Tokyo, my home?! (The Sequel)
(Written back around 2002)
Hello,
Well it’s been exactly 1 year to this day since I last reflected on my life in Japan. While the year seems to have been an eventful one with so many things happening; it also seems that in the overall scheme of things, not too much has changed. Albeit, I did manage to pass the Level 3 Japanese test (which on paper, means that I can get by in daily Japanese life). I’m working in a new job which is more interesting and closer in line with my overall career goals. And I got to travel to Hong Kong and Canada.
Today, as a friend of mine had an extra ticket, I decided on the spur of the moment to attend the Chemical Brothers concert out in Makuhari. The music was great, but I, for some reason or other, I felt a little bit out of place. I’m not sure why - but lately, I’ve been wondering how useful this experience will be in the long term - and whether or not some of the sacrifices are worth it.
Now don’t get me wrong, I really like it out here. Tokyo / Japan / Asia is a truly exciting place to live, travel and work - especially for someone who has never been to this side of the world before. There are so many things to see and do - either in your backyard (literally speaking of course as not too many tokyoites have a backyard) or a hop onto a train/domestic flight to another new and exciting city. It’s like a whole new world, each with it’s own specialities catering to the individual. And, being a gadget person, what better place to be than in Japan?
This excitement makes it especially difficult to leave. Case in point, for the past couple of years I’ve been telling my friends and family that I’m thinking of leaving Japan. Where to? Don’t know. Just leaving. But, I’m still here! It’s like a drug, you become addicted to this place - and for many people, unless something drastic happens, they tend to stick around. Five, Ten, Fifteen years or more! Some people leave, and then come back.
Some of my friends are still the same people I met 3 1/2 years ago. In Tokyo at least, the foreign community is quite strong - and generally speaking the locals (of the younger generation) don’t seem to have much of a problem mixing with us foreigners. And even having said this, some of the places I patronize - the shop keeper gets to know you, and you can get nice little gifts - free bottle of wine; traditional Japanese snacks; homemade plum liquor etc… They really know how to make you feel special.
Work wise, things have been going quite well, I think. Most of my work is project based and the role I have varies quite widely depending on the project. It’s good in that each day is a little bit different - with something new to discover, learn and explore. Surprisingly [given the recent dot-com burst], most of my projects have been in Web development / coordination, but hopefully in the future, it could open up to other media - cdrom, video, etc… In fact, one of my personal project goals for this year is to create a CD-ROM/Web based intermediate Japanese course - however, whether this will be actualized is another story. But, I’ll be sure to post it on this site when it’s ready!
So what is in store for the future? Long term, I don’t really know. In the short term, I hope to make a couple trips to China; continue studying Japanese and perhaps try for level 2 in one or two years time; and get more into multimedia programming / development. How long do I plan to stay in Japan? I don’t really know, except to say that depending on the circumstances, I may be back next month or next year… Even though some days may have its ups and downs, overall my experience here has been quite positive. I think for me, a lot would depend on the employment situation. The economy isn’t that great - but neither is it very good anywhere else.
Well, I’m curious to know what other foreigners in Asia or anywhere else for that matter are thinking - do you go through the up and down periods as well? Are you confused by what you consider to be your home? Do you have thoughts of returning ‘home’ but don’t want to leave behind the friends that you have made in your new found land?
(Comment originally submitted back in 2002; when the site was running the PHPNuke CMS system)
I am from Victoria, about the same age, and a CBC (just like you). I was living in Japan last year, and had been there for over 2.5 years at that point. So, on many many aspects, I think I can understand EXACTLY what you are/were going through.
Yes, I went through the ups and downs, as you did. The intial phase upon arriving in Japan is the period of adjustment - you don’t quite understand how to get around, and are a little bit homesick. The phase after that involves being comfortable, and really trying to make the most of your time in Japan - learning culture, making friends, travelling around Japan and the rest of Asia. At this point, perhaps you realize that you are making some progress into living and blending in with Japan, ie/ what to shop for, what to eat, what and how to order at restaurants, bringing a towel with you in the summertime, cool new keitai every few months, expert with the train system, konbini diet, etc…
I think that perhaps the downside comes when you become disillusioned about your future and where you will be in 5 years if you decide to stay in Japan. Every person that relocates to Japan believes it’s only temporary (I’m only going to stay for 1 year, and see how it goes). In any case, you realize that you would be comfortable remaining in Japan, but if that were the case, you might have nothing to show for it. Sure, it is easy to earn a lot of money, go back home once a year and spend it (especially Canada!) - but at what point does the novelty of living in Japan wear off? I found Japan to be a really empty and sad society, with only superficial benefits (money & electronics), and not much else. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed my stay in Kansai, and only people that live in Japan more than 1 year will ever see the negative sides of that country.r
Anyways, at this point you can still say that your overall experience was definitely positive, but you have to come to a decision to either 1)make it big in Japan, or 2)do something else. In my case, I opted to go back to school and become very poor again. I know that in the long run, that is probably better than staying in Japan and trying to recreate a ‘normal’ life there. I had my share of travelling around almost every part of Japan, Korea, China, HK, and Thailand - it was time to move on (especially when I am young). My home is Canada, but not just yet