Job Discussion Forums

[senorwaq]

I'm hoping to head off, probably to Japan, in the next few months. I'm torn between being sick of a big city (sunny London) and risking being stuck in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do.

Has anyone seen both sides of the coin in Japan?

Also, if I apply to NOVA and ask for a smaller town am I likely to get it? will I regret it?

[icollin]

Hey there,
I was in a small town called Matsusaka (in Mie-Ken) for 1 year. At first, I really enjoyed it. It was about 2 hours away from Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, Kobe or Nagoya so I was happy. I met tons of foreigners and japanese people and we were always out on the last together. It was awesome! Then, after the honeymoon feeling goes away, you start wondering what on earth you are doing in a small town (especially when you go to any of the cities I just mentioned). There is nothing to do, nothing to see, no bars...(just izakaya) and the circle of friends starts to change because people come and go. I was lucky, I met someone there (and we dated until I came back to Canada - 10 months total) and we went to China and Korea together. But at home,all we did was watch films and go out once a week to the izakaya...because that's all you can do (oh, and study japanese). So, if you want to be bored, and don't mind being isolated, go for it...But chances are, you will wish for something with a bit more action. Some cities are not so big but have everything you need/want. Osaka is good, a bit big, but it's a great city. Kyoto is big-ish, and it has tons of foreigners there (which I don't like). It just depends what you want for yourself. In a smaller city, you can save more money, learn japanese quicker...so, you really have to do pros and cons for this situation. Hope this helps, and sorry it's so long

[Glenski]

Check out the short thread titled Rural Life or City Life? on www.teachinginjapan.com (2nd page of messages). I wrote this.

Advantages of a rural life.
Greater chance to experience the real Japan.
Greater chance to learn Japanese.
Not as many other foreigners around to bother you.
Cheaper living expenses.

Disadvantages of a rural life.
Fewer opportunities to shop in large malls.
Loneliness (if you really NEED those pesky foreigners to "bother" you).
Time/Expenses to travel to the bigger cities.
Less chance for Internet capabilties compared to big city options.
Some likelihood that you may have to travel to teach in more than one school (depending on circumstances). This may require driving yourself.
Fewer opportunities to find work.
Less English around.

I think that with these examples, you can extrapolate to advantages and disadvantages of city life.

You said you are torn between city and rural life, but you only listed rural living as a bleak negative. What about it actually appeals to you in the first place? You also don't seem to have a high opinion of big cities, either. Have you made a comparison list something like I just did?

[guest of Japan]

For me, city is better than country. I've had quite enough of the "real Japan." I've just re-entered city life and I am loving it. They say variety is the spice of life and there isn't much variety in the country. Also, I like not needing a car (especially since I didn't have one in the country).

[Gordon]

I am glad I live in a small city as opposed to a big city. However, if I didn't have a child, I'd probably have the opposite view. I don't think I'd like a small town, I work in one and am glad I live closer to more civilization.
If you like London, than go for a big city here.

[azarashi sushi]

My vote is for city life too. Even though you say you are sick of London, you are probably still used to city life and would find Japanese "inaka" life too depressing.

A happy medium might be to live somewhere like Kanagawa or in the western part of Tokyo which has more green spaces and is a lot less crowded... BUT you can hop on a train and be in central Tokyo within 30-60 minutes.

[kiracle]

I live in the "country" after living in sunny New York City and its not so great. It's okay and I am certainly surviving (and learning Japanese while saving money) but I miss the amenitites which one takes for granted in a bigger city.

I just got back from a trip to Nara and I really liked it. A city like that that is not too big might be good for you. There are many nice areas in Nara and people were really friendly ( more so than in my small town) I noticed too that in the downtown of the historic area there was both a Geos and a Nova.

Good luck!

[Great Teacher Umikun]

I'll be living in a small city myself. I was considering working in Tokyo myself, but the place I'll be working, Koga, has a rail station on the Touhoku Main Line. Tokyo will be an hour away for visits, and visiting is the only thing I want to do in Tokyo now that I think of it. I'll have a bigger apartment this way, and I'll have a half-hour walk instead of being packed into a subway car like a human sardine for my daily commute.

[senorwaq]

Thanks everyone for loads of really differing opinions . I think I'm going to try to go for a smaller city. I can see that living in the countryside could get pretty intense very quickly. I imagine somewhere a bit smaller would give me a crash course in Japanese compared to Tokyo and other big cities. Also, I definitely need to get "pissed off with London" out of my system