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Sour Grape
Joined: 10 May 2005
Posts: 241
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 Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 2:28 pm Post subject: |
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| markle wrote: |
| Sour Grape wrote: |
| To each his own. I have a better time when I'm hanging out with other foreigners. |
That's why you're a Sour Grape. |
But when I'm with my foreign friends, are we a sour bunch of grapes, or a bunch of sour grapes?
We do find better things to talk about than that, just in case you were in any doubt.  |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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southofreality
Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 579
Location: Tokyo
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| Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2007 4:26 am Post subject: |
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And, let's not forget one of the most negative things about Japan...
Ebi-mayo pizza and the scarcity of real, delicious pizza.
It's almost enough to send me home. |
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gonzarelli
Joined: 20 Jun 2007
Posts: 151
Location: trouble in the henhouse
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| Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2007 5:50 am Post subject: |
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| southofreality wrote: |
And, let's not forget one of the most negative things about Japan...
Ebi-mayo pizza and the scarcity of real, delicious pizza.
It's almost enough to send me home. |
I'll try the squid ink pizza, please.
http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Bunker/2275/pizza.html |
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gaijinalways
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 2279
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| Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2007 4:24 pm Post subject: |
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It's a balanced thing. Some forums are very negative about Japan, some ridculously praising; this place tends to tell it more like it is, warts and all  . |
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maya.the.bee
Joined: 23 Sep 2005
Posts: 118
Location: Stgo
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| Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2007 11:28 pm Post subject: |
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| gaijinalways wrote: |
| It's a balanced thing. Some forums are very negative about Japan, some ridculously praising; this place tends to tell it more like it is, warts and all . |
yes. but there is also a tendency to jump on people for the littlest reasons...start too many offtopic threads, too naive, too bitter, etc.
there used to be alot more posters & activity here, they seem to have be run off.
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markle
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 1316
Location: Out of Japan
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 12:04 am Post subject: |
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| maya.the.bee wrote: |
| there used to be alot more posters & activity here, they seem to have be run off. |
It's pretty cyclical. Regulars come and go, issues wax and wane. In the end if you want ti more lively you have to contribute yourself. |
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untmdsprt
Joined: 08 Sep 2007
Posts: 16
Location: Hino, Japan
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 12:06 am Post subject: |
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Here's my 2 cents:
Just been hired by Berlitz and going over in November.
1st complaint - having their insurance as compared to the national one, may have to spend my own money to get the national one
2nd complaint - may have to find a ATM that will allow me to draw out the rest of my money depending if my bank has a fast turnaround on converting US to yen.
I do plan to avoid Americans like the plague. If I wanted to be around them then I would just stay here. I also plan to have a Japanese boyfriend, and regular friends to hang out with. Also plan to learn Osaka-ben in addition to the Tokyo dialect.
I do have one hobby that is relatively cheap, and will get me out of the apartment more. I have a DSLR, with infrared and ultraviolet filters. I plan to photograph everything in Japan. Hopefully I will meet many wonderful people, and keep improving my Japanese ability.
I will try the local food at least once. Might even like their version of pizza!! |
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Ai
Joined: 02 Jun 2006
Posts: 154
Location: Chile
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 12:51 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
And, let's not forget one of the most negative things about Japan...
Ebi-mayo pizza and the scarcity of real, delicious pizza.
It's almost enough to send me home. |
I found a few Italian restaurants that had really good pizza. Not quite like home but really good all the same.
I'm not in Japan anymore and the food is the number 1 thing I miss, well maybe on the same level as my friends there. Then I definitely miss the money I was making.
To speak of negatives... Especially when I first arrived, there seemed to be things I wanted to do, simple things that would end up being incredibly difficult. They might be things like posting a letter, ordering food, or something like that. Luckily as time went on these things got easier. And when they did I felt a sense of accomplishment. In a way that can be positive. Yet every once in a while I would still run into things that I couldn't do without a Japanese person to help me. And that can be very frustrating, especially if you put a lot of effort in to studying Japanese and still have these difficulties.
Overall, I'd say that Japan is well worth all the negatives you may experience. |
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TokyoLiz
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Posts: 1548
Location: Tokyo, Japan
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 4:50 am Post subject: |
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untmdsprt,
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| I also plan to have a Japanese boyfriend, and regular friends to hang out with. Also plan to learn Osaka-ben in addition to the Tokyo dialect. |
If you're as young, ambitious and idealistic as you seem  , you're likely to get some male attention in Osaka. My dear friend (a 20 something Swedish amazon) came to Tokyo on exchange, met a gorgeous, sweet Japanese guy while on holiday in Osaka, and has since moved to Osaka to study Japanese language and be near him.
Japanese national health is the only way to go. Just eat the premiums. That is the cost of social welfare wherever you go.
Ai said
| Quote: |
| To speak of negatives... Especially when I first arrived, there seemed to be things I wanted to do, simple things that would end up being incredibly difficult. They might be things like posting a letter, ordering food, or something like that. Luckily as time went on these things got easier. |
That's just it. Get out, learn the language and Japanese yarikata and things will go so smoothly.
I find that the same things that bugged me in my homecountry bug me here, and few of the things that get me riled are the result of "Japaneseness". I see more commonality than difference. |
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Lyrajean
Joined: 19 Jul 2006
Posts: 109
Location: going to Okinawa
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 6:12 am Post subject: |
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| bshabu wrote: |
Eventhough the summer are HOT, they do have 4 seasons.
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Depends where you are..... Remember the latitude range on the land of the rising sun is quite impressive.
Okinawa seasons= ____ hot summer!  , summer, not quite summer, summer....  |
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untmdsprt
Joined: 08 Sep 2007
Posts: 16
Location: Hino, Japan
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 7:21 am Post subject: |
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| TokyoLiz wrote: |
untmdsprt,
| Quote: |
| I also plan to have a Japanese boyfriend, and regular friends to hang out with. Also plan to learn Osaka-ben in addition to the Tokyo dialect. |
If you're as young, ambitious and idealistic as you seem , you're likely to get some male attention in Osaka. My dear friend (a 20 something Swedish amazon) came to Tokyo on exchange, met a gorgeous, sweet Japanese guy while on holiday in Osaka, and has since moved to Osaka to study Japanese language and be near him.
Japanese national health is the only way to go. Just eat the premiums. That is the cost of social welfare wherever you go. |
Well I look younger than I am so maybe that will be a plus. Besides maybe they'll be my study partner, and help me learn their language faster.  Guess not having children has kept me young!!
Oh, for anyone considering Berlitz as a future employer, they've been helpful, but less than encouraging about meeting people at the airport, and finding apartments for them. You'd think employers would try to help people more if they're coming overseas for the first time! Luckily, some friends here can contact their friends in Osaka. I suggest going with someone else first and then transfer to Berlitz if you want to work for them.
I'm thinking they either need to stick with recruiting within Japan or start extending their services to new employees! |
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southofreality
Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 579
Location: Tokyo
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 1:19 pm Post subject: |
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| untmdsprt wrote: |
| I do plan to avoid Americans like the plague. If I wanted to be around them then I would just stay here. |
Don't take this the wrong way, but it's often the escape artists that end up on a plane back home, disappointed about their experience abroad.
Minimizing contact with people from your own country while abroad is absolutely reasonable, but you just might meet a few quality people here from your home country so maybe avoiding them altogether isn't the best plan.
Of course, get out with your Japanese friends and experience as much of Japan as you can with them while you're here. I usually find sightseeing with other foreigners quite boring and have been lucky enough to have Japanese friends to show me around. But it's nice to meet up with my American (and other foreign friends) for dinner and drinks once in a while.
Anyway, good luck with your preparations. |
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gaijinalways
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 2279
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| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2007 2:49 pm Post subject: |
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I think it kinda depends. Since I'm married now, I don't go out a lot period, but I do it with a Japanese person who happens to be my wife.
Making friends here takes time, and you might be surprised how fleeting it might be with both Japanese and foreigners alike. Something about living abroad, people come and go, both physically and mentally.
Last edited by gaijinalways on Thu Sep 13, 2007 5:08 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Mothy
Joined: 01 Feb 2007
Posts: 99
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| Posted: Wed Sep 12, 2007 12:02 pm Post subject: |
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| I've only been here about a month and a half (has it been that long already? Wow time flies) and in that time I've only done things with Japanese people. While I love my Japanese friends, and I love doing things with them, I must say I can't wait until I go visit my American friend in Gifu next week. I think I can totally understand how having some friends from back home could really help in keeping one's sanity. |
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