Have any of you guys talked to a Japanese person who let’s say… a business-man who grew-up in Tokyo all of his life and then as an adult has to leave an live in the U.S. for a few years for employment??
We always hear about the concept of “space” when people move from the States to let’s say Tokyo, I would wonder about the thoughts of a Japanese when experiencing the opposite. Would be interesting.
[quote]Cortes wrote:
Dangit, why are those sideways? [/quote]
And sandwiching some guy who wants to classify an entire civilization (if you agree with Huntington) of women as “submissive in bed” … lol
[quote]Chushin wrote:
[quote]Brett620 wrote:
[quote]Varqanir wrote:
The fact that Korea, which has pretty much everything Japan does, with meatier cuisine and (I’m gonna get in trouble for this) even prettier girls, is just an hour or two away.
[/quote]
Really?
Korean women > Japanese women??
I never really knew there was that big of a difference (this shows my ignorance, that’s why I’m interested in this thread). The East is so foregin to me it fascinates me. I can see Korean women being more attractive to Western men due to fuller figure due to their diets. Is that accurate? [/quote]
My experience: to an extent.
For me (and you’re going to laugh), they have much better teeth. [/quote]
Oh God it’s true, isn’t it?
I will say that, (Praise God), the general oral hygiene among females as well as males has massively improved over the past 10 years. When I first came here there were far, far too many gorgeous women with hideous teeth and gums.
[quote]Cortes wrote:
[quote]spiderman739 wrote:
[quote]therajraj wrote:
[quote]Cortes wrote:
Did I mention there are almost no fat girls and most of the girls are beautiful? I did mention that, right? [/quote]
Then why are the men spending all this time in their rooms?
See what I did there?
[/quote]
I’ve been discussing this with some of my high level students and they have suggested a few possible things;
Some of the guys were born during the bubble economy. Growing up in such affluent times has left them unprepared to deal with the harsh reality of recession riddled Japan. They end up withdrawing into themselves.
Pressure. From after third grade of JHS, everything is centred around getting into the right school, uni, company. It cracks some people.
Hammer down the nail that sticks out. Some people who don’t fit the mainstream mould feel more and more isolated as they get older and progress through society. Eventually they just drop out.
Shame. Rather than face the possible shame of asking for help dealing with depression, bullying, feelings of isolation/loneliness, it is easier to just hide away.
Just some ideas that my students (middle aged Japanese ladies) have come up with.[/quote]
I don’t find much to disagree with here. A lot of it is what Chushin and I said earlier.
The only point I’d nitpick you on is that life becomes very serious starting in the FIRST grade of jr. high, and more and more often now, even earlier than that. It’s another HUGE can of worms and one of the things I hate more than anything else about this country. [/quote]
Regarding JHS, saying 3rd grade instead of 1st is just from personal observation and what some of my younger students have said. I have no trouble believing that the pressure kicks in around 1st grade.
Like you said though, big can of worms. My oldest kid will be 9 this year so she is still in Elementary school. Don’t envy her once she starts JHS.
I think you and I have discussed this on another thread somewhere actually.
Anyway, getting back to life in Japan.
This will be my 14th year here come November, and if I had to summarise my time here I would say that the longer you are here, the less you understand.
After your first few years you think you have a decent handle on things. Being here a few years, when you consider the high turnover rate for English teachers, you start to feel like an old timer. Once you decide to settle down you very quickly realise how little you know.
[quote]Chushin wrote:
My wife (then girlfriend) once ordered “half chicken” assuming it was a half of an order of the normal chicken dish.
When they literally brought her half of a chicken, she was at a total loss for words. [/quote]
LOL!! That would have been priceless! I can imagine that, those damn 1/2 chickens can satisfy a family of 4.
[quote]orion wrote:
[quote]Varqanir wrote:
[quote]therajraj wrote:
[quote]Cortes wrote:
Did I mention there are almost no fat girls and most of the girls are beautiful? I did mention that, right? [/quote]
Then why are the men spending all this time in their rooms?
[/quote]
You are assuming that these men like girls.
Or would know what do do with one if they ever got one.
The whole point of the hikikomori syndrome is that these are people who are completely unequipped socially or emotionally to interact with other people. The entire Japanese Bikini Team could be pounding on a hikikomori’s door, and he’d just crawl deeper under his Hello Kitty futon quilt until they gave up and went away.
[/quote]
Which is probably much better healthwise than what I would try to do.
You would find my emaciated body 3 months later.
[/quote]
Literally lol!
[quote]spiderman739 wrote:
[quote]Cortes wrote:
[quote]spiderman739 wrote:
[quote]therajraj wrote:
[quote]Cortes wrote:
Did I mention there are almost no fat girls and most of the girls are beautiful? I did mention that, right? [/quote]
Then why are the men spending all this time in their rooms?
See what I did there?
[/quote]
I’ve been discussing this with some of my high level students and they have suggested a few possible things;
Some of the guys were born during the bubble economy. Growing up in such affluent times has left them unprepared to deal with the harsh reality of recession riddled Japan. They end up withdrawing into themselves.
Pressure. From after third grade of JHS, everything is centred around getting into the right school, uni, company. It cracks some people.
Hammer down the nail that sticks out. Some people who don’t fit the mainstream mould feel more and more isolated as they get older and progress through society. Eventually they just drop out.
Shame. Rather than face the possible shame of asking for help dealing with depression, bullying, feelings of isolation/loneliness, it is easier to just hide away.
Just some ideas that my students (middle aged Japanese ladies) have come up with.[/quote]
I don’t find much to disagree with here. A lot of it is what Chushin and I said earlier.
The only point I’d nitpick you on is that life becomes very serious starting in the FIRST grade of jr. high, and more and more often now, even earlier than that. It’s another HUGE can of worms and one of the things I hate more than anything else about this country. [/quote]
Regarding JHS, saying 3rd grade instead of 1st is just from personal observation and what some of my younger students have said. I have no trouble believing that the pressure kicks in around 1st grade.
Like you said though, big can of worms. My oldest kid will be 9 this year so she is still in Elementary school. Don’t envy her once she starts JHS.
I think you and I have discussed this on another thread somewhere actually.
Anyway, getting back to life in Japan.
This will be my 14th year here come November, and if I had to summarise my time here I would say that the longer you are here, the less you understand.
After your first few years you think you have a decent handle on things. Being here a few years, when you consider the high turnover rate for English teachers, you start to feel like an old timer. Once you decide to settle down you very quickly realise how little you know.
[/quote]
We did indeed talk about this previously, spiderman. I remember it now.
I did not realize you’d been here so long, however. Where are you at? Just the general area is fine, if you don’t feel like divulging your kojin jouhou, haha.
You should post more often. (^_~)
[quote]Cortes wrote:
Heh, already did, DN.
For all we fight, I think we’d get along pretty well if we ever did meet. I mean that.
And thanks a ton. I mean that, too. [/quote]
I don’t think we will get on very well.
Well… unless you bring your kids with you. Especially the baby 
Then, I won’t feel the need to smash a bottle of sake on your misogynist head.
Wow.
First time I ever seen the ‘‘Japan club’’ up this late…
Go to bed, Motherfuckers!!!
[quote]DarkNinjaa wrote:
[quote]Cortes wrote:
Now get your ass in the TM thread, 'cos we got a clash to get over with.[/quote]
Heh, already did, DN.
For all we fight, I think we’d get along pretty well if we ever did meet. I mean that.
And thanks a ton. I mean that, too. [/quote]
I don’t think we will get on very well.
Well… unless you bring your kids with you. Especially the baby Then, I won’t feel the need to smash a bottle of sake on your misogynist head.
[/quote]
I’ll bring the baby and we’ll drink the sake.
[quote]Cortes wrote:
[quote]cstratton2 wrote:
I can’t wait to visit Japan! Might do an English teaching program over there after college as well! Envious of the yall that live there, Hard place to get a work visa that’s for sure…
Cortes you have a gorgeous family, lol this thread cracks me up shame I am so late to it haha[/quote]
They thanks cstratton and Emily! That means a lot coming from the two of you. I respect you both immensely.
Cstratton, I cannot recommend a stay in Japan highly enough. You time it right, I may have a job waiting for you here after you finish college. Let me know if you really are interested.
There is no better English teaching job anywhere in Japan than the one at my school. I really do mean that and I’ve been told it by others who’ve been able to compare. [/quote]
Definitely interested! Will reach out to you when I finish up and see what’s possible, thank you!
Have any other way to contact and stay in touch with you Cortes?
[quote]cstratton2 wrote:
[quote]Cortes wrote:
[quote]cstratton2 wrote:
I can’t wait to visit Japan! Might do an English teaching program over there after college as well! Envious of the yall that live there, Hard place to get a work visa that’s for sure…
Cortes you have a gorgeous family, lol this thread cracks me up shame I am so late to it haha[/quote]
They thanks cstratton and Emily! That means a lot coming from the two of you. I respect you both immensely.
Cstratton, I cannot recommend a stay in Japan highly enough. You time it right, I may have a job waiting for you here after you finish college. Let me know if you really are interested.
There is no better English teaching job anywhere in Japan than the one at my school. I really do mean that and I’ve been told it by others who’ve been able to compare. [/quote]
Definitely interested! Will reach out to you when I finish up and see what’s possible, thank you!
Have any other way to contact and stay in touch with you Cortes? [/quote]
Poke around my hub. You’ll figure it out.
[quote]Cortes wrote:
I’ll bring the baby and we’ll drink the sake.
[/quote]
Hahahaha!
Deal!
[quote]Cortes wrote:
[quote]Chushin wrote:
[quote]csulli wrote:
Thinking seriously about learning Japanese…[/quote]
Do it!
You’ll be fluent in no time – say 10 years? ;-)[/quote]
Lol, seriously. [/quote]
I’m gonna type “learn Japanese” into Youtube and see what I can do. I’m sure I’ll have the hang of most of it by this evening. 
After seeing Cortes’s beautiful wife and his two kids who are possibly the closest thing modern science has seen to a weaponized form of cuteness, I gotta get in on that lol!
[quote]csulli wrote:
[quote]Cortes wrote:
[quote]Chushin wrote:
[quote]csulli wrote:
Thinking seriously about learning Japanese…[/quote]
Do it!
You’ll be fluent in no time – say 10 years? ;-)[/quote]
Lol, seriously. [/quote]
I’m gonna type “learn Japanese” into Youtube and see what I can do. I’m sure I’ll have the hang of most of it by this evening.
After seeing Cortes’s beautiful wife and his two kids who are possibly the closest thing modern science has seen to a weaponized form of cuteness, I gotta get in on that lol![/quote]
Csulli, you are too kind, my friend. <( ‘.’ )>
[quote]Quasi-Tech wrote:
So what don’t you guys actually share your information instead of referencing it like an old man telling a young boy that later on in life “he’ll understand.”
That is basically what I’m reading here yet no examples are being provided. If you have actual insight into the Japanese culture - and I certainly believe you do - then please share.
You’ve quite literally referenced my posts and each others, shared a comical inside joke, then left without giving any good information. Is your goal to help people learn, or just enjoy being on a separate level from everyone else?[/quote]
Any information they can give is about as useful as a guide-book to any country.
That is, just about useless, or extremely superficial at best. Because people are complex. Societies and cultures are complex.
Every region/province of any country has its own quirks and tendencies, and as such it’s pointless to even try to make a general claim about people.
Hell, even Koreans, as fucking tiny the country is, have extremely different personalities and tendencies between those who live in Seoul/greater area, Busan, Jeju, and even those who live in the small villages just an hour or two away from Seoul.
In fact, one can even argue that S.Korea has more diverse personalities between regions than the entirety of California does, and California is close to twice the size of S.Korea.
The fact that you’re getting annoyed at these people for not showing you the “ropes”, as it were, just means that you’re hopelessly unprepared to live in a foreign country, Japan at that.
Oh an Quasi-Tech:
I youtubed suicide forest - Creepy
[quote]Varqanir wrote:
The fact that Korea, which has pretty much everything Japan does, with meatier cuisine and (I’m gonna get in trouble for this) even prettier girls, is just an hour or two away.
[/quote]
I certainly don’t disagree
[quote]Cortes wrote:
[quote]Brett620 wrote:
So what is the allure of Japan? What keeps guys there wanting to stay after 5 years (besides the women)? [/quote]
[/quote]
hot waifu