Sorry for asking it here, but when I first started to learn Japanese I only wanted to learn a… - Feed Post by Darwo
Sorry for asking it here, but when I first started to learn Japanese I only wanted to learn a different language, it was actually an impulsive desire, now I am in love with this language (seriously, it is in mind all day long), so is it as hard as they say to live in Japan? I mean, I don't like to have expectations, so I want to visit Japan before I choose anything, I don't know a thing about Japan.
posted by Darwo
Comments 8
I've stayed there as an exchange student, which was amazing. However, once you start trying to actually become a resident and permanently stay in Japan as a foreign citizen, a lot of people aren't so nice anymore. The younger generations, like the young adults and teenagers, usually love foreigners and are happy more people are interested in their country as a home. The older generations, however, which make up most of the population, still have that "bubble" mindset, as I call it, and are incredibly hostile towards foreigners trying to make Japan their new home. One of my friends has lived there ten years and is a fully-integrated Japanese citizen, but he'll still get kicked out of restaurants or denied access to stores because he doesn't "look" Japanese. He looks European. He'll get stopped many times in one day by police officers and demanded that he show proper ID. Before becoming an actual citizen, if you don't have your visa and you're stopped for whatever reason, you are usually immediately deported. It can be very, very hard to live in Japan with all this social stigma, not to mention the living costs versus income and all that. Their customs are very specific as well, and there's a lot of respect and polite culture that many other countries just don't have. If you're considering visiting Japan, I highly recommend it! It's an amazing country and I've never felt more at home than there. However, please keep in mind that they treat visitors very well but may not extend that warm welcome again if you try to gain citizenship and a home.
Please take everything said by dersedreamer with a huge grain of salt. While this is true for some gaijin living in Japan, I personally know this is not the case for everyone. For every bad racist experience I've had, I've had at least 20 more pleasant ones. There are alot of jaded gaijin that are very vocal and can make it seem like the Japanese dislike people trying to live there. Most "racist" situations are just culture misunderstanding, that said people who dislike non-japanese totally do exist and you will encounter them if you stay long enough. But this exist in any country (Im from the US and its MUCH worse in the states). As a long term resident you are expected to adapt to the culture, which tourist are not (because they are not staying long term). Alot of the people that have problems are long term residents that haven't tried to adapt in ANYWAY (life long tourist). I've spoken to people who've lived in Japan for 5+ years and never bothered to even learn the most basic japanese. Yet they still complained about shop owners not liking them or people being hateful to non-japanese. This same shop owners had no issues with me or any of my other gaijin friends who can speak some japanese. Bottomline, before moving to ANY COUNTRY, you should check it out on vacation first. It can be vary easy or very hard to get a Visa depending on which country you are from and why you are coming. But most can get a tourist Visa unless you are from the middle east (blame the war on terror).
Thank you for your answers! Adapt is not a problem for me, actually my way doesn't fit in my country (Brazil), I think that adapt is the least to do when you want a new home.- I didn't talk to many Japanese, but some didn't know English and even so tried to talk to me when they could just ignore me. It sticked in my mind (?) and I remember it when I am studying Japanese. Well, it is not related to my post but I wanted to share it.
- Ah, I didn't mean to say everyone's experiences are like that. I've never had anything along those lines and I hope to return to Japan soon. I guess, what I was trying to say is, make sure you study well and take a few trips first before you decide on staying. Learning the language, of course, is of utmost importance, but so is cultural study as their rules can be a bit confusing for non-Japanese. I wish you all the best of luck! The work truly pays off. If it gives you any hope, my husband speaks German and English and has no understanding of Japan's culture or language, but I can easily instruct him and be a translator whenever he travels with me, so he's yet to encounter much trouble. Good luck!
Darwo, since we are from the same country, I totally understand you. I feel like a foreigner here in Brazil. I don't think I'd have trouble adapting to the japanese culture, in fact, I believe it would be easier for me. But, while I think it would be easy, I also fear their "reception". So I've been reading a lot about this (and still have a lot to read).
From what I've read so far, most people say the same as Roguespierre. Almost every foreigner living there says that the japanese are the most polite and kind people they've ever met, and that they have never been mistreated.
On the other hand, it seems that is hard to actually get close to people. The japanese are naturally "reserved" and have few friends, so it's even harder for foreigners :x
But, well, I've never been there, so what I'm saying is completely from what I've read. I hope the other jcjp users who live in Japan can help shed some light on this :)- I see. I fear saying or doing something I shouldn't.
Do a lot of research into taking residency in Japan, so you aren't caught off-guard. It's a different ball game compared to simply visiting.
