Living in Japan?

Question

Um, what are the pros and cons of living in Japan?
(I'm going to go there
for the summer for a few weeks...)

Answer 1

Pros: An interesting culture, great technology, easy to use transportation system, a low crime rate, friendly people

Culture: Can be expensive, tough language, you'll always be a Gaijin (a foreigner), can be lonely away from home

Answer 2

pros: you'll see some amazing scenery, experience traditional festivals and events, participate in cultural events, the japanese people are really nice and helpful, its a truely unique country, its safe (even in the big cities), if you're only going for a few weeks then you'll probably stay in hotels? if so, then you can experience some traditional japanese hotels with hot springs.

cons: the whole language thing...but this isn't really an issue if you go to the bigger cities such as tokyo or kyoto, can't really watch tv cause you wont understand it - but who wants to watch tv when there's so much to see and do?, summer is HOT and humid, travelling within japan can be expensive if you use the bullet train, cities can be crowded - if you're a woman travelling on the trains in peak hour, look for the "women only" carriages as it may not be safe for a woman alone in the normal carriages.

on the whole, the pros far outweigh the cons, and its a wonderful country to visit so don't worry about the negative aspects.

Answer 3

Pros

1.) If you love cartoons/anime then they have lots of little anime sovenirs to buy and as "Hello Kitty" originated in Japan, they have lots of Hello kitty memorabilia that u cnt get anywhere else!

2.) People are nice, friendly and helpful and if you have a language problem someone will try and help u even if their english is quite poor. Also the Japanese appreciate foreigners who attempt a bit of Japanese. Even if its hello.

3.) It has great places to shop!

4.) In cafes, if you don't understand what a meal is then in the front window of the shop there is a display of plastic food, set like the meals on the menu so u can just point

5.) The weather will be hot if your going in the summer

6.) There are lots of beautiful temples, castles to visit. Try Kinkaku temple, its lovely and if you pass through Himeji, visit the Himeji castle. Worth every penny!

7.) Just a lovely atmosphere. So relaxed, unless your in Tokyo then you have so much adrenaline cuz the night life is great!

CONS

1.) Mosquitos - they're everywhere! so take plenty of mosquito repellant. I went last yr and got bit so badly.

2.) If you don't know how to read Hiragana/Katakana/Kanji getting about will be difficult as almost everything is written in these three forms of writing.

3.) The humidity - especially in July time - can be extrememly unbearable so have a fan and a bottle of water with you at all times

4.) The Japanese have very specific food so if you don't like fish or rice or egg or soya beans then it can be difficult to find anything you like. Japanese food is a bit blander than other foods so dnt expect curries to be too spicy.

And thats about it. Hope this helped and enjoy ur time in Japan. Its great!

Answer 4

Bad news first. It's NOT easy to live in Japan. Cities are very crowded. Apartments are small and costly by American standards. Most Japanese don't speak English. Jobs are not easy to find. If you have a BA degree, you might find work teaching English. But it won't be a life time job. It's VERY hard to learn to read and write Japanese.
Pros: Japan has the highest standard of living in Asia. They also have the lowest crime rate.New York city has a higher crime rate than the whole country of Japan. Most cities are very clean.

Answer 5

Depending on where you live: big city such as Tokyo or Osaka, small towns in the country side, you will get different experience.

In general, pros: friendly people, low crime, orderly society, excellent public transportation, culturally rich with many events and activities, food and restaurants, sightseeing, etc.

cons: costs and language barrier for those who don't speak or read Japanese

Answer 6

It is an interesting country and culture. Except on the denshas, people are usually polite. One difficulty will be finding what you want since the signs are in Japanese characters, not letters as you know them. Prices are very high, Tokyo is extremely crowded. It is an efficient country.

Answer 7

One con is the stinking hot summers, but a pro is the beer vending machines!

Answer 8

Skip Japan and visit China first.

Answer 9

if you are a big anime fan you would love that place because Japan have lots of anime stuffs. They also have a variety of technology that America doesn't have.

Answer 10

Pros.. things are really cool there. Everything is there is like all high tech and stuff..

Cons.. everything is really really EXPENSIVE!!