hypekstatic, have u even been to japan?
western style toilets, a luxury in japan? hmm, that one must have passed me by. or on the other hand perhaps i can refer to u when i tell my acquaintances that i live in a top notch flat since it has a western style toilet. in reality it is a very ordinary flat, perhaps even lower middle class standards.

Whats wrong with floor toilets anyway?
I personally prefer them because you don't have to worry about the seat being dirty or cold or whatever. They are also far easier to clean. And there are a few other advantages that I don't think i should mention...:cool:

As a female, I wouldn't want to use those types of toilets unless I had absolutely no choice. I'm pretty sure that older, more traditional housing have those types of toilets, but as far as I know, "Western Toilets" aren't as scarce as hypekstatic seems to be making it.

If you want to live in Japan, get some kind of practical skills you can rely on wherever you are in the world.

Many people come to Japan as English teachers and it works out fine for short period of time. But that won't get you further in life and you would eventually run into a wall.

Meanwhile, people like chefs, graphic designers, CPA, and investment bankers are good to go in Japan because these jobs require either special skills or knowledge which can be applied anywhere in the world.

My advise to you guys is to first go to Japan for a short period of time earlier as possible and get a taste of how it's like to live in Japan. Some people get enough after a year and some get obsessed with it.

If you want to live longer in Japan after your first stay, then take a moment and work on yourself so you can survive in Japan and take care of yourself and your family if you choose to get married in Japan.

Good luck!!

I know that Japanese toilets aren't bad, yah they have some ground toilets (not bad), but most toilets in Japan are even advanced tech., I personally would die to go and live there, I LOVE Japan, although I am still 17, I plan to go and finish my Master Digree there ( in the Future ), and then work there for a few years so that I can get the Citizenship.

by the way 'Tommasi', do you know if Programmers ( those who study Computer Science and Computer Information Systems ) have a good future in Japan?

Hey,
I had wanted to go and live in Japan for a long time before I graduated high school to. So I applied to college here and did it. It wasn't easy. I live off my monthly scholarship and it's just enough. I had a bit of culture shock after the newness wore off, but I absolutely love it here. Yeah, the summers are hot and muggy, the winters are bitter, but I love it here and I'm glad I'm here. If you want to do it go for it, don't let it just stay an idea. But understand that you're gonna have a hard time sometimes, even with the culture. Good luck.
-Lee

hi, i also think of learning the japanese language and maybe study or even live in japan.

but i'm worried, because i heard many stories of people, FOREIGN people (gaijins),who went to japan that were treated bad because of their race.

so there are sometimes clubs or cafes where only japanese people are allowed to go to and sometimes you are mocked on the streets and so on

so i wanted to ask you: ist it true? is japan really such a racist country?

thx for your replies :)

Yes it is true in the countryside but in big cities like - Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka - you will be fine.

I'm sure there are places in your country as well where foreigners or certain race of people are not so welcomed.

As far as you disallowed to come in to certain places, yes it is true but you are talking about places in the red light districts. Words are already spread and those sex workers know that foreigners bring in STD s. It is also because they don't want to piss off Japanese customers by foreigners taking all of their women.

Also, some of the local bars, don't expect people to let you in unless you can speak Japanese. Those people who run those places do not speak English and if you cannot communicate with them in Japanese, they would ask you to leave for sure. I mean, isn't it normal?

All the foreigners in Japan are referred to as gaijin and people have problem with that because most of them have never been treated as a minority back home. For Japanese, gaijin is not a discriminatory word but because of this reason, foreigners take it offensively. Some Japanese people have never seen foreigners so just let it go. Again, if you can speak the language, it won't be a problem.

For long timers, this gaijin thing is very annoying because no matter how well you speak Japanese or how long you live in Japan, you would always be a gaijin. I know it's fucked up but that's how it is. So when you go to Japan, please choose the location wisely and be prepared.

Good luck!!

let me guess, you have never been there and have read a load of crap that you are now regurgitating? Yes, Japan is hot in the summer but it is far from cold in the winter - I didn't use a coat once and had no trouble (in fact, it was pretty mild!).

There are a decent of earthquakes, but 99.9% are not felt by humans because they are so small...


Let me guess, your friends are the waster kind that probably came over to teach English thinking they would be treated like gods until they realised Japanese people don't think you are anything special because you are western? I have met far too many of those kinds of people to know they don't last long (and create some stupid stories to make up for their own shortcomings)


The FACT is that I have lived here for a year now and can honestly say that, apart from the heat and public toilets, none of what you have said is true

tell your friend to stop being an idiot and move then... unless you want to live in the centre of Tokyo, you can get a decent sized 1K for 60k a month in most cities