Job Discussion Forums

[inakajin]

I am an African american male living in a village of 4000 in Yamagata prefecture. I am currently on the JET program and teach at Junior and elementary schools. I just wanted to say that in many of the post on this forum I read about people complaining about small towns of 100,000 people and so forth. Let me tell you 100,000 people is a huge city compared to where I am. Also, I want to add as many others have said Japan is what you make of it. For me coming from Los Angeles I thought I would hate it here but over the last year and a half I have been having the best time of my life. The people here are wonderful and the job is fun. Personally, I would not trade my village in for anything that Tokyo has to offer, so having said this to all those people living in Tokyo or other big cities and complaining that they don't like Japan. My reply is Tokyo is NOT Japan! Japan is found in the villages, the people, the culture....not the big cities that are just trying to conform to western society. My advice hop on the shinkansen and head out of the cities and see what Japan is really all about.

[Celeste]

That is great. For me, I lived in small towns most of my life(I spent 1/2 my childhood in a village of just under a thousand people, and partway through elementary school, we moved to a city of 14 000) and I knew that I wanted to be in a big city in Japan.

I wanted to ask you a couple of questions about your small town experience:

Did you speak any Japanese before you came?

Had there been an ALT in the town previously, or were you the first one?

How far is the nearest big city?

How often do you feel the need to go there?

Are there any other foreigners in your town?

I assume that you are single (sorry to assume, but....) have you been able to date anyone in this town?

Do you miss foreign food? Do you ever use such services as the foreign buyers club or www.theflyingpig.com?

Are you staying a second year?

You see, I do not know very many inaka ALts, and several of the ones that I do know are unhappy for one reason or another. I would love to hear more about your experience to see what it takes to be happy in the countryside.

[inakajin]

To answer your questions, When I first came to Japan I spoke no Japanese however during my first year hear I would say I studied about 4 hours everday and on the weekends I was tutored by an english teacher at my junior high school. After my first year I was able to pass the second level Japanese proficiency test. Speaking Japanese has probably been my biggest asset while living here, because without it communication would be nearly impossible. As for previous ALT's there have been four before me so I am not the first person in this village. Also, there are no other foreigners around me, the nearest person is about an hour away by car. The biggest city which would be yamagata city, which is small itself, is about 2 hours by car. I usually go to the city about once or twice a month but during the winter it is virtually impossible to get out because of the snow. In regards to my dating situation I have actually been in a relationship for the past six months with a girl in a neighboring village. The only down side to being in a small town is that everyone knows your business, so within about 2 days of me meeting my girlfriend I would say that about 70% of the people knew about it. As for foreign food I do miss it sometimes but since I am in Japan I try to each as much Japanese food as possible because I figure I will have plenty of time to eat good old American food when I return home. I will probably stay for my entire three year contract in Japan because I actually do feel that everyday I am here I gain something valuable.

[nakanoalien2]

I totally agree with your point that the Japan experience is what you make of it. I'm not surprised that you arrived here wondering, but found that you loved the inaka. I wish I could be there, but my work is in central Tokyo.

But I differ with you on a couple of points. First, Tokyo IS Japan just as much as the countryside is, albeit not as traditional. Anyone who has done business in Japan (I still teach a bit but work in finance now and manage a team) will tell you that Tokyo is most definitely not trying to conform to the west although it may sometimes seem so on the outside. I cannot count how many times I've heard, "Japan is a special case", or "We Japanese need a different....". This is why so many companies separate their Japan ops from their Asia Pac ops - doing business in Japan is considered a skill in itself.

Also, in pop culture, Japan has a unique way of taking in certain trends and items and making them uniquely Japanese. Do high school girls wear WigWams anywhere but in Japan? Who's ever had soba in Denny's in America?

Second, as for complaining, I hope people here are just blowing off steam. It is stressful at times being in a different culture. Better to be blowing off steam on a website than lecturing your students on how you feel about X cultural difference, right? I do think the recent public rants in the Daily Yomiuri are embarassing, though.

Have fun in the country!

[Shonai Ben]

I too lived in Yamagata-ken and I found the people there to be extremely friendly.The scenery in the entire prefecture was extroardinary.There are many mountains,waterfalls,historical sites,onsens,beaches,geysers and the local food is fantastic.I too felt that I was experiencing the real Japan.
Enjoy your stay in Yamagata-ken.I feel you are lucky.
Cheers.

[Lucy Snow]

I totally agree with you, nakanoalien2. I lived in a medium-sized city in Japan for over 8 years, and I think I got to know the "real Japan."

And since most people in Japan live in urban areas rather than the countryside, it could be argued that urban life is more "real" for a majority of Japanese than country life.

[Sunpower]

[Lucy Snow]

When we were in Japan, we were wondering why so much pizza was sold with corn kernals sprinkled on it. (There was even a place that sold cheeseburgers with corn) A student told us that it made it more American that way. We told her that they don't do that in the US.

But the same thing happens to Japanese food outside of Japan. There's a so-called Japanese restaurant here in Budapest that was highly recommended to us, and when we looked at the menu, there were only a few things even remotely Japanese on it. I don't think that bread stuffed with spinich and cheese is a Japanese dish.

I don't even eat sushi outside of Japan unless I know the chef is Japanese.