Hello!
Here I am again, after a few days away, with a gift for you: a great post written by my sweetheart friend Eva.
Before leaving Tokyo and back to Los Angeles, Eva wrote 65 reasons why she loved living in Tokyo. It’s just amazing how she managed to put all these points together. I’m sure you’ll love this post!
Enjoy!
1. Public intoxication: It’s legal, it’s fun, it’s a way of life. If you pass out on the sidewalk in America, you’re a bum. If you pass out on the sidewalk in Tokyo, you’re the average, hard-working business man.
2. Toilets: As many of you know, Toilets in Japan come installed with coolers (and heaters, for the winter). Imagine waking up at 4am in the middle of the night on a cold February morning to take a s***. It’s absolute heaven. And any country that pays heed to the comfort of your butt is a winner in my book.
3. Respect for old people: I’m Asian. I believe in respecting your elders. I love old people, especially the grumpy ones. I don’t believe in retirement homes. I admire the Japanese for how they treat the elderly.
4. Health care: It exists. It works. It’s affordable.
5. F*** New York when it comes to cities that never sleep. Tokyo deserves the title hands down. Bars are open 24 hours and convenience stores never close. This city is so over populated, it feels like people are always around, no matter what time it is. Love hotels, capsule hotels, karaoke bars, and internet cafes all cater to a society of people who never have to actually go home to sleep.
6. Tokyo has the most intricate, advanced train system in the world. And after the bicycle, trains are the next best thing. I have spent countless hours sitting, standing, putzing around in stations, marveling over the magic that is the Japan Rail system. They’re so nice to look at, coming in and out of the station in marching order, carrying hundreds of people at a time. It’s truly a work of engineering art. Man-made modernity at its best. I love everything about the trains here, except actually riding them.
7. Love Hotels.
8. Cell phones: I hate cellphones, but if I’m going to use one, it might as well be a Japanese phone. They’re like the new hover board.
9. The Japanese government actually cares about its own people. Being American, this is a foreign concept to me. In Japan (for the most part) the government/big businesses/economical dominators actually WANT their fellow countrymen to do well. The country has its own citizens’ well-being at heart, unlike in America where authority figures misuse their power to take advantage of the general public. Take Enron, Halliburton, and Katrina for example. And our health and educational systems which do little to help the average American. Or how about our food supply as another example. In American schools, we feed our kids over-processed, chemically reduced junk food to keep them fat and hungry. Not only does the government approve of this, but they’re the suppliers- like dealers to a junkie. In Japan, most of this kind of stuff would never fly. The result is that Americans a are suspicious, if not paranoid, people. Our survival skills require us to be defensive and aggressive. The Japanese, on the other hand, are more trusting and at ease with their surroundings because they don’t have to fight for quality.
10.Traditional Japanese temples.
11. You can wear whatever the f*** you want, anytime, anywhere. Wigs, latex, a monkey costume? Sure, it’s all good.
12. Incredibly well-dressed, dapper old men. I have a SERIOUS thing for old guys who dress well. Three piece suits, canes, fedora hats, shiny shoes- all of it. It makes me swoon. And in Tokyo, they’re everywhere. I don’t see this enough in LA or Philly.
13. Small businesses thrive in this city. In fact, they strike me as the norm. In America, every small business is always eventually eaten up by some bigger company with more money. But in Tokyo, it seems as if 60% of restaurants, clothes/food/music stores are all independently owned (that’s a VERY rough estimation, since I can’t find the numbers. But if you live in Tokyo you get what I mean). My hypothesis is that the high cost of living in this city allows for small businesses to thrive. It’s a pretty good trade-off, especially when you grow up in the burbs’ where everything is generic. In Tokyo, every street is lined with something quirky, unique and totally home grown.
14. No class struggles: This is a concept that continues to baffle me because sadly, my western society is one that is very much divided and defined by class systems. The psychological, sociological, and philosophical implications of money (or the lack thereof) in our lives are are ingrained in to our heads from day one. Yet in Japan, 90% of Japanese people consider themselves middle class. Yes, read that sentence again if you have to because it’s totally NUCKING FUTS!!! That means virtually everyone here considers themselves monetary equals. It means where you live, where you come from, who you hang out with, date, marry etc is no longer determined by economical class! How beautiful is that? It’s also very strange to me, because in America, like it or not, class is permeating factor on most life aspects. Think about all The Clash songs or John Hughes’ movies about the taboo of high school kids dating outside their class- they just don’t make sense here. I’m still flabbergasted as to how exactly it works.
15. Sleeping in public: I really like this one! In Tokyo, it’s totally normal to sleep on the train, or to put your head down in Starbucks or MacDonald’s to take a short nap. It can be really rejuvenating! But you do the same in America and chances are you’ll wake up with your wallet missing. Either that, or people will just assume you’re sick/homeless.
16. Perikura: Japanese sticker pictures.
17. Japanese kids are just cuter. And maybe its something in the water, but they’re all well-behaved, too!
18. Hang over medicine that works.
19. Cherry blossom season: People take a week off to sit under pink cloud-like trees to drink publicly while admiring nature. Even Christmas isn’t this cool.
20. Symmetry: I’ve always like symmetry and Tokyo is full of it! I love the way this city looks- as if it were made up of puzzle pieces that have been thoughtfully rearranged.
21. Simplicity. The Japanese have simplicity down to an art.
22. Religion (or lack thereof): People don’t care what religion you choose to be. You can believe whatever you want and no one’s going to give you some obnoxious spiel about how you’re going to hell because you’ve sinned. Homosexuality and abortions are choices each individual can make on their own terms without some asshole trying to tell you otherwise.
23. Beverage vending machines: This country will never go thirsty.
24. Green tea: everything.
25. Great city for bikes!! I LOVE riding my bike in Tokyo. The streets of Philly always look like they’ve just been hit by a meteor shower. You could probably bury a dead body in one of the potholes in North Philly. In comparison, riding your bike around Tokyo feels like riding on the marble floors of the Vatican. The streets are smooth, glossy, pristine- perfect for cruising on your two-wheeler. And Japanese people are really skilled, patient drivers, because obtaining a license actually requires that you know how to drive (not so in the states). So you have fewer crazy idiots swerving at you from out of no where.
26. Dualities: The complexity of this aspect of Japan is far too complicated to get into it. But let’s just say, Japan is the only country in the world that exist in balance between the extremities of modern/traditional, sophistication/kitsch, and simplicity/complexity. Somehow, they all co-exist simultaneously.
27. Neighborhoods: Suburbs don’t exist in Japan, at least not the way they do in the cookie-cutter parts of America. Japanese neighborhoods are full of character- quiet, peaceful, clean, and beautiful.
28. The interesting world of Japanese sex: It’s too complicated to get into here.
29. Japanese people are naturally sophisticated. Americans are not.
30. Tokyo-ites are amazingly stylish- but not in a snooty, nauseating kind of way. Rather, in an inspirational, admirable kind of way.
31. Matsuri (festivals). If we had festivals like these in America, riots would break out and s*** would be stolen.
32. Everything is clean. Spotless, in fact. I’d put money on the fact that the toilet in McDonald’s is cleaner than the one I used while living at 16th and Christian.
33. Environmentally conscious: Sure, people waste here too, but in comparison to America, most places are environmentally conscious. Here, recycling is the law. And with the pure amount of people living in Tokyo alone, they have to conserve just to make sure their standard of life is consistent.
34. For the most part, people are polite. Or at the very least, considerate.
35. Crows! 99% of people here will disagree with me, but I love the crows in Japan because they’re one of the only things in this country that aren’t minuscule. In fact, they are freaking HUGE (bigger than some Japanese people!) and actually quite scary. And thus, they are way bad ass.
36. Outrageous gaudiness and a culture of kitsch. They’re shameless when it comes to this stuff. It’s as enchanting as it is annoying.
37. Bath culture: Baths in America are reserved for 5-year olds and hot MILFS with sore feet. Baths in Japan are for everyone, and often done naked in front of a lot of other people. Every neighborhood has its own bathhouse and its considered totally normal to go in whenever (everyday, if you want) to soak for an hour or two for some R&R.
38. Karaoke: If you’re a hater, you just don’t know.
39. Delivery services: I can’t express enough to you my love for the Japanese Mail System. I would give up television for the rest of my life if I could be guaranteed to have mail this efficient in America. Things arrive quick, on time and in one piece. If you aren’t home when your package arrives, you can call the mailman and he’ll come back THAT day! You can deliver anything, from artwork to furniture, at an affordable price. And if you don’t want to take your luggage onto the train on your way to the airport, the delivery people will pick it up and take it to the airport for you!!!!
40. Manga, anime, and video games: I’m not particularly into video games and computers etc (though I do love manga and comic books), but I still think it’s pretty cool that there is a whole world out here for super geeks. Even I can admit that the high-tech video games and well crafted cartoons are absorbing when they’re done at this level.
41. Shoes: Japanese people have the BEST shoes! From sneakers, to flats, to boots, to heels. These people really know what they’re doing when it comes to foot wear. They’re much more imaginative and outgoing when it comes to matters of the feet.
42. Lockers at every train station.
43. Combinis or convenient stores. Always there, always open. Always have something delicious inside waiting to be eaten by me.
44. Work ethic: The Japanese have the strongest work ethic of any people. It makes sense that they have the 2nd strongest economy in the world even though its such a small country. It’s both a sad and beautiful thing. Even though I don’t think it’s healthy, I really admire their motivation, ability and drive. They’re always talking about doing their best and giving 110%. In this sense, I have a great deal of respect for the Japanese.
45. Reliability: Living in Tokyo, we take for granted that everything actually works the way it’s supposed to. In America, you never know when the vending machine is going to eat your money or when the bus is going to come. Internet is always going down and packages get lost in the mail. In Tokyo, things like this rarely happen. We go on living our daily lives with the assurance that are expectations will be met.
46. Clubs: Tokyo has some of the best clubs in the world. And I don’t even like clubbing in America. Take Womb for example. It’s voted the 2nd best club in the world by DJ Mag and it has a 2m diameter disco ball. It’s also 20 minutes away from my house. Amazing.
47. Fit, healthy people: I never realized how depressing it was to be around obese people until I wasn’t anymore.
48. Japanese girls are hot. And when they’re not hot, they’re at least amusing to look at.
49. People in Tokyo just do more stuff. They live faster, work harder and are constantly on the move.
50. Stuff catered towards Asian people: Did you know they have a whole world of stuff made just for Asian people? Because I didn’t. In America, I just use whatever I can buy at Rite Aid. But here, simply, silly things just work better for me- like eye lash curlers for small Asian eyes or shampoo for Asian hair. It’s kind of nice to live in a land where things are made just for you! =)
51. Tatamis: Japanese flooring made out of rice straw. It’s beautiful and smells nice. It makes sitting on the floor enjoyable.
52. It’s so easy to meet people in this city.
53. Safety: When I lived in North Philly, there were days I’d walk home at night with my keys between my fingers. I didn’t feel safe. Here, I can stumble back home drunk at 4am (naked, if I wanted to) and not have to worry for a second. The crime rate is non-existent in comparison to America.
54. Honesty and good will: 90% of the stuff you lose here will be returned to you. Friends who have lost cell phones and wallets almost always get them back in the mail. Japanese people are really, really honest.
55. Good costumer service.
56. Shibuya crossing, one of the biggest, most populated street crossings in the world. I didn’t know you could be in love with a crossing, but apparently, you can. I still get goose bumps every time I cross it, and I do it almost everyday!
57. Tradition: Japanese culture is riddled with traditions. Coming from a country as new as America, our traditions are somewhat flimsy. I am fascinated by the historical context by which people do things here. I admire that they still honor their traditions, as it makes for a richer, more intriguing way of life.
58. Tokyo at night is a whole different beast. At night, all the humans turn into werewolves and spend the night prowling for prey. People go crazy amongst the shining neon lights. It’s the perfect place for mayhem.
59. Food presentation as an art.
60. Yakuza. Asian gangsters are way cooler than white ones. Especially since they get such bad ass tattoos.
61. The mind your own business mentality. If you’re bleeding from the eyeballs in the middle of the road, this mentality can prove to be fatal. But if its 6:30 in the morning and you’re obviously just coming home after a long night of partying dressed in sequins and spandex, stuck on a crowded train smelling of cigarettes and booze, the fact that everyone around ignores you because they don’t want to embarrass you is actually kind of comforting. Japanese people are trained to strictly mind their own business, which is why in Tokyo there are so many weirdos that can get away with almost anything. In fact, it seems the stranger your behavior, the more people pretend you aren’t there.
62. People still pay for music. Rarely do Japanese people actually download music because it’s considered stealing. I’m glad someone is still buying CD’s because I shamefully have not in a while.
63. Weather/Seasons: Tokyo has really great weather compared to other big cities like London and NY. Fall and Spring actually last three months each. It doesn’t get too cold, and I enjoy the summer heat.
64. Conformity and sacrifice: This is a tough one, and something I’ve given a lot of thought to. Everyone knows that Japanese culture is based on conformity. It’s good to follow the status quo, and being different is something most people frown upon. Japanese people really don’t know how to think for themselves, and rarely will they argue with you. On the other hand, in America, we pride ourselves on being the exact opposite. We believe in expressing our ideas and developing strong, individualistic opinions. Thus, most of the time, the Japanese mentality frustrates me because I find it boring and devoid of any real gutsy-ness. But overtime, I’ve come to think that maybe conformity is a choice Japanese people consciously make. Ultimately, they sacrifice their individuality in return for a society free of drugs, crime, poverty and illness. This sort of utopian life standard is something unique only to Japan because of their dogmatic loyalty to “group-think.” Here, community trumps the individual. And thus Tokyo, despite its harsh circumstances, is a flawless, efficient, streamlined city. It’s the perfect well-oiled machine- the way perhaps George Orwell would have imagined it. I don’t know if it’s something I could ever get used to, but there is something deeply admirable and beautiful about the willingness of a person to prize their community over their own well being. It’s humbling and awe-inspiring. It’s lack of ego. It’s something Americans should learn a thing or two about.
65. And finally, my number one, all time favorite thing about Japan- The Food. I could write a novella on Japanese cuisine. In fact, I think I will, but I’ll save it for next time.
OKAY. So I think I’ve covered every last freakin’ thing. Now I just hope someone actually reads this thing.
Oh gosh, after reading it I love more Japan *-* I hope I could go someday, and I know I will :3
Thanks for your prespective!!
I’m here in Canada BC, I went to Japan for a couple of weeks when I was a teen and I fell in love. I love the Japanese culture, I have since I was about 9 years old. I find myself smiling with slightly teared up eyes as I read this. I want to live in Tokyo, but I’m afraid I will never be able to afford it. There is also the problem that my boyfriend speaks no Japanese and I’m worried he would feel alone there.
Well-thought-out piece. I guess everything that makes up Japan can be a reason for loving Japan. Even the half-smoking coffee shops that stink with asphyxiating smoke the minute you walk in could be deemed uniquely Japanese.
This is good stuff! I have lived in Japan for 7 years and still live here and have seen or done more than a few of these.
I for one, read it to the last word. Thank you for sharing.
Super fun to read. I live in Philly now and the part about the streets looking like they were recently hit by meteor showers is hilariously true. <3 Super jealous on your new home. Good for you stranger!
Great post.
I think the reason number 13 is true is because Japanese shoppers are rediculously loyal. In the UK the average shopper would sell their own grandma to save 10p and then bitch about how the highstreet is full of milti-nationals.
In Japan, people just shop where they shop, where they’ve always shopped and where they’ll continue to shop.
Number 38 comes down to how seriously East Asians in general take their Karaoke. It’s a real group thing, not just an excuse to rip the p*ss out of each other.
Regardless of whether they CAN sing, most Japanese think they can and take it seriously as a result. God help the man that interupts someones elses song to take the p*ss!!!
I lived in Japan for a year-Sendai prefecture. I loved it! I’m half Okinawan and I was there to teach ESL. I agree about the food—I really miss the convenient store onigiri, cabbage salads and the melon rolls with the bavarian creme type custard…yummy! I also felt safe riding my bike home at 12 at night. Really miss it.
I have also been to Japan and want to live there…..but..hahaha…having lived in Thailand for 4 years I have to say there are things that are truly great about the USA too!!!!!!!!
this is amazing. it’s sad to know how closed minded many Americans are and are too full of pride to actually spot greatness in other countries. I’m an American and I have been here my whole life, and reading this gives me many more reasons to visit Japan, not just Tokyo (though not in a tourist-y way. more for a cultural experience)
This makes me want to live there even more! It seems like it would be wonderful to raise a family there!!
WONDEFUL WRITING
Oh my GOD… You just made me realize the Tokyo is the place I want to live in…. thank you so much!! I will let you know if it fits too me when I get there!! =)
That was a great article. Very interesting read. I haven’t been to Japan, but I have met some scientists when I was in the arctic
Very nice people
I wish North Americans could learn something.
But I doubt it
Norm
wow i have always wanted to live and japan and totally in love with Japanese culture but i love it even more after reading this.
i’ve always had a great love for japan, but my god, your list brought me to tears. i can’t thank you enough for taking the time to write out this list. you made me realize again that japan is where my heart is, and one day, so will my body.
I got this from Stumbleupon and I just have to say that I’ve been very interested in and drawn to Japanese culture since I was young and it’s always been a desire of mine to live there for a couple years. After reading this list, I have to say I’ve never been more inspired to actually do what I can to get there for part of my life… It just sounds like the closest thing to a perfect country that there is, honestly. Domo arigato <3
Amazingly true!! I have stayed there for 1 year and know it all. But still after reading this I got goosebumps. I have a small disagreement for point 61. As they will ignore you are pretending to be weird by yourself, but if you are in distress somebody will surely come to help. I have seen once as a person was bleeding after his fall on road, a total stranger came to help him and pressed his wound to reduce bleeding. Although there were other people but when they see that he is being attended, they resumed to walk on.
Few points which I believe is missed from this extensive but still non exhaustive list is that
1. Wherever and whenever you ask for help from Japanese people they will surely do and this is my personal experience!! As when I went there for the first time, I had the address but didn’t know the exact location. I asked someone on my way and that person, in order to help me, stopped his work and accompanied me to my place.
2. They are very shame based, they take responsibility for their actions and will apologize indefinitely if they have done anything wrong(by mistake ofcourse!).
I would say this all is great and keeping all in one place is absolutely amazing!!(It would take me complete one month to think and write all this) :p
Thanks for posting..
I’ve never lived in japan…yet I live in the U.S. but i’m completely obsessed with japan and japanese culture. This list is pretty much everything that I like about japan as well. AND when you wrote Crows (i exclaimed to myself, because I’m also obsessed with crows) and i hear japan has alot of them. Anyway that was an awesome list thanks for sharing.
I absolutely love this list. My g/f and I are so in love with Japan. Thank you. I will be sharing this site in Facebook. Simply awesome.
You know, I’ve actually heard the opposite about abortions in Japan. I heard that they’re very illegal.
Is it abortions I’m thinking of, or stem-cell research? I can’t recall.
Lovely post. It really makes me want to travel to Japan! I love point number 64. Lack of ego is the best way to live.
Lost and found: I’d say that lost items can be found/claimed 99% of the time.
Last year, I left my camera on the bus. I checked with the transport line’s office. They did not have mine, but they asked for lots of detail about the camera before just handing it over to just anyone. After returning home, my Tokyo friend suggested I write/phone the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s Lost and Found Office. I sent a request via snail mail. It turned out to be too much English for them to handle, so they forwarded my letter/photos to the US Embassy to get help for me. The embassy sent me e-mail with suggestion/interpretations on how I could get my Tokyo friend authorized to claim the camera. I got it back!
See most of this stuff would put me off living in Japan, and I can’t disagree with any of them as I have never even been there, but I much prefer living in England to even hearing about living in Japan, for one, whether it’s crap or not, healthcare is free, for another, the weather is much more tolerable, the social etiquette is much less strict, you can drink, vote and buy tobacco based substances at a younger age, things are much less complicated, and in England, the “class system” isn’t really an issue, nobody cares how rich you are. I love Japan I really do, but just thinking about it gives me a headache.
Aaaaw. This post really makes me miss Japan.
I wish I could go back! Tomorrow!!! I feel lucky to have lived there for a year and to be able to keep in touch with the art part of it at least.
The first few reasons alone are worth going there and going wild, because clearly it’s all normal there.
This is a really cool blog post and good note taking.
Been living in Japan for 3 years. Japan is not a utopia. It has its share of issues just like any other country. This is a very rosy-colored-glasses kind of list.
ONE DAY I WILL LIVE IN JAPAN FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE AND I’LL GO THERE AND NEVER COME BACK
ONE DAY
Thanks Violet for being the only other person on here who has some sense. Been here for 4 years and couldn’t agree with you more.
I just want to say that i want to live there. Every day i dream about it. I loved your post also. Keep the good job. And…
Violet, i believe what you say it is true but if you compare with any country in the world i might say you will never be able to find better than Japan.
this is amazing. iv’e always loved the Japanese culture and everything having to do with Japan, but you’ve made me fall even more in love with it. it seems perfect. like a world we’ve always wanted but never knew existed. i’d kill to live there, or even just visit for a while.
StumbleUpon presented me with a link to this post this morning and I read it over breakfast here in Tokyo.
I pretty much agree with everything there.
and people wonder why I don’t want to go back to England.
Len: No, Violet is right. This is a very rose-coloured list indeed. All children well-behaved? Uh, no way. No class struggle? Okay, maybe there’s less economic class struggle. But try being Korean (or just having Korean grand-parents) and see what class that lands you in. My friend’s parents opposed her marriage, simply because her fiance’s parents were divorced (this despite the fact that he is an amazing guy who treats their daughter with respect and love) and I had students who were bullied by both kids and adults in their neighbourhood because their parents had gotten divvorced. And it may be true that Tokyo-jin are more cosmopolitan in their attitudes towards gays, but that is SO not true of Japan in general.
Yes, some of the things on this list made me nostalgic for Japan, but some of the claims are ridiculous. Sure, Japanese people recycle by law, but they also accept five layers of packaging in stores just so everything looks pretty, despite the incredible waste. The government cares so much about artificially keeping the construction industry propped up that they have commissioned the cementing of riverbeds in cities – terrible for the natural environment. Vending machines are convenient, but they also waste a terrifying amount of electricity (each one a fridge out in the blazing sun), again – terrible for the environment. High-tech toilets are great, but try using one of the filthy, disgusting squat toilets in the train stations. Yes, if you lose your wallet it’s probably be returned, with the money still in it. But for God’s sake don’t walk through the park alone at night, because stealing might not be common, but rape certainly is. And people often think Japanese people are being polite when they are in fact just being formal.
I and every foreigner I know who’s lived there agree, Japan is both a wonderful AND a completely screwed up, country. One of the reasons we were able to enjoy living there so much is because, as foreigners, we were not subject to the pressures of Japan in the same way the Japanese are. I would have loved to live there another five years, but I would never raise a child there – certainly never subject a child to the school system there. If you want to have a look at how women fare in corporate Japan, watch Mad Men, and then remember that it’s depicting rampant sexism from SIXTY years ago.
Go live in Japan if you want to. It’ll probably be a great experience. But do it with your eyes open.
Len: No, Violet is right. This is a very rose-coloured list indeed. All children well-behaved? Uh, no way. No class struggle? Okay, maybe there’s less economic class struggle. But try being Korean (or just having Korean grand-parents) and see what class that lands you in. My friend’s parents opposed her marriage, simply because her fiance’s parents were divorced (this despite the fact that he is an amazing guy who treats their daughter with respect and love) and I had students who were bullied by both kids and adults in their neighbourhood because their parents had gotten divorced. And it may be true that Tokyo-jin are more cosmopolitan in their attitudes towards gays, but that is SO not true of Japan in general.
Yes, some of the things on this list made me nostalgic for Japan, but some of the claims are ridiculous. Sure, Japanese people recycle by law, but they also accept five layers of packaging in stores just so everything looks pretty, despite the incredible waste. The government cares so much about artificially keeping the construction industry propped up that they have commissioned the cementing of riverbeds in cities – terrible for the natural environment. Vending machines are convenient, but they also waste a terrifying amount of electricity (each one a fridge out in the blazing sun), again – terrible for the environment. High-tech toilets are great, but try using one of the filthy, disgusting squat toilets in the train stations. Yes, if you lose your wallet it’s probably be returned, with the money still in it. But for God’s sake don’t walk through the park alone at night, because stealing might not be common, but rape certainly is. And people often think Japanese people are being polite when they are in fact just being formal.
I and every foreigner I know who’s lived there agree, Japan is both a wonderful AND a completely screwed up, country. One of the reasons we were able to enjoy living there so much is because, as foreigners, we were not subject to the pressures of Japan in the same way the Japanese are. I would have loved to live there another five years, but I would never raise a child there – certainly never subject a child to the school system there. If you want to have a look at how women fare in corporate Japan, watch Mad Men, and then remember that it’s depicting rampant sexism from SIXTY years ago.
Go live in Japan if you want to. It’ll probably be a great experience. But do it with your eyes open.
Actually, the poverty rate in Japan is higher than you think. It’s just not quite as visible because like you said, conformity is valued. According to this NY Times article and other sources,
1 IN 6 JAPANESE LIVED BELOW THE POVERTY LINE IN 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/22/world/asia/22poverty.html
I like living in Japan too, but it sounds like you are still in the honeymoon phase. Japan is great, but it’s not the paradise you and apparently everyone else on this site believes it to be.
I’ve now moved Tokyo to the second spot on my “must see cities.” Beating out Singapore. But not moving Angkor Wat/Siem Reap. Cambodia is still number one for me. But this article certainly made me want to live in Tokyo for six months. (Cambodia would likely be more of a two-week adventure.)
Thanks for posting this!! Very enlightening and inspiring.
I actually did read the whole thing haha, AND I LIKED IT ^.^