I got hooked on his content even though I had been dreaming of visiting Japan since I was like 10, it helped me along with my friend who studied abroad for a year to understand the pride that gets taken in keeping the country a clean safe place. I visited in late 2019 with no issues, just observe and be polite. Still hope for a 2nd trip and I hope all the terrible Kick/other streamers that have caused issue don't dampen the welcome I feel I was given in most of the interactions I had.
Respect. He's respectful. He's honest about his opinions and he's willing to say if something is bad but never in a disrespectful way. He does crazy things but always in a respectful way.
And yet he only pushes the mainstream narratives about Japan and doesnt tell you any of the truth. How about that hes probably now joined Souka Gakkai to keep his "career" alive?
Chris in a way is lucky to have stumbled upon Natsuki, who isn't quite your average Japanese guy to begin with, and Ryotaro, who has lived abroad in native English speaking countries for longer periods of time and has therefore learned to speak English well. Can imagine a lot of other westerners being more unfortunate in that sense.
100%. Chris has been incredibly lucky in that sense. He literally bumped into Natsuki as a stranger on his walk home one evening and started a friendship. Natsuki is his not-so-secret weapon n has been a wildly popular character on his channel. He even made a movie titled after him when Chris hit a Patreon milestone. At the end of the day, it's luck + hard work
Plus him starting his channel in the first place, documenting his life in Japan for friends and family, which then slowly over many years evolved into what it is now. To his credit he was not content with being an English teacher on the JET program, not learning the language and befriending just foreigners. He completely embraced his new home. His videos seem very off the cuff, but they are carefully planned out and edited, nothing is outsourced. It's a great deal of hard work.
@@themountainwanderer Agreed. Many other youtubers who were much more intentional about TH-cam as a career at the start have not fared nearly as well as Chris. He does outsource his camera work and he has a producer though haha..
A loveletter that Chris absolutely NEEDS to hear and internalize. On behalf of Chris' viewers, thank you so much for making this. Especially at such a crucial time where expat streamers in Japan get such a bad rep. As an Abroad in Japan viewer for 8 years or so now, this makes me happy in a parasocial way :D
I mean, considering what some of the streamers who to to Japan get up to, a bad rep is kind of inevitable. Not that the expat/immigrant streamers are of the same ilk, but I can see how all foreigners would get painted with the same brush.
I like watching him. He does one thing right: he loves Japan. He really does. He educates foreigners about Japan, and you want to go see what he is showing. I watched another channel, Tokyo Llama. He is Australian, his wife is Japanese, and he bought a house in the countryside and rebuilt it with his Japanese inlaws, and it's amazing. All these shows are places and things most don't see, and when you see them, you want to go visit. And as an American who lived in Japan, I would always go out to the countryside to see things.
I guess it boils down to the simple fact that he treats Japan not like an attraction or theme park like Disney land, but like a country with people on it. He’s genuine, and people can feel that.
He got into TH-cam at a key time when it was still early in the platform and not saturated with many others doing the name, he respects Japanese culture and rules unlike a lot of modern streamers that have made the news, he puts effort into his videos and productions, and he doesn't mind being silly or the butt of the joke in order to be entertaining. He hasn't had any major scandal or drama in his personal life either that has leaked out to make him appear anything dramatically different than the person he seems like in his videos. It's pretty easy to see why he's easily likeable with most people.
thing is, there were plenty of travel bloggers esp in Japan by his time. He stood the test of time because he kept improving his camera work and ideas, while staying grounded to his sense of comedy and sphere of influence. That drew people to him, including the weeb crowd despite him not being one himself.
His videos are high production quality, but the content can be improved on I feel. It's often very sensationalist, which... it's hard to blame him where ctr is everything in the TH-cam algorithm and clickbait unfortunately is effective. Sometimes he twists the narrative in his favor. For example, when he wanted the narrative to be "Japan is neglecting its historical architecture for sleek, dull modernity," he showed how Harajuku Station, which featured Japanese architecture from the 19th century, was rebuilt into a boring glass building. The catch is, they actually built the glass structure to expand on the station, but the old station was replicated exactly how it was. In Chris's video, he only showed it from an angle where the replicated part was completely hidden. I could go into the specifics of why it had to be rebuilt, with earthquakes and wood and humidity, but I'll save you the snooze fest. In short - it's admirable how hard he works and the production value rivals that of TV, but I would keep a level head and not automatically believe everything he says.
I like how he doesn't take the content in the moment too seriously, but he takes the editing and presentation with great care. It makes it feel casual, while still clearly feeling like high effort content.
Chris is extremely loved both inside and outside Japan because he is incredibly awesome! He provides extremely accurate, and factual, information about living in the Japanese society (as a foreigner), and the lesser known parts of the country (to a foreigner). Chris is also absolutely hilarious to watch and listen to as well!
I'm German and I'm old (60+) but I've always had a certain affinity for Asia. But I never had the opportunity to visit Asia. I also have some difficulty with languages, e.g. German. Chris not only introduced me to Japan and its culture but also to English as a language. Chris is one of the best ambassadors for Japan I have ever seen. All the points and some more you mentioned are reasons why I like him. Unfortunately I will never have the opportunity to travel Japan but Chris does it for me, especially the things that are off the beaten tourist track. He has met so many extraordinary Japanese personalities and given us such deep insights into them that it is nothing short of a miracle. Perhaps he will be given the opportunity to meet the emperor one day. If nothing else, you are allowed to dream. For me, it would be the culmination of my personal dreams. I hope he makes many more such wonderful videos about Japan for the world and for me. Nothing would please me more, for Japan, for Chris and for me.
I think in addition to what you said, which I all agree with: - Chris doesn't take himself to seriously - he is just crazy enough to do things that nobody else would like cycling around Japan. this generates attention and sympathy - he learnt the language fluently and yes, he loves Japan. he really does
@@AC-LING666 in Japanese history Caucasian people did more damage than people of color, but sure, go off, involve race in everything that has NOTHING to do with it
@@AC-LING666Stop projecting though, I had relatives in Japan who gets along well with their neighbors and they aren't white, we're dark browns . Considering that colored guy that constantly makes a nuisance in Japan and gave streamers a bad rep had gone away scott free for a very long time until it was too much just tells you the patience of the people around him before it was too much and arrested him. And there's several black people who have , half black and jap kids still choosing Japan for their kids than America because of their experience in their own country in bullying , tells you something.
This video makes me so happy. The fact the place and people that Chris loves so much, understand that and love him back. As a British person I am looking forward to whenever I can travel to Japan, and take a look at some of the wonderful, hidden places Chris has shown us.
Mr Affable, as is his Trash Taste nickname, he really does love Japan, but he's also human. He's struggled with his weight, and has been really public about it. His friendship with Natsuki and Ryotaro is genuine, and they have a pretty good relationship. I really like the tourism he promotes. He is the reason that when I retire, I'll probably come to northern Japan, and look at Akiya there. The climate is quite similar to Michigan. I formerly worked for Fujitsu America, and like the culture. (with exception of the overworking )
What a coincidence; as someone who is also definitely wanting to visit and possibly even move to Japan permanently, Northern Japan is also the place where I would most likely go, because it's closer in climate to where I currently live in Michigan. Although I'm more of an urban person, so I'd most likely want to be in Sapporo in particular. It's almost exact too, some of the southern outskirts of Sapporo are right at the exact same latitude as Grand Rapids.
I've been subscribed to chris since the beginning and the guy is really respectful with Japanese people and their culture. He literally was the first ever youtuber in japan starting in 2012 and Japanese people actually watches his content. The guy is just loved for sharing his love of the culture of japan. It's not that hard to understand once you hear his background of him threw out the decade of living in japan.
He actually moved to Sakata in August 2012 on the JET program, but I agree with everything else you said. Just wanted to make sure the facts are straight. 😊
He literally is not.. i love the guyy, don't get me wrong. He may be the first 'very succesful' - foreign and englisch speaking - TH-camr in Japan but he is not the first making Videos like that about Japan - But of course , Chris has his own style and ideas for videos. You have to remember: This platform, TH-cam, is almost 20 years old - there have been many more 'TH-camrs' 'like Chris loooong before him. First that come to mind are people like 'TokyoCooney', 'Iwate Swam', Eleven Colors' and Danny Choo!! Many of them made 'Vlogs' and Blogs, talking about places they visited, food, culture and these guys have/had 'the same love and respect' for Japan. The videos back then were not as 'intense' and well produced like the Videos Chris is making but still the same 'content'. You have to remember - This was in the early to mid 00's. People didnt have phones with good cameras, there wasn't WLAN/Internet everywhere, videos on youtube only had a playtime of 10 minutes so you had to make part1, part 2 and so on for 'longer videos'. There was no 'algorithm' and how you search and find videos was a totaly different thing. There was also a German Documentary-TV Channel, with a small Studio in Japan and they made a TH-cam Account very early because they saw the potential of the site and they made a lot of videos just like Chris, about Japan. But they only spoke german and had english subtitles. They made the exact same content as Chris and the series was called 'Es Muss Nicht Immer Sushi sein' `(translates to 'It doesn't always have to be sushi') and they had about 30 or 40 Videos with a decent playtime of 30 to 60 minutes. You could argue that these people had a 'Crew' and bigger budget because they got paid from a big german TV company/channel but they only made videos on/for TH-cam. Later on they shortened the videos and released some of it for german TV.
@@carn1fex_yeah the content on Japan was always very popular but Chris blew up cause his early videos were so iconic. Like the dancing robot strip club and oddities of Japan. Most others didn't delve that deep into Japan and mostly focused on learning Japanese and anime
In a comedic perspective, his humor is in forms of skits, visual humor and sarcastic remarks. The Japanese love visual humor and the west loves sarcasm, and everyone loves skits. His humorous personality definitely fits in perfectly as a content creator foreigner living in Japan
I had no idea he was so popular in Japan. Thanks for this perspective. I think there are a lot of us who are very grateful for Japan in some way and care about its problems. That's one of the reasons we watch your channel.
Kinda surreal to see how famous he is, I remember first finding his videos a decade ago when he was still doing basic low quality vlogs in his living room discussing the good, the bad, and the ugly while still teaching english.
Chris, Paolo, John, Sharla, Anming, the whole Trash Taste gang and ofcourse, You: all have made my trip to Japan way easier en convenient. Throughout the years, they prepared me when it comes what to arrange up front, public transport, food, basic Japanese speaking, etiquette and so on. I can’t thank you all enough for that. As a kid I always wanted to go to Japan but it just seemed so far away because of all the differences. Years later and a lot of time spending on TH-cam it felt like second home when I eventually got to visit. Applying the knowledge I gathered through them all I had a great time and I don’t have to think twice about visiting again!
Bro, a Broad abroad is broadly speaking the best thing that has occurred to Japanophiles. He gives Foreigners a much better face in Japan, and he's genuinely one of the most open-minded and genuinely kindhearted people that I've seen walk this earth of ours. I hope he lives long and prospers because everyone's lives get a bit better with Chris Broad and his channel A Broad in Japan.
Innit, Maybe this is a bit weird but I started watching because he gave a much more realistic view of Japan that is both good and bad - I'm not so into people who kinda worship but also positively discriminate, and it gives an innnacurate view of things. His British cyniscm is refreshing for me and just feels more down to earth
Chris' videos often feature things that even natives don't know about, such as creepy dolls in an abandoned village, some weird capsule hotel from Showa, etc. Those videos make even natives want to explore their own country. He has quite some talent for finding charm in things and articulating it. That might be somewhat similar to the spirit of Haiku, you know, wabi-sabi, paying attention to details, appreciating them, describing them concisely and all that.
A lot of people view criticism as hate or an attack towards them when in reality it's the opposite. Those who criticize do it because they want to see improvement and not have mistakes be repeated. Those who cannot handle criticism are stubborn and too prideful in themselves. If someone tells you what you need to hear, they're trying to help you do better. When someone tells you what you want to hear, they're trying to make you do worse. Chris Broad is trying to make both foreigners and Japan do better.
He's a blue collared British. Bantering, Criticising and Sarcastically making fun of everything and everyone is their nation sport, second only to football hooliganism.😅
It's also about higher aspirations. In South Africa if you don't want people to get murdered and their lifestyles deteriorated, you're negative. So I left those "proudly murder capital of the world" people.
Yep! I had to reprogram myself not to ever offer suggestions because of how sensitive people are. I grew up in music and loved getting critiques. If someone didn’t care about you they wouldn’t bother listening to you, helping edit your papers, etc so I always saw it as a positive interaction… until everyone else didn’t 😂
@@ItsBAndBees It is peculiar how a lot of people these days can't take critique at all, although everyone is a pampered brat these days, especially in the west, not enough punches headed their direction and not enough beatings by their parents in their childhood to toughen them up in the first place. I mean when one has to go back to barbarism to get people to toughen up, coddling people has gone way too far. I've never taken anything in life for granted, and I might be a spiteful bigoted cunt, but at least I care a lot about those around me, physically, emotionally and monetarily. And I prefer when people give me critique, because how else am I supposed to grow, if I'm never to learn what I'm doing wrong, or methods to improve what I do. It's always better to heed the words of those who are more knowledgeable because having to find out stuff via trial and error makes it way harder a journey in life. Let insults be shed like water off a duck, and may critique turn the gears in your noggin.
I've followed Chris for years now and at this point I can relate with your comments since I'm Mexican and there's a similar situation going on here. A native Korean recently moved to Mexico and has been sharing Mexico's culture around the world and learning traditions, explaining how the common person lives and acts is very kind, unlike so many negative criticisms through media (which is sadly true). Anyways, the respect Soo-Jin Kim shows to Mexico is amazing and loveable. Hope many people visit here and get to share the love. EDIT: Spelling
I've followed Chris for years and what kept me tuned into his content is his respect, understanding, and consistency and continual improvement in his videos. He is well spoken and also has many interesting video topics which makes you curious to click his videos despite it being something that initially may seem uninteresting.
I can see how much respect you have for Chris. This is an amazing video you have produced. I think Chris will love it when he watches. My wife and I want to visit Japan and visit many of the places Chris has shown. He truly is an ambassador to Japan for the rest of us that need someone to identify with and learn from. Chris is a 10/10
I'm originally from the same general area as Chris, I apologise for our accent and humour which can be an acquired taste 😅 These days I work in Hong Kong so me and my wife like to try and come to Japan at least once a year to visit, but we come for skiing and our favourite place is actually Niigata prefecture. It is still yet to be overrun by the hoards of foreign tourists that descend on the bigger Hokkaido resorts or even Hakuba, and the local people were so hospitable that it took my breath away. We can't wait to go back in January for our honeymoon
If you like skiing. I definitely recommend to try the ski resorts in Tohoku. APPI Kogen in Iwate Prefecture Or Zao Onsen Ski Resort in Yamagata prefecture. Both are amazing and they have less crowd even compared to Niigata.
i feel so emotional watching this; his content has NEVER gone down in quality, only up! he’s come so so far from just a humble english teacher to an amazing content creator and director with production quality of cinema level that really captures an audience.. he has extensive knowledge and connections and when he films he’s able to go to areas or experiences with his good reputation that many can’t, it makes such interesting content seeing places i’ve never heard of or had access to as they’re not the popular areas so thank you chris for all you do!!
Truthfully, I discovered Abroad in Japan around 2015, and it did make me want to go there for a holiday. So I started saving up and by 2019/20 I had saved enough for a month holiday. Howerver right then covid struck, so I had to delay until earlier this year, when I finally got the chance, from march to april I spent a month in Japan and it was one of the greatest experiences of my life, I visited Tokyo, Aomori, Osaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka. I went to as many places as I could, largely due to his videos. I truly loved my time in Japan and hope to go back one day. Love from Australia.
I have been following him for years. He’s funny and it’s obvious that he genuinely loves Japan, along with all the idiosyncrasies of Japanese culture. It’s such a beautiful country, but it can be totally beyond comprehension for a foreigner. Chris is rather like our tour guide.
His British sarcasm is priceless. Also his love and care towards Tohoku is so genuine that it always brings tears to my eyes when I see his documentaries on the subject.
He's done all the right things, been a teacher, made some friends and has shown the world many great things about Japan. He made me consider a holiday there in the future.
I am American who loves Japan (and the Japanese people) and often visits Japan , and Chris’s channel is my favourite channel about Japan! I always tell people that I have visited other countries, but Japan is the only foreign country I ever feel homesick for when I’m gone. ❤🇯🇵
I mean as a general content creator he is loved, his documentary style of videos are really good almost like on par, nay even better than what BBC or NHK could come up with and he should know since at some point he did work with them, he has mastered the documentary style video just in his stay in Japan and honestly that says a lot, he really managed to make a documentary entertaining and not just informative and his tip videos where he just talks to us mano e mano on the camera are very well done and well articulated.
I have been a fan of Chris for years and have learned so much from his videos. It makes me really happy to see how successful he has become and that he has such a good reputation in Japan!
He's honest, he's always tries to present things in a respectful, but humorous way. Chris does an excellent job of being both informative and entertaining and unlike two certain individuals, Chris is not going out of his way to be a nuisance to everyone he crosses.
Long time a go i followed him and since that thay, he is still mainly only channel covering Japan that i watch. Sure there are some others but he is the main! And its nice to see how contenct has improved over time. He deserves all the recognition.
Chris is one of the reasons i visited Sendai. i wanted to see the recovery and restoration of the town after the damage. it was an interesting trip. the view from Yamadera was also quite nice. His takes on Japan and japanese culture are always informative and very interesting.
Chris was absolutely a role model for me in terms of how to approach moving to Japan. Working hard in language school (difficult, as I'm old and older brains struggle with language learning), making it a point to understand the culture as best I can and at least not make the same stupid mistakes twice, and so forth. Making friends goes slowly, but as the language skills improve that will get easier (and being too pushy too quickly would be a big fail in cultural understanding anyway). Fortunately, as a musician, music acts as a sort of side language that other musicians comprehend, regardless of nationality. Couldn't be happier up here in Sapporo...
Chris has one of my favorite youtube channels ever specifically because its clear how much he loves and respects both the culture and the people of Japan. I studied Japanese for 3 years but I've never had the money to be able to afford to travel, so Chris's videos have been a means for me to 'travel' from inside my home and I appreciate it so much.
@@hedgehogthesonic3181 not in the slightest lol I was at like maybe middle schooler level. Now I'm out of practice so much less than that; kanji and grammar are unfortunately the first things to go when you don't use them frequently.
@@sorah8850 Yeah i noticed that, once i slowed down studying Kanji, it seems like the brain forgets about these very fast. The fastest way to learn them is to use them everyday in daily life, and to do that i would have to move to Japan but that's something i can not do right now.
@@hedgehogthesonic3181 I tried to do the JET program and made it to the interview stage but honestly my anxiety was not under control that year so I didn't do as well with the interview as I should have & therefore did not continue with the process.
I'm a long time subscriber since his teaching days. His content has always been good, even the stuff he just made in his room back then, but I'm really amazed at how far he's come.
His videos are the highest quality I seen on TH-cam. His sarcastic humor is funny. He likes drink He doesn’t seem cocky or arrogant He learned Japanese He is humble
I am a travel agent in NZ and i send quite a few people to Japan and have visited Japan myself many times. After seeing Abroadinjapan I am now sending more and more customers to more remote areas that he's been too! Such good content and a good video !
I've been following Chris since probably his first year on TH-cam. I think what sets him apart is that he is uniquely funny, and I think he has a genuine appreciation for the country and it's culture.
Honestly i like this because it is a great quick montage of a lot of Chris's greatest videos and moments. But also truly boiled down who Chris is as a person under all the layers of sarcasm and showmanship.
its expected why he is so loved. he goes out of his way to fit into japans society, he follows social rules but is not afraid to break the mold to make someone more comfortable and belonging. amazing guy, thought me a lot and made my trip to japan so much better.
A friend of mine just got back from taking a bike trip across the Japan's south eastern territories. He named Chris as one of his inspirations for going. I can't wait to take my own trip.
Chris played a large part in growing my knowledge about Japan. I started watching him to prep for my first trip to Japan. He was funny, self-depricating, knowledgeable and above all, his love for Japan showed throughout his content. He epitomizes the best in an immigrant to Japan, who wants to carve his path but respects the culture and embraces it, while challenging certain norms in small ways. I love Abroad in Japan for the gaijin love letter to the coumtry that it is. Love you too, Nobita! Enjoy your content as well.
After watching and listening to so much of Chris’s stuff over the years it makes me so happy to see the recognition that he deserves for so clearly loving the country where my Japanese side of of my family lives, and showing that with a British twist ❤
rural japan is like a dreamscape to me. the land, the people, the culture - such a shame that it's depopulated and no tourists visit. I would live out my days there in a heartbeat
I find his video exploring Japan to be interesting as he shares trivia and his experience, both good and bad, which is relatable and feel real. He has that humour which is funny and enjoyable to watch. He doesn't offend the locals on purpose just for likes, like certain western TH-camrs. His video editing is nice that you feel like watching a travel documentary.
Chris is a legend; I have been watching his videos for years and his passion for Japan really shines though in all his videos. They make us more knowledgeable and gives us information we don't normally see and it's great.
I love that guys videos. I saw his videos around the time I found yours. He also gives good advice about how to make it in Japan. He does not sugar coat things which I respect.
He is very relatable, and as Japanese audiences get more used to foreign content may understand the intricate humor. To smoothen the barrier he also picks on himself a lot. I bet everyone respect Chris for pushing himself outside his comfort zone. To me, he seems like an introverted person with a lot of "guts" (pun intended) but he still gets into social settings and he is very well-mannered and witty, so he get along with anyone. He's one of those people who you will be friends with for the rest of your life, and I think people from anywhere pick up on that :)
Not to mention that he did the crazy bike travel tour and did see it thhrough, he really is inspiring. Ok he is lovely and that , but that might be his most inspiring.
I discovered Chris's channel after my first trip to Japan and it helped me overcome how much I missed the people, the sights, and just everything beautiful about Japan. I do hope to return someday, but now my list of "must see" spots include places he's shown us. I'd love to see the northern areas - and his and Connor's bike ride through Hokkaido really made me want to visit there. It was so beautiful! I have been watching him for about 8 years now and I always look forward to his new videos and projects.
I visited Japan for the third time this Summer. Much of my destinations and trip planning was inspired by Chris. I Climed Fuji-San, Mt. Asahidake, visited Sapporo, Haodate, Aomori, Sendai, Nikko. I have the feeling i have seen only a tiny bit of the coast of Tohoku, but it was still amazing. I plan on visiting Kyushu next.
We love him too and I am very proud of the impact he’s had. His videos helped me through some of the hardest moments of my life an rekindled my fascination with Japanese culture. My daughter and I are planning to visit Japan next year. Great vid nice a see a fellow Brit so well loved ❤
I love Chris's videos. He's very respectful, no matter where he goes. He's very funny, and genuine. When he has negative things to say, he does try too be as polite as possible, or puts a little humor into the critique to soften it. He's done his best to learn the language. His pronunciation is understandable, and he makes an effort to use it wherever he can. He treats Japan like his home. He shows us parts of Japan we might not notice or know about. He loves the road less traveled. I want to go back to Japan and visit done if the places he's shown. Chris is truly...affable.
Honestly I love how he honestly critiques Japan without being completely critical. So he gives context and understanding in his critiques and always points out the good just as much as the bad. I try to mimic this style in my own work as an academic researcher in Japan. He’s a lovely role model! ❤
This video was sponsored by Abroad in Japan. 😂 No seriously, you make all good points. I can see why Chris gets approval by the locals even though his channel is geared mainly towards non-Japanese. He isn't a jerk and shows respect and appreciation even through his jokes and jabs. His best work are actually the documentaries, even though as be bemoans they are not getting as many views as his other videos.
Thank you so much for sharing this. Thank you for being a positive example for people who want to learn a foreign language. To learn a language you have to speak it no matter how scary it is and no matter how good or bad you think you are in. 🙏
As a brit myself I'm happy to see that our dry but fun loving sense of humour can be appreciated especially in Japan, a country many of us love even if we can't all visit, and I'm sure Chris will absolutely love it being said that he is more handsome that James bond 😂
I've always wanted to go to Japan and no matter the place, treat others how you want to be treated as well. It may not be a place for me, but experiencing the place is something I would look forward to at some point. This guy really does seem to have that passion to be a part of it and it's nice seeing that from a foreigner that is just being a person that loves what he does.
Chris is awesome. Not only is he entertaining and visits places that not everybody has been to or visited, but his chemistry with both Ryotaro and Natsuki is unmatched. They bring out the best in Chris and make his videos so much better.
Finding his channel and watching his videos has really helped deepen my feelings toward Japan. I have always been interested in Japan and Japanese culture but now I feel like my interest has become something more. I find myself having a great respect for the Japanese people. I cannot wait to visit one day and finally experience Japan for the first time. I have started taking Japanese lessons thanks to watching Chris's videos and also have my wife excited about going! I want to meet locals and have a conversation with them, learn more about their culture and way of life. It would be really awesome to run into Natsuki , Ryotaro and maybe even Chris and have a beer or three!
I've been watching Chris for years and love his content. He does have an excellent sense of humor but, as you said, it's really his directing and video editing skills, along with his passion for learning deeply about the subjects of his videos and then respectfully sharing that passion and knowledge with his audience, that makes him such a compelling creator. Knowing all this, I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised to learn from you that Chris is very well-known among the Japanese general public, but it was still new information for me. Great video, thanks for sharing it with us!
I love Chris Broad so much! He is so funny and his videos are such high quality. One of the best youtubers imo. Glad to hear Japanese people like him too.
What a lovely video and thankyou for taking the time and effort to share your thoughts with us. I would love to make some Japanese friends, your country and culture has always absolutely fascinated me and I do hope to visit one day. Chris and his channel has only helped to reinforce this. As a fellow Englishman, I would say, yes, our sarcasm can sometimes seem a little strange or difficult to understand, but it can be used as a way to really reinforce feelings about topics. We have a saying "Many a true word is spoken in Jest". What is important with Chris is that he always remains consistent and true, although he does joke a lot, as you watch his channel, as you pointed out, he has always been an advocate for Japan, maybe almost an ambassador. Long may his channel continue so I can continue to see more of your beautiful country and people 🥰
Honestly I didn't know Chris was this big in Japan. In general I don't think being a fan of anime is a bad thing if it is used a source of inspiration to delve deeper in the culture. Like how playing historic games or watching historic movies can be a trigger to delve deeper in the history of that time period as long as you don't take the movie/game too literal.
I visited Japan just recently from October 27th to November 9th just got back from Japan a couple days ago. before arriving i signed up to learn Japanese and even after being back I'm still taking the time each day to learn and become fluent, being in Japan was such a wonderful experience, one part of the video was the language barrier even though I was solo traveling I wanted to meet and talk with the locals but with me just knowing the greetings and asking a few questions it was really hard for me to build that relationship and make a friend, I traveled outside of Tokyo and I fell in love with how beautiful the country is, I do want to move to Japan and start a new life over there. even though I live in the states it hurst me to see how some content creators act a fool just for likes and views. with my experience in Japan, I love how everyone is, so respectful and helpful, I have nothing but love and respect for the country and its citizens, coming back after my vacation i feel like I don't fit in and all I think about is going back to Japan.
Going to Japan has been one of the biggest goals for me over the past 15 years. The food, people, scenery and culture have been a constant draw and source of joy. I’m learning Japanese at the moment because I really want to learn about Japan from real people and hear stories as I travel. Next years my goal.
He has a great sense of humour and he knows how to laugh about himself too, the thing that many streamers lack because they're a bunch of cringey Weaboos. He learned from his mistakes and despite of any situations he looks happy in Japan,which is not easy because it requires a full mind-reset. He made what a very low percentage of streamers have made: to feel part and love Japan with its ups and downs. Chris is the best!!
He treats everyplace that he's at like home... He is ultimately disgusted at people that don't treat it like it's their home - that's why we love him
well you know the saying: when in rome do as the romans do.
@@Floridamangaming729Agreed. But tell that to OTHER people who don’t respect that rule at all. 😑
That's an excellent observation 👍
I got hooked on his content even though I had been dreaming of visiting Japan since I was like 10, it helped me along with my friend who studied abroad for a year to understand the pride that gets taken in keeping the country a clean safe place. I visited in late 2019 with no issues, just observe and be polite. Still hope for a 2nd trip and I hope all the terrible Kick/other streamers that have caused issue don't dampen the welcome I feel I was given in most of the interactions I had.
@@RobertDniroLHC wtf are you saying? what has his skin color to do with anything? and even if so, is it wrong to love white people?
Respect. He's respectful.
He's honest about his opinions and he's willing to say if something is bad but never in a disrespectful way. He does crazy things but always in a respectful way.
And yet he only pushes the mainstream narratives about Japan and doesnt tell you any of the truth. How about that hes probably now joined Souka Gakkai to keep his "career" alive?
@@pilotamuroreiprobably.... got evidence?
@@pilotamurorei what a reach. You have proof of that, buddy?
Actually; he is a very rude white guy!!!
This is the main reason. He is always respectful. Where he agrees or not with something he is respectful.
Chris in a way is lucky to have stumbled upon Natsuki, who isn't quite your average Japanese guy to begin with, and Ryotaro, who has lived abroad in native English speaking countries for longer periods of time and has therefore learned to speak English well.
Can imagine a lot of other westerners being more unfortunate in that sense.
100%. Chris has been incredibly lucky in that sense. He literally bumped into Natsuki as a stranger on his walk home one evening and started a friendship. Natsuki is his not-so-secret weapon n has been a wildly popular character on his channel. He even made a movie titled after him when Chris hit a Patreon milestone. At the end of the day, it's luck + hard work
Plus him starting his channel in the first place, documenting his life in Japan for friends and family, which then slowly over many years evolved into what it is now.
To his credit he was not content with being an English teacher on the JET program, not learning the language and befriending just foreigners. He completely embraced his new home.
His videos seem very off the cuff, but they are carefully planned out and edited, nothing is outsourced. It's a great deal of hard work.
@@themountainwanderer Agreed. Many other youtubers who were much more intentional about TH-cam as a career at the start have not fared nearly as well as Chris. He does outsource his camera work and he has a producer though haha..
@@thequaintguardian Ok, the outsourcing must be recent. He's gotten big enough I guess.
A😊
A loveletter that Chris absolutely NEEDS to hear and internalize. On behalf of Chris' viewers, thank you so much for making this. Especially at such a crucial time where expat streamers in Japan get such a bad rep. As an Abroad in Japan viewer for 8 years or so now, this makes me happy in a parasocial way :D
I mean, considering what some of the streamers who to to Japan get up to, a bad rep is kind of inevitable. Not that the expat/immigrant streamers are of the same ilk, but I can see how all foreigners would get painted with the same brush.
I like watching him. He does one thing right: he loves Japan. He really does. He educates foreigners about Japan, and you want to go see what he is showing. I watched another channel, Tokyo Llama. He is Australian, his wife is Japanese, and he bought a house in the countryside and rebuilt it with his Japanese inlaws, and it's amazing. All these shows are places and things most don't see, and when you see them, you want to go visit. And as an American who lived in Japan, I would always go out to the countryside to see things.
i am also subscribed to him
Dude, yeah! Tokyo Llama rocks! The whole journey renovating their house is so cool!
Yeah! Watch both as well! They are both entertaining and interesting
@@Lalaithlenhe's too affable
He's British.
I guess it boils down to the simple fact that he treats Japan not like an attraction or theme park like Disney land, but like a country with people on it.
He’s genuine, and people can feel that.
素晴らしい要約👍
He got into TH-cam at a key time when it was still early in the platform and not saturated with many others doing the name, he respects Japanese culture and rules unlike a lot of modern streamers that have made the news, he puts effort into his videos and productions, and he doesn't mind being silly or the butt of the joke in order to be entertaining. He hasn't had any major scandal or drama in his personal life either that has leaked out to make him appear anything dramatically different than the person he seems like in his videos. It's pretty easy to see why he's easily likeable with most people.
this one, golden age youtube
thing is, there were plenty of travel bloggers esp in Japan by his time.
He stood the test of time because he kept improving his camera work and ideas, while staying grounded to his sense of comedy and sphere of influence.
That drew people to him, including the weeb crowd despite him not being one himself.
His videos are high production quality, but the content can be improved on I feel. It's often very sensationalist, which... it's hard to blame him where ctr is everything in the TH-cam algorithm and clickbait unfortunately is effective.
Sometimes he twists the narrative in his favor. For example, when he wanted the narrative to be "Japan is neglecting its historical architecture for sleek, dull modernity," he showed how Harajuku Station, which featured Japanese architecture from the 19th century, was rebuilt into a boring glass building. The catch is, they actually built the glass structure to expand on the station, but the old station was replicated exactly how it was. In Chris's video, he only showed it from an angle where the replicated part was completely hidden. I could go into the specifics of why it had to be rebuilt, with earthquakes and wood and humidity, but I'll save you the snooze fest.
In short - it's admirable how hard he works and the production value rivals that of TV, but I would keep a level head and not automatically believe everything he says.
Nah J-vlogging was huge at the time
He is real. He is the same guy in person with no cameras on as you see in his videos.
I like how he doesn't take the content in the moment too seriously, but he takes the editing and presentation with great care. It makes it feel casual, while still clearly feeling like high effort content.
Chris is extremely loved both inside and outside Japan because he is incredibly awesome! He provides extremely accurate, and factual, information about living in the Japanese society (as a foreigner), and the lesser known parts of the country (to a foreigner). Chris is also absolutely hilarious to watch and listen to as well!
And he truly loves Japanese people... That is a big difference compared to some other foreign TH-camrs that just travel for the culture.
Affable if you will! =P
@@RocKM001 I'd say he's Effable as well as Affable.
too bad he already have boyfriend😔
speak for yourself, I personally can't stand him
I'm German and I'm old (60+) but I've always had a certain affinity for Asia. But I never had the opportunity to visit Asia. I also have some difficulty with languages, e.g. German.
Chris not only introduced me to Japan and its culture but also to English as a language.
Chris is one of the best ambassadors for Japan I have ever seen. All the points and some more you mentioned are reasons why I like him.
Unfortunately I will never have the opportunity to travel Japan but Chris does it for me, especially the things that are off the beaten tourist track.
He has met so many extraordinary Japanese personalities and given us such deep insights into them that it is nothing short of a miracle. Perhaps he will be given the opportunity to meet the emperor one day. If nothing else, you are allowed to dream. For me, it would be the culmination of my personal dreams.
I hope he makes many more such wonderful videos about Japan for the world and for me.
Nothing would please me more, for Japan, for Chris and for me.
I think in addition to what you said, which I all agree with:
- Chris doesn't take himself to seriously
- he is just crazy enough to do things that nobody else would like cycling around Japan. this generates attention and sympathy
- he learnt the language fluently
and yes, he loves Japan. he really does
Because he's white thats the number 1 reason, had it been a person of colour it wouldnt have been the same
@@AC-LING666 in Japanese history Caucasian people did more damage than people of color, but sure, go off, involve race in everything that has NOTHING to do with it
@@AC-LING666Stop projecting though, I had relatives in Japan who gets along well with their neighbors and they aren't white, we're dark browns . Considering that colored guy that constantly makes a nuisance in Japan and gave streamers a bad rep had gone away scott free for a very long time until it was too much just tells you the patience of the people around him before it was too much and arrested him. And there's several black people who have , half black and jap kids still choosing Japan for their kids than America because of their experience in their own country in bullying , tells you something.
@@AC-LING666How can you know that?
@@AC-LING666 when in doubt pull the race card
This video makes me so happy. The fact the place and people that Chris loves so much, understand that and love him back. As a British person I am looking forward to whenever I can travel to Japan, and take a look at some of the wonderful, hidden places Chris has shown us.
As a British colonist I agree, it’s the British blood that makes us what we are. We are lucky like that.
Mr Affable, as is his Trash Taste nickname, he really does love Japan, but he's also human. He's struggled with his weight, and has been really public about it. His friendship with Natsuki and Ryotaro is genuine, and they have a pretty good relationship.
I really like the tourism he promotes. He is the reason that when I retire, I'll probably come to northern Japan, and look at Akiya there. The climate is quite similar to Michigan.
I formerly worked for Fujitsu America, and like the culture. (with exception of the overworking )
What a coincidence; as someone who is also definitely wanting to visit and possibly even move to Japan permanently, Northern Japan is also the place where I would most likely go, because it's closer in climate to where I currently live in Michigan. Although I'm more of an urban person, so I'd most likely want to be in Sapporo in particular. It's almost exact too, some of the southern outskirts of Sapporo are right at the exact same latitude as Grand Rapids.
Under what visa exactly have you planned to retire in Japan?
I thought the Mr Affable nickname was from one of his 'negative comments' videos.
I think the same climate is the last thing I'd look for when leaving Michigan.
@@dandarr5035 You can guys can be friends.
I've been subscribed to chris since the beginning and the guy is really respectful with Japanese people and their culture. He literally was the first ever youtuber in japan starting in 2012 and Japanese people actually watches his content. The guy is just loved for sharing his love of the culture of japan. It's not that hard to understand once you hear his background of him threw out the decade of living in japan.
He actually moved to Sakata in August 2012 on the JET program, but I agree with everything else you said. Just wanted to make sure the facts are straight. 😊
@@vspence2 oh yeah my mistake. 😅
_"He literally was the first ever youtuber in japan starting in 2012"_
There were people regularly making Japan videos before that.
He literally is not.. i love the guyy, don't get me wrong.
He may be the first 'very succesful' - foreign and englisch speaking - TH-camr in Japan but he is not the first making Videos like that about Japan - But of course , Chris has his own style and ideas for videos.
You have to remember: This platform, TH-cam, is almost 20 years old - there have been many more 'TH-camrs' 'like Chris loooong before him.
First that come to mind are people like 'TokyoCooney', 'Iwate Swam', Eleven Colors' and Danny Choo!!
Many of them made 'Vlogs' and Blogs, talking about places they visited, food, culture and these guys have/had 'the same love and respect' for Japan.
The videos back then were not as 'intense' and well produced like the Videos Chris is making but still the same 'content'.
You have to remember - This was in the early to mid 00's.
People didnt have phones with good cameras, there wasn't WLAN/Internet everywhere, videos on youtube only had a playtime of 10 minutes so you had to make part1, part 2 and so on for 'longer videos'.
There was no 'algorithm' and how you search and find videos was a totaly different thing.
There was also a German Documentary-TV Channel, with a small Studio in Japan and they made a TH-cam Account very early because they saw the potential of the site and they made a lot of videos just like Chris, about Japan.
But they only spoke german and had english subtitles.
They made the exact same content as Chris and the series was called 'Es Muss Nicht Immer Sushi sein' `(translates to 'It doesn't always have to be sushi') and they had about 30 or 40 Videos with a decent playtime of 30 to 60 minutes.
You could argue that these people had a 'Crew' and bigger budget because they got paid from a big german TV company/channel but they only made videos on/for TH-cam.
Later on they shortened the videos and released some of it for german TV.
@@carn1fex_yeah the content on Japan was always very popular but Chris blew up cause his early videos were so iconic. Like the dancing robot strip club and oddities of Japan. Most others didn't delve that deep into Japan and mostly focused on learning Japanese and anime
In a comedic perspective, his humor is in forms of skits, visual humor and sarcastic remarks. The Japanese love visual humor and the west loves sarcasm, and everyone loves skits. His humorous personality definitely fits in perfectly as a content creator foreigner living in Japan
I was also thinking about how his humor hits all the notes.
This is why chris is the most affable man alive. His passion, dedication and excellent cinematography to promoting japan is like no other.
Why am I getting emotional watching this. 🤣 I just love seeing Chris be so appreciated. 🥲
I do hope he see this video. 😄
After 0:44 I'm confident he wrote the script for this video
@@Paul-hq7gf 😆😆
@@Paul-hq7gf LMAO agreed!
@@Paul-hq7gf dude set up the jokes for chris.
"just like Steven Spielberg" LOL I can just imagine Chris' reaction to reading that.
I get a sense possibly the English style of sarcasm has been deployed (also with James bond reference). Sorry chris, just a theory..
I had no idea he was so popular in Japan. Thanks for this perspective. I think there are a lot of us who are very grateful for Japan in some way and care about its problems. That's one of the reasons we watch your channel.
Kinda surreal to see how famous he is, I remember first finding his videos a decade ago when he was still doing basic low quality vlogs in his living room discussing the good, the bad, and the ugly while still teaching english.
Chris, Paolo, John, Sharla, Anming, the whole Trash Taste gang and ofcourse, You: all have made my trip to Japan way easier en convenient. Throughout the years, they prepared me when it comes what to arrange up front, public transport, food, basic Japanese speaking, etiquette and so on. I can’t thank you all enough for that. As a kid I always wanted to go to Japan but it just seemed so far away because of all the differences. Years later and a lot of time spending on TH-cam it felt like second home when I eventually got to visit. Applying the knowledge I gathered through them all I had a great time and I don’t have to think twice about visiting again!
Yes! Nice!! If you love them so much, go and eat them!!!!
@@Myriel67Not into that my guy! 😂
YES! This exactly
Bro, a Broad abroad is broadly speaking the best thing that has occurred to Japanophiles. He gives Foreigners a much better face in Japan, and he's genuinely one of the most open-minded and genuinely kindhearted people that I've seen walk this earth of ours. I hope he lives long and prospers because everyone's lives get a bit better with Chris Broad and his channel A Broad in Japan.
Good Pun !
Innit, Maybe this is a bit weird but I started watching because he gave a much more realistic view of Japan that is both good and bad - I'm not so into people who kinda worship but also positively discriminate, and it gives an innnacurate view of things. His British cyniscm is refreshing for me and just feels more down to earth
He has a Broad Body :)
He is very respectfull of Japanese people and their culture. He even learned japanese very well.
Chris' videos often feature things that even natives don't know about, such as creepy dolls in an abandoned village, some weird capsule hotel from Showa, etc. Those videos make even natives want to explore their own country. He has quite some talent for finding charm in things and articulating it. That might be somewhat similar to the spirit of Haiku, you know, wabi-sabi, paying attention to details, appreciating them, describing them concisely and all that.
You say you are a bit insecure about your english but outside of a bit of a accent I've had no trouble understanding you!
Great video keep it up!
A lot of people view criticism as hate or an attack towards them when in reality it's the opposite. Those who criticize do it because they want to see improvement and not have mistakes be repeated. Those who cannot handle criticism are stubborn and too prideful in themselves. If someone tells you what you need to hear, they're trying to help you do better. When someone tells you what you want to hear, they're trying to make you do worse. Chris Broad is trying to make both foreigners and Japan do better.
He's a blue collared British. Bantering, Criticising and Sarcastically making fun of everything and everyone is their nation sport, second only to football hooliganism.😅
It's also about higher aspirations. In South Africa if you don't want people to get murdered and their lifestyles deteriorated, you're negative. So I left those "proudly murder capital of the world" people.
You have no idea how much I keep bottled up, because most people around me in real life see all negative comments as nothing more then an attack.
Yep! I had to reprogram myself not to ever offer suggestions because of how sensitive people are. I grew up in music and loved getting critiques. If someone didn’t care about you they wouldn’t bother listening to you, helping edit your papers, etc so I always saw it as a positive interaction… until everyone else didn’t 😂
@@ItsBAndBees It is peculiar how a lot of people these days can't take critique at all, although everyone is a pampered brat these days, especially in the west, not enough punches headed their direction and not enough beatings by their parents in their childhood to toughen them up in the first place. I mean when one has to go back to barbarism to get people to toughen up, coddling people has gone way too far.
I've never taken anything in life for granted, and I might be a spiteful bigoted cunt, but at least I care a lot about those around me, physically, emotionally and monetarily.
And I prefer when people give me critique, because how else am I supposed to grow, if I'm never to learn what I'm doing wrong, or methods to improve what I do.
It's always better to heed the words of those who are more knowledgeable because having to find out stuff via trial and error makes it way harder a journey in life.
Let insults be shed like water off a duck, and may critique turn the gears in your noggin.
I've followed Chris for years now and at this point I can relate with your comments since I'm Mexican and there's a similar situation going on here.
A native Korean recently moved to Mexico and has been sharing Mexico's culture around the world and learning traditions, explaining how the common person lives and acts is very kind, unlike so many negative criticisms through media (which is sadly true). Anyways, the respect Soo-Jin Kim shows to Mexico is amazing and loveable. Hope many people visit here and get to share the love.
EDIT: Spelling
I've followed Chris for years and what kept me tuned into his content is his respect, understanding, and consistency and continual improvement in his videos. He is well spoken and also has many interesting video topics which makes you curious to click his videos despite it being something that initially may seem uninteresting.
I can see how much respect you have for Chris. This is an amazing video you have produced. I think Chris will love it when he watches. My wife and I want to visit Japan and visit many of the places Chris has shown. He truly is an ambassador to Japan for the rest of us that need someone to identify with and learn from. Chris is a 10/10
I'm originally from the same general area as Chris, I apologise for our accent and humour which can be an acquired taste 😅
These days I work in Hong Kong so me and my wife like to try and come to Japan at least once a year to visit, but we come for skiing and our favourite place is actually Niigata prefecture. It is still yet to be overrun by the hoards of foreign tourists that descend on the bigger Hokkaido resorts or even Hakuba, and the local people were so hospitable that it took my breath away. We can't wait to go back in January for our honeymoon
If you like skiing. I definitely recommend to try the ski resorts in Tohoku.
APPI Kogen in Iwate Prefecture
Or
Zao Onsen Ski Resort in Yamagata prefecture.
Both are amazing and they have less crowd even compared to Niigata.
But dry british humour is the best!
I'm English and moved to Hong Kong ten years ago. I recently left and repatriated. Ten years working in local schools in Kowloon and I'd had enough 🤣
i feel so emotional watching this; his content has NEVER gone down in quality, only up! he’s come so so far from just a humble english teacher to an amazing content creator and director with production quality of cinema level that really captures an audience.. he has extensive knowledge and connections and when he films he’s able to go to areas or experiences with his good reputation that many can’t, it makes such interesting content seeing places i’ve never heard of or had access to as they’re not the popular areas so thank you chris for all you do!!
Truthfully, I discovered Abroad in Japan around 2015, and it did make me want to go there for a holiday. So I started saving up and by 2019/20 I had saved enough for a month holiday. Howerver right then covid struck, so I had to delay until earlier this year, when I finally got the chance, from march to april I spent a month in Japan and it was one of the greatest experiences of my life, I visited Tokyo, Aomori, Osaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka. I went to as many places as I could, largely due to his videos.
I truly loved my time in Japan and hope to go back one day. Love from Australia.
I have been following him for years. He’s funny and it’s obvious that he genuinely loves Japan, along with all the idiosyncrasies of Japanese culture.
It’s such a beautiful country, but it can be totally beyond comprehension for a foreigner. Chris is rather like our tour guide.
wow! it's awesome hearing from a Japanese perspective. Thank you for creating this video!
His British sarcasm is priceless. Also his love and care towards Tohoku is so genuine that it always brings tears to my eyes when I see his documentaries on the subject.
He's done all the right things, been a teacher, made some friends and has shown the world many great things about Japan. He made me consider a holiday there in the future.
I am American who loves Japan (and the Japanese people) and often visits Japan , and Chris’s channel is my favourite channel about Japan! I always tell people that I have visited other countries, but Japan is the only foreign country I ever feel homesick for when I’m gone. ❤🇯🇵
I mean as a general content creator he is loved, his documentary style of videos are really good almost like on par, nay even better than what BBC or NHK could come up with and he should know since at some point he did work with them, he has mastered the documentary style video just in his stay in Japan and honestly that says a lot, he really managed to make a documentary entertaining and not just informative and his tip videos where he just talks to us mano e mano on the camera are very well done and well articulated.
I started watching his channel like 8 years ago. He definitely deserved the praise.
I have been a fan of Chris for years and have learned so much from his videos. It makes me really happy to see how successful he has become and that he has such a good reputation in Japan!
He seems like he doesnt take him self super seriously, he is nice to people and he has alot of wholesome fun in Japan.
He's honest, he's always tries to present things in a respectful, but humorous way.
Chris does an excellent job of being both informative and entertaining and unlike two certain individuals, Chris is not going out of his way to be a nuisance to everyone he crosses.
Long time a go i followed him and since that thay, he is still mainly only channel covering Japan that i watch. Sure there are some others but he is the main! And its nice to see how contenct has improved over time. He deserves all the recognition.
Chris is one of the reasons i visited Sendai. i wanted to see the recovery and restoration of the town after the damage. it was an interesting trip. the view from Yamadera was also quite nice. His takes on Japan and japanese culture are always informative and very interesting.
"And that is why we fucking love this guy"
Chris was absolutely a role model for me in terms of how to approach moving to Japan. Working hard in language school (difficult, as I'm old and older brains struggle with language learning), making it a point to understand the culture as best I can and at least not make the same stupid mistakes twice, and so forth. Making friends goes slowly, but as the language skills improve that will get easier (and being too pushy too quickly would be a big fail in cultural understanding anyway). Fortunately, as a musician, music acts as a sort of side language that other musicians comprehend, regardless of nationality.
Couldn't be happier up here in Sapporo...
Chris has one of my favorite youtube channels ever specifically because its clear how much he loves and respects both the culture and the people of Japan. I studied Japanese for 3 years but I've never had the money to be able to afford to travel, so Chris's videos have been a means for me to 'travel' from inside my home and I appreciate it so much.
Can you speak Japanese fully after studying for 3 years?
@@hedgehogthesonic3181 not in the slightest lol I was at like maybe middle schooler level. Now I'm out of practice so much less than that; kanji and grammar are unfortunately the first things to go when you don't use them frequently.
@@sorah8850 Yeah i noticed that, once i slowed down studying Kanji, it seems like the brain forgets about these very fast. The fastest way to learn them is to use them everyday in daily life, and to do that i would have to move to Japan but that's something i can not do right now.
@@hedgehogthesonic3181 I tried to do the JET program and made it to the interview stage but honestly my anxiety was not under control that year so I didn't do as well with the interview as I should have & therefore did not continue with the process.
The interview was in Japanese? @@sorah8850
I'm a long time subscriber since his teaching days. His content has always been good, even the stuff he just made in his room back then, but I'm really amazed at how far he's come.
I’m 100% confident Chris made this video.
His videos are the highest quality I seen on TH-cam.
His sarcastic humor is funny.
He likes drink
He doesn’t seem cocky or arrogant
He learned Japanese
He is humble
disagree, he does seem very arrogant
I am a travel agent in NZ and i send quite a few people to Japan and have visited Japan myself many times. After seeing Abroadinjapan I am now sending more and more customers to more remote areas that he's been too! Such good content and a good video !
I've been following Chris since probably his first year on TH-cam. I think what sets him apart is that he is uniquely funny, and I think he has a genuine appreciation for the country and it's culture.
Chris obviously loves everything in Japan and gives so much positive publicity to Japan while respecting everything and everyone in Japan
Honestly i like this because it is a great quick montage of a lot of Chris's greatest videos and moments. But also truly boiled down who Chris is as a person under all the layers of sarcasm and showmanship.
its expected why he is so loved. he goes out of his way to fit into japans society, he follows social rules but is not afraid to break the mold to make someone more comfortable and belonging. amazing guy, thought me a lot and made my trip to japan so much better.
A friend of mine just got back from taking a bike trip across the Japan's south eastern territories. He named Chris as one of his inspirations for going. I can't wait to take my own trip.
Chris played a large part in growing my knowledge about Japan. I started watching him to prep for my first trip to Japan. He was funny, self-depricating, knowledgeable and above all, his love for Japan showed throughout his content. He epitomizes the best in an immigrant to Japan, who wants to carve his path but respects the culture and embraces it, while challenging certain norms in small ways. I love Abroad in Japan for the gaijin love letter to the coumtry that it is. Love you too, Nobita! Enjoy your content as well.
I love Japan, the people, my local friends, the culture, the golf, and living here. Thank you!
After watching and listening to so much of Chris’s stuff over the years it makes me so happy to see the recognition that he deserves for so clearly loving the country where my Japanese side of of my family lives, and showing that with a British twist ❤
I fell in love with Japan for its history and countryside. Much love from Holland 🇳🇱 ❤!!!
He (and his friends) are down to earth, good people. It is really that simple
rural japan is like a dreamscape to me. the land, the people, the culture - such a shame that it's depopulated and no tourists visit. I would live out my days there in a heartbeat
I love watching Abroad in japan and tokyo lens, becuz they show u. How they love japan genuinely
I find his video exploring Japan to be interesting as he shares trivia and his experience, both good and bad, which is relatable and feel real. He has that humour which is funny and enjoyable to watch. He doesn't offend the locals on purpose just for likes, like certain western TH-camrs. His video editing is nice that you feel like watching a travel documentary.
Chris is a legend; I have been watching his videos for years and his passion for Japan really shines though in all his videos.
They make us more knowledgeable and gives us information we don't normally see and it's great.
I love that guys videos. I saw his videos around the time I found yours. He also gives good advice about how to make it in Japan. He does not sugar coat things which I respect.
it's amazing how just searching for japanese retro video games years ago yt recommended chris's channel
been a fan ever since
He is very relatable, and as Japanese audiences get more used to foreign content may understand the intricate humor. To smoothen the barrier he also picks on himself a lot.
I bet everyone respect Chris for pushing himself outside his comfort zone. To me, he seems like an introverted person with a lot of "guts" (pun intended) but he still gets into social settings and he is very well-mannered and witty, so he get along with anyone. He's one of those people who you will be friends with for the rest of your life, and I think people from anywhere pick up on that :)
Not to mention that he did the crazy bike travel tour and did see it thhrough, he really is inspiring. Ok he is lovely and that , but that might be his most inspiring.
I discovered Chris's channel after my first trip to Japan and it helped me overcome how much I missed the people, the sights, and just everything beautiful about Japan. I do hope to return someday, but now my list of "must see" spots include places he's shown us. I'd love to see the northern areas - and his and Connor's bike ride through Hokkaido really made me want to visit there. It was so beautiful! I have been watching him for about 8 years now and I always look forward to his new videos and projects.
I visited Japan for the third time this Summer. Much of my destinations and trip planning was inspired by Chris. I Climed Fuji-San, Mt. Asahidake, visited Sapporo, Haodate, Aomori, Sendai, Nikko. I have the feeling i have seen only a tiny bit of the coast of Tohoku, but it was still amazing. I plan on visiting Kyushu next.
We love him too and I am very proud of the impact he’s had. His videos helped me through some of the hardest moments of my life an rekindled my fascination with Japanese culture. My daughter and I are planning to visit Japan next year. Great vid nice a see a fellow Brit so well loved ❤
I’ve loved Chris for years so happy to see him getting the love he deserves ^^
Dude is just genuine. Good for him 👏
He's very afable and people recognise him on the street, he's always approached by fans who ask "are you youtuber!?"
I love Chris's videos. He's very respectful, no matter where he goes. He's very funny, and genuine. When he has negative things to say, he does try too be as polite as possible, or puts a little humor into the critique to soften it.
He's done his best to learn the language. His pronunciation is understandable, and he makes an effort to use it wherever he can.
He treats Japan like his home. He shows us parts of Japan we might not notice or know about. He loves the road less traveled.
I want to go back to Japan and visit done if the places he's shown.
Chris is truly...affable.
Chris is entertaining, insightful, articulate and (in a good way) a bit silly. He makes his corner of the world a better place.
Honestly I love how he honestly critiques Japan without being completely critical. So he gives context and understanding in his critiques and always points out the good just as much as the bad. I try to mimic this style in my own work as an academic researcher in Japan. He’s a lovely role model! ❤
This video was sponsored by Abroad in Japan. 😂 No seriously, you make all good points. I can see why Chris gets approval by the locals even though his channel is geared mainly towards non-Japanese. He isn't a jerk and shows respect and appreciation even through his jokes and jabs. His best work are actually the documentaries, even though as be bemoans they are not getting as many views as his other videos.
He is respectful, educated, and educated people about Japan. I like his sense of humour and his videos are very creative and relevant.
Thank you so much for sharing this. Thank you for being a positive example for people who want to learn a foreign language. To learn a language you have to speak it no matter how scary it is and no matter how good or bad you think you are in. 🙏
The whole world loves Chris Broad. Japan is lucky to have him.
As a brit myself I'm happy to see that our dry but fun loving sense of humour can be appreciated especially in Japan, a country many of us love even if we can't all visit, and I'm sure Chris will absolutely love it being said that he is more handsome that James bond 😂
Brilliant video. Lots of tears watching this, my favorite creator on TH-cam, great tribute to him.
Liked seeing this perspective of Chris from a japanese person!
I've always wanted to go to Japan and no matter the place, treat others how you want to be treated as well. It may not be a place for me, but experiencing the place is something I would look forward to at some point. This guy really does seem to have that passion to be a part of it and it's nice seeing that from a foreigner that is just being a person that loves what he does.
As British viewer he's my perfect guide to the country. Could not ask for a more respectful yet funny guy to tell you everything.
Chris is awesome. Not only is he entertaining and visits places that not everybody has been to or visited, but his chemistry with both Ryotaro and Natsuki is unmatched. They bring out the best in Chris and make his videos so much better.
Very talented and genuinely cares. I already wanted to visit Japan but his videos have lit a fire under me to get there at least once in my life.
Finding his channel and watching his videos has really helped deepen my feelings toward Japan. I have always been interested in Japan and Japanese culture but now I feel like my interest has become something more. I find myself having a great respect for the Japanese people. I cannot wait to visit one day and finally experience Japan for the first time. I have started taking Japanese lessons thanks to watching Chris's videos and also have my wife excited about going! I want to meet locals and have a conversation with them, learn more about their culture and way of life. It would be really awesome to run into Natsuki , Ryotaro and maybe even Chris and have a beer or three!
I've been watching Chris for years and love his content. He does have an excellent sense of humor but, as you said, it's really his directing and video editing skills, along with his passion for learning deeply about the subjects of his videos and then respectfully sharing that passion and knowledge with his audience, that makes him such a compelling creator. Knowing all this, I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised to learn from you that Chris is very well-known among the Japanese general public, but it was still new information for me. Great video, thanks for sharing it with us!
I love Chris Broad so much! He is so funny and his videos are such high quality. One of the best youtubers imo. Glad to hear Japanese people like him too.
I’m traveling to Japan next year! And greatly motivated by this guy!
What a lovely video and thankyou for taking the time and effort to share your thoughts with us. I would love to make some Japanese friends, your country and culture has always absolutely fascinated me and I do hope to visit one day. Chris and his channel has only helped to reinforce this.
As a fellow Englishman, I would say, yes, our sarcasm can sometimes seem a little strange or difficult to understand, but it can be used as a way to really reinforce feelings about topics. We have a saying "Many a true word is spoken in Jest". What is important with Chris is that he always remains consistent and true, although he does joke a lot, as you watch his channel, as you pointed out, he has always been an advocate for Japan, maybe almost an ambassador. Long may his channel continue so I can continue to see more of your beautiful country and people 🥰
This is honestly one of my favourite videos on youtube ever. Like it is such a beautiful respect paid to Chris in this video. Great work Nobita
Honestly I didn't know Chris was this big in Japan. In general I don't think being a fan of anime is a bad thing if it is used a source of inspiration to delve deeper in the culture. Like how playing historic games or watching historic movies can be a trigger to delve deeper in the history of that time period as long as you don't take the movie/game too literal.
I've been a fan since he first started his channel. He knows how to be respectful
It's been very cool seeing him grow as a content creator from early youtube to what he is now.
He is simply a nice guy…….anywhere. So, people can tell he is sincere when he speaks.
I visited Japan just recently from October 27th to November 9th just got back from Japan a couple days ago. before arriving i signed up to learn Japanese and even after being back I'm still taking the time each day to learn and become fluent, being in Japan was such a wonderful experience, one part of the video was the language barrier even though I was solo traveling I wanted to meet and talk with the locals but with me just knowing the greetings and asking a few questions it was really hard for me to build that relationship and make a friend, I traveled outside of Tokyo and I fell in love with how beautiful the country is, I do want to move to Japan and start a new life over there. even though I live in the states it hurst me to see how some content creators act a fool just for likes and views. with my experience in Japan, I love how everyone is, so respectful and helpful, I have nothing but love and respect for the country and its citizens, coming back after my vacation i feel like I don't fit in and all I think about is going back to Japan.
Going to Japan has been one of the biggest goals for me over the past 15 years. The food, people, scenery and culture have been a constant draw and source of joy. I’m learning Japanese at the moment because I really want to learn about Japan from real people and hear stories as I travel. Next years my goal.
He has a great sense of humour and he knows how to laugh about himself too, the thing that many streamers lack because they're a bunch of cringey Weaboos. He learned from his mistakes and despite of any situations he looks happy in Japan,which is not easy because it requires a full mind-reset. He made what a very low percentage of streamers have made: to feel part and love Japan with its ups and downs. Chris is the best!!