Zetto

ok, I've been thinking alot lately about moving to Japan. Alot has happened recently in my life that has prompted this and I have someone that wants to go and asked if I was interested. I was wondering if anybody on here has ever been and what they think about it over there?

NismoPick

We've had several people there w/ the military. I think 92fairladyz is over there right now. Also lifegrddude goes to visit friends / fam.

snwbrderphat540

do you speak? might help out ALOT if you do

Bleach

do you speak JDM?

straight hate

I have a buddy that lived there for a several years, it sounds bad *** I have always wanted to go. Bad *** cars!!! I would have to concur with snwy, better know the language, and keep any tattoos covered, its still socially taboo for the most part.

apollo

Make sure to power over and dont look the DK in the eyes

KasbeKZ

lol all good points!

my mom's boss went there, who likes to travel a lot to most places. they go over to england and tons of places to watch their son row (matt muffelman. one pick away from rowing on us olympic team last year), but they said japan was the worst. they said it was terrible to get around. i think they were in hong kong. i think their biggest problem was that there was hardly even anything written in our alphabet, and not a ton of people speaking english, and it's really crowded, so all in all, it's just hard to get stuff done. that's the story i've heard.

Ratfink

Why do you want to move there? What do you hope to accomplish through it?

KasbeKZ

would you not get screwed by the exchange rate right now anyway?

Bleach

Hong Kong.... in Japan

Ratfink

Damn... I didn't read that post. haha

KasbeKZ

yeah well. how different could it be between hong kong and japan and china and all that crap. it's still a pretty good comparison

Ratfink

That's like saying Germany, and the USA are pretty close because we are both mainly white...

Different languages, different cultures, different laws, different beliefs, the list goes on.

Different dispositions towards Americans for one thing.

KasbeKZ

i still believe that the experience to go over there would be of similar difficulty. and, do cut me some slack, i do fall into the category of americans that stereotype all asians as being the same, with the exception of russia. they're pretty different.

Ratfink

I try not to stereotype anyone. Gives us Americans a bad rap.

Thanks to the internet, foreign exchange students, and our movies, Japan is getting to kaow us a little better, and us them. Not for our good qualities so much. Japan is a nation that has not been known to give much credit to, and enjoy other cultures.

Before I even visit another country, I like to know enough of the language to keep myself out of trouble, and find my way around.

If I were moving there, I would be fluent first. That's just me. Makes sense.

Whatever you do, study it a lot. The internet is a huge place, and there are several online translators that do a somewhat decent job.

Do your homework so that there are no harsh surprises when you arrive.

KasbeKZ

i love stereotypes. most of them anyway. in the sense that they are just generalizations about trends that are observed, they are a great rule of thumb sometimes.

NismoPick

You sound like a 7th grader who just learned the word "stereotype".

Zetto

well, i want to move there just for a change and because i wouldn't know anybody other than one person so...just looking for something different. i don't really plan on accomplishing a whole lot, just live life really. i've always found the japanese culture to be very neat and the fact that they still believe in honour is amazing. and i couldn't be more screwed than i already am lol

btw, i don't plan on doing this anytime soon

280zx2by2

just know if some one calls you guyjin you get all up in their face and challenge them to a drift race... just how things go in japan

Zetto

call him the justin timberlake of japan lol

duowing

gaijin

Anyway yes China and Japan are very different. If anything there is quite a bit more English and similarities to the U.S. simply because of how much was set up by the American government after WWII. The government is similar in a lot of ways. I'd like to go to visit Japan, I'm not sure if I'd want to live there, but Bleach is right, unless you speak JDM then you better get learnin'.

Niku-Sama

i was there for a couple of weeks a few summers ago. lots of things to go and see, lots of gadgetry...i didnt get to drive though, and i totally wanted to even though it was a nissan versa (called something different there of course)

didnt you want to live on a boat a while ago?

KasbeKZ

i think you're thinking about me. i was going to live on a boat until i found the f-ing bridge

Bleach

Between watching Tokyo Drift every night and browsing the "street view" of Google maps Tokyo, I think I've pretty much lived in Japan already.

lifegrddude

Japan and Hong Kong are two totally different places, not even remotely alike except in population density. Stereotyping is what causes ignorance, and that's probably why the entire world hates us. Open your eyes and your mind.

To the OP, if you plan to go to Japan, an easy way is to teach English there on a contract. You can make around 30-35K a year. Try to learn a few of the customs, and realize that some things we do here are not considered proper over there and vice versa. I know the Osaka/Kyoto/Tokyo area fairly well, and I know Okinawa like the back of my hand. People there do speak a little broken English, and most train stations have English written under the Japanese text. Let me know if you have anything you want cleared up.