Job Discussion Forums

[articulate_ink]

Hi all. I'm starting to look into teaching abroad in a year's time. My top two destination countries are Japan and South Korea. I'm brimming with questions for people who have been through this already, but for now, I'll stick with the top three.

1. Food. I'm lactose intolerant and don't eat beef. As much as possible I eat organic stuff, and use organic toiletries. My Internet searches have turned up health food stores in the greater Tokyo area, but does anyone have any sense of the availability of such stores/products outside of Tokyo and Seoul? How about thoughts on culturally sensitive ways of declining food and drink I cannot digest?

2. Saving money. Heard another horror story today about a guy (friend of a friend) who found himself in veritable indentured servitude in Japan, when his employer ended up not subsidizing the apartment and not paying as much as the guy had been led to believe. Just for my own peace of mind, are there people out there living in reasonable comfort and putting away a satisfying amount of money? I don't care about numbers per se, but a sense of whether it's proving to be worth it?

3. The gay thing. As a gay man, I'm wondering what kind of experiences others have had in their schools. Japan seems to be more accepting; Korea seems to be more conservative. I'm not keen to go back in the closet and pretend I'm straight just to get by. (Besides, as a published writer, I'm publicly out to anyone who bothers to Google my name.) I'm also not going to assume there are obstacles where there might not be any. Please don't feel you need to identify yourself by posting on here; if you'd like to send me a private message or an e-mail, I'd appreciate it. (Oh, and one request. Please, no comments from the folks who feel the need to let me know they don't condone homosexual behavior, or feel that we shouldn't have the right to marry.)

Thanks...

[Glenski]

Regarding Japan...

1. You might also want to check out the Tengu organic food shop online. Otherwise, I'm sure you realize that truly organic foods will cost you more in the supermarket.

You'll have to be careful about beef. Read other threads here about vegetarians. This web site might be useful. Don't really know. There are plenty of sites on vegetarian cooking and restaurants available on the Net.

This is snipped from the Japan FAQ:


Japan is a fishing-based culture, so you will find many of its dishes contain a fish stock (dashi). Various soups, especially ramen, are prepared from pork or beef stock, too. Some restaurant staff don�t consider the source of the broth to be important, and if you ask them if the dish has meat or fish in it, they may say no, thinking you have to see chunks of it in order to qualify. Japan is also a soy-based culture, so you will find a huge assortment of tofu, and noodles are also very popular here (Italian pasta as well as Asian noodles of many varieties).

The larger cities have Indian restaurants, but you may still have to verify certain ingredients. Larger cities will also have access to stores that sell beans, but you can also order them through the Foreign Buyers� Club and Tengu Natural Foods.

http://www.alishan-organic-center.com/en/tengu
www.fbcusa.com

Other links on vegetarianism and vegetarian cooking in Japan are shown below.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?fg20030314rs.htm
http://www.vegsource.com/travel/asia/messages/278.html
http://www.vegietokyo.com/index.html
http://www.bento.com/r-veg.asp
http://www.jinjapan.org/nipponia/nipponia2/sp04.html
http://home.earthlink.net/~kitpath/kitchen/recipes/vegmisoudon.htm
http://www.cyber-kitchen.com/cookbookreviews/review017.htm

How do decline foods you can't digest is simple. Tell them you have a medical condition. You can lie about the same for alcohol, or just tell them you simply don't drink. I don't drink coffee or alcohol, and I have never had a negative response to simply telling people that's "my way".

2. Just for my own peace of mind, are there people out there living in reasonable comfort and putting away a satisfying amount of money? I don't care about numbers per se, but a sense of whether it's proving to be worth it?

Reasonable comfort will vary from person to person. In very general terms, yes. Figure on an average of 50,000 to 80,000 yen/month for an apartment. This varies considerably on location just as it does in your home country. With a standard eikaiwa paycheck of 250,000 yen/month, most people who are intent on saving money and who have no outstanding debts back home (eg, student loans), can actually save 70,000 to 90,000 yen/month from that salary. Again, everyone's situation is different. Some save zero. Some save more than these figures. And, if you are able to take on supplemental work (like private lessons), you can earn/save more.

[gugelhupf]

An openly gay friend of mine worked in Japan and loved it. He said he received plenty of respect and there was a lively gay social scene in the major cities.

As for Korea - some time ago I knew a gay Korean guy who basically fled his homeland and settled in Europe! I've never been to Korea and I know nothing about the place apart from second hand info. but from what this guy told me I would recommend you do some research before contemplating going there.

[Celeste]

I too am lactose intolerant. I also have a lot of food allergies. Simply explain your needs, people in Japan and Korea will try to accomodate you. (You will have to be very specific, though. While they want to be helpful, they won't necessarily understand the full implications of your dietary needs.)


I know a few gay people in Japan. I don't know how "out" they are in their work lives, but socially, they certainly are. Even in F ukuoka, we have a gay community, and even some gay bars. http://www.fukuoka-now.com/features/article_display.php?fn_code=499352

When I lived in Korea, Gay people were very closeted. There were certain bathhouses where "boys would be boys" according to a closeted gay man that I knew (gay men in Korea often came out to foriegners at parties when I lived there- as a straight married woman, I found this strange, but I tried to be supportive- as supportive of one can be of a virtual stranger at a c ocktail party) but most gay people would get married and have a couple of kids because it was their duty. I was told by many conservative Koreans that homosexuality did not exist in Korea, that it and AIDS were foriegn "problems".

[sidjameson]

My gay friends in Osaka say that although the "scene" is smaller than Tokyo it is quite lively. Gay men certainly seem to benefit from the same "asset inflation" as us straight ones.
Organic food is definitly avalaible here but def pricey too.
If you can control yourself at any level you will save money here.
Osaka is an allround fun place, but not a place for you if you like open spaces.

[articulate_ink]

Thanks everyone for the info. I appreciate it. Glad people actually responded; I was beginning to wonder! There are still so many variables to juggle, in addition to these -- cost of living versus what I'll earn, language, timing, etc etc etc -- eventually I'll get my head around them all, maybe...

[The Great Toad]

What up there happy guy! Well I am not gay, and I will not preach at you. But, I would compare many Korean morals to America around 1955. Coming out as a gay person in Korea would cause problems at your school if the parents found out. In America you would be protected from the parents contempt; however, in Korea, even in Seoul, you might be fired. Someone correct me if I am wrong- I have not been here years.

I have no clue about other countries except the US. Good luck, and watch out for creampuffs. (sorry my bad- had to do the milk/gay joke)

[Joachim]

Hi

I am gay also and I ahve never faced any serious problems, but I have had to field a lot of incredibly dumb questions and deal with people's totally uneducated assumptions and ideas.

Also, as a whute gay man in Asia you become a kind of "target" for local gay men who are desperate for better opportunities abroad and you tend to get mobbed if you go out on the scene - which would be fun if it wasn't so transparently clinical, so be wary of people coming on to you!

That's a big reason why i came to Hong Kong, where white people are nothing special, ou can still earn good money and people tend to leave you to your business.

Good luck with your decision!

[shmooj]

[articulate_ink]

[shmooj]

[Albulbul]

articulate ink,

So basically you only want to hear from people who agree with you and who share your assumptions ?

Maybe you should stay in Weirdsville, California ?

[johnslat]

Ah good - our resident "Welcome Wagon" has arrived.
Regards,
John

[Gordon]

[johnslat]

Dear Gordon,
Based on, say, Donald Trump's atitude, the answer may well be:

Right to the top of the heap.

Regards,
John