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As a person of Japanese descent growing up in the US in an area where I was the only one I can totally relate and therefore sympathize with your situation. I have experienced what you have but on this side of the planet and it has me seriously questioning whether to leave the us for many of the reasons you described. In spite of the illusion of being a “progressive” society, in reality when things get difficult, like when Covid hit, I saw another reality here where now suddenly I feel like I do not belong at all. I notice little things like people coughing at me as they walk past me, people not making eye contact, even being assaulted and being the target of harassment. It’s an awful dreadful feeling when you are in a place where the surrounding may now want you there.

That advise is really wise, I'm not in Japan but I lived that feeling when you don´t fit in one specific place, it is good to try a new enviroment

My hometown in Japan. I lived there for two years in the early 90s.

I was an ALT in the early 90s and lived in Japan with my (Japanese) wife and daughter for nearly 22 years where I had a similar experience. Outsiders tend to think all Japanese behave and react in the same way. Japan is really quite a diverse country, which is what makes it so unique and such an amazing place to live. Its mountainous terrain and extreme climatic range has contributed to the development of many regional "mini" cultures--the Kanto and Kansai region, for example, or Hokkaido and Okinawa. As in other countries, city-dwellers think differently and have different values than rural folk. Likewise, people in Osaka tend to be more open and easygoing than people in Tokyo. Ultimately I think one's experience in Japan will vary with location and willingness to interact from both sides.

I recently found your videos. That is a wonderful area you are walking through. Is that somewhere in Osaka? Love your discussing to the camera videos you make.

The last one is fun to play with, and also quite common in bilingual or multilingual communities

Floresta linda,eu moraria nessa casinha,amo ❤,o problema é uma dessas árvores cair em cima da casa,de resto tranquilo ❤

Lived in Japan for 19 years and I miss every single thing you are talking about. Readjusting to living in Sweden has been super rough, at times it still is and I have been back for 8 years...

Paul, I want to thank you for the time you dedicate to creating these videos. I've always dreamed of visiting Japan, and something within me feels deeply drawn to Japanese culture. Japan is the one place I can imagine myself exploring, not as a tourist, but as if I were an extraterrestrial who just landed on a new planet where everything has a magical glow. I'm now at a point in my life where I’m determined to make that dream a reality and visit Japan. Your videos, your discussions about Japan...they’ve truly made a difference in my life. For some reason, that impact feels incredibly significant to me. It’s like receiving a gift, a pleasant experience that you share with others...LIFE! So, THANK YOU SO MUCH!

As soon as I saw "ESID" I knew you were a JET alumni.

Working at a teaching assistant or a supply teacher it teaches you there's so many variables as to how people respond to you: Some schools are so grateful for the input because they have such few resources and high challenges while other schools treat you as invisible for many or any number of different reasons (mostly to do with systemic issues with scaling up education imho). So it sounds similar to the experience you describe being an ALT in different schools in Japan? Again what you say about everyone has a different background rings true (it opens your eyes knowing this teaching and you realize you cannot take things personally as such). Equally to stay sane teaching, I always ask my students no matter everyone has their own background, I insist on good standards so you can develop excellence in yourself as individuals and as a group collectively and you all share in responsibility to achieve this while in school. It's a really good idea you have to think up a way where the students can do their English home-work atst as that providing value to you thus the actual work they do is "functional" in value and so meaningful.

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Interesting comparison between cultures….

Thank you for opening up about your experiences here….i agree….

I always enjoy your videos! Thank you for making them! Have a great day! And take care!

Your video made me think about how we treat foreigners, and important it is to communicate and welcome new people in your neighborhood. It makes living together more enjoyable and makes a stronger community.

English teacherとゆうstatusはそのままで、サイドビジネスで儲けるのはいかがでしょう？　例えば本格的なアップルパイを焼いてキッチンカーで販売するとか、もしくは古民家を安く購入してリノベイトして海外からの観光客のための宿泊施設を運営するとか？

Interesting and constructive viewpoint! Best wishes from Yokohama, where we don't nan to ka nan to ka ;)

Congratulations on the growth channel growth! I’ve been watching more content on non-Japanese living in Japan and I think there are a few distinct categories- the unrealistically ‘I’m a model but I also buy houses for a $1’ type which are like an instagram version of a place that is hugely fictional, - the deeply superficial ‘this is what I bought at the convenience store, hence I live in Japan now’ and channel like your’s which ring true of actual human experience.

Thanks for putting out your videos

why people romantize japan so much? i mean... i know why people below 30 like me do it... because of "anime". we grew up idolizing that culture. and dont get me wrong i love it still. BUT i know that japan is not perfect, just like any country. you will have horrible bosses, people will discriminate you for being a foreigner... even if you are white blue eyes... maybe they will never insult you or something. but you will NEVER be one of them. you will always be the "foreign gaijin". having said this. i love japan, and will continue to do it... but its a bit funny (and tragic) watching people dissapointed when they discover that japan is just another country in the world and is not a 24/7 fantasy world.

40% of us are single in this country right now so we don't (wouldn't) know each other, and it's growing fast.

I'm going to try for JET as an "old lady" teacher (I'm a licensed science teacher in the US). I wonder if that'll change the dynamic. xD

I also just found your channel ~ 2-3 days ago :-) Have you always been and are you still an English teacher?

ugh this guy has JET think

The greatest number of Akiyas are concentrated in Yamanashi. Watching this video interested me in looking for a getaway cottage in Yamanashi. ....just saying. Btw, your video is always well articulated, and you do it so naturally. I'm jealous.

Thanks Paul for another interesting and thought provoking video! Also for the beautiful backdrop scenery. Am watching this from my hospital bed as have had shoulder surgery this past week. Have enjoyed watching and being transported back to Japan for a short time. Cheers and looking forward to next weeks video. I’m sure you can make it to 10,000 subscribers by the end of the year!

ですね。その県によっても違うし市によっても違う。そして職場によっても全く違いますよね。 自分は宮崎の病院で働いていた時は(自分は医療事務です)、毎週金曜日あたりに飲み会があって夜中の2時3時まで。 ホントバカですよね。嫌になって２年で辞めましたけど。

Thank you for this video, i just bought a house in Hida Takayama for holiday. But i wanne be also social to the community. This video helps me understand much more about japan. Love your videos🙏🏼

What a beautiful spot, look forward to the Sat mornings drop, very interesting! :)

I couldn’t agree more. Throughout the year I frequent 15 to 20 different clinics throughout Kanto and work alongside the Japanese staff at each location for a couple/few weeks. The culture at each clinic is often vastly different depending on the manager and crew. At some shops. I’m treated like a celebrity greeted with warm smiles and enthusiastically advertised to our clientele. At other shops I’m cautiously obeyed or simply ignored or worse treated like it’s my first day on the job despite being higher in seniority. Staff and management come from all corners of JAPAN and their individual personalities certainly inform the culture of the shop. I used to chuckle when I heard the phrases “I am a typical (or not a typical) Japanese”. Or natives, grumbling that everywhere in Japan was essentially the same. At this stage, I am acutely aware of the difference in vibe of Edoko and newcomers to the city. Tōhoku Kanto Kansai Ryukyu Hokkaido are all so unique to me. Quite often I will have a certain sense when I meet a new coworker, client and quickly realize they come from Hokkaido or Kyushu.. regions I seem to naturally vibe with.

Love you Mystery story.Most favourite: Lady brought you with her 🚗 Car and her Son to a village you wanted to go in the Middle of the night,during you were carrying the Sword.❤ And about the Fuju Mount forest.Thank you

Another video let’s gooooo🎉

This was an excellent video! You expressed your viewpoints so earnestly.

Your channel is great and you are very well-spoken. Thank you for your videos.

While I have thought about earthquakes when shopping around I think your video has a great perspective and is pretty good. Still planning on buying an akiya though

Yes in the US, we pay huge premiums insurances for a little services in return ! Many medicines are usually not included in the insurance coverage ( especially cancer ones ) ! If you have a chronic disease that will definitely put you in bankruptcy. And if you cannot pay the premiums because you are unemployed or divorce, you simple go without health care like millions of Americans ! Welcome to the American Dream! Sir you are so naive or a self denier of US social reality !

Do you find better deals online? I’m starting a collection and live in Yokohama so I was planning on visiting some shops in Tokyo soon.

Yay! Thank you for a great vid and great honesty!

You should collab with Chase in Japan! He's been there as long as you and makes similar style videos

Same happened to me in Taiwan. I also write the stem. They're telling us how to write our language 🤣 as if it has a stroke order ~

Just got hit by the 7.1 quake in Miyazaki. I haven’t heard of any insurance companies that would cover earthquakes so you’re on your own if you do get hit by a bad one. I’m planning on getting a small one story Akiya and renovating it. I’m hoping the smaller size will reduce the reconstruction cost after the next quake. I’m also hoping the fact it is smaller and single story will reduce the danger of major injuries during the next one. Unfortunately my wife and I don’t have a the 200+ thousand dollars to drop on construction of a new home and if the mega-quake they do predict will hit, I’m not sure it will make a huge difference on safety and damage if a new house is designed to withstand up to an 8.0 magnitude earthquake gets hit by anything over that. Not to mention the bigger the house the more money we have to spend to repair it due to there being no insurance coverage. 😅

Consider my feathers ruffled! lol kidding, it was a great video thanks

Very interesting video. Having lived and worked there for 22 years and having a Japanese wife I can understand completely why the locals would be bewildered and frustrated by all the activity that social media has created. Don't know what the sollution is but I think "spreading tourism" out all over Kyoto would spoil the city's charm and turn it into one big amusement park. Better to keep things as is and let visitors who are genuinely interested in the country discover it themselves.

I would not be too hard on yourself regarding travel to other countries in Asia. You will have time when your child has moved out and has become established. You will probably find that you see the new destinations through different eyes than your younger self but they will be no less interesting. I agree though about researching destinations before arriving. I too have learned this lesson. It is wonderful to see things in new places that I have read about. I thoroughly enjoyed this video and I have subscribed. I have only visited Japan three times. If I had chosen to move to Japan as a younger person, I would have arrived there in the mid 1980s (yes, I am that old) and I have no doubt it would have been a wild ride. I have no regrets though as I have lived a good life to date and one of my major pursuits in my retirement is travel. It is really interesting, as you say, to see daily life in the countries that I visit.

i love stories like these and seeing the actual place

10:00 i bought hina dolls in japan surplus because of the beautiful designs in it's kimono dress despite knowing that it carries the negative energy but you know I'm glad that you mentioned here that it may have gotten some rituals from a shrine before sending them to antiques shop, a bit of a relief in my part hahaha moreover the reason of me having them is to add inspiration to the paintings im working on right now, i encountered your videos from searching about ukiyo-e and I found myself exploring your videos thank you for sharing!

cut to one year later and they decide if you're permanent and late on a bill you're out. basically they retracted permanent residency and made it temporary forever residency. only reason to stay is if you choose citizenship. only safe way to stay.

you dont have a problem with hostage justice and a 99% conviction rate and no extradition treaties? bruh civil rights are kind of essential

Brit here - 35 years living in Japan. What do I miss? I miss going to the vending machine on a piping hot summer day and getting an icy cold drink for ¥100. Oh, hang on a minute...