa, and Yokosuka Japan working for the Military. I am like you in that I still miss Misawa to this day as the place where I grew into who I was and wish I could live there again. Yokosuka was great to stay in Japan but never gave me the same sense of joy and peace that Misawa did.
Ok so basically for those who want to enjoy life to the fullest and actually feel happy with what you're doing on a daily bases the countryside is the way to go. And for the ones who want to make it big in life, and think that true happiness can be achieved only after financial support has been set in stone, the city life will be the perfect place to go. In my opinion both options are great for getting a hold of the "real Japan"
This video transends japan and is just a cool look at coming of age and where you live effecting everything in this video! as as guy who has lived many places.. this is spot on
