Places lived in: Lethbridge, Edmonton, Mina Clavero, Kassel, Atsuma, Tokyo
Time in Tokyo: I have lived in Tokyo a bit over one year now and have worked in Japan for a total of three years. Before moving to Tokyo I lived in a small rural town called Atsuma in Hokkaido prefecture for two years. My first visit to Japan was when my Judo Sensei suggested I should take part in a judo exchange in Japan. I was raised in a small Canadian prairie city, about a 2 hour drive from Calgary, Alberta. When I took my first train in Japan, I kept looking out the window for hours and hours, slowly realizing there really was no end to the city landscape. I got an impression that Tokyo was a city that never ended. Later, I learned that Japanese cities just fuse together almost seamlessly. After my trip I started to study Japanese in university. Living in Japan as a visible foreign minority can be tough sometimes. There is a strong sense of “essential Japanese” and “other”. Of course, we foreigners all react differently to our experiences as the “other”. Some ignore it, some relish it, and some grow tired of it and eventually return to their mother countries. Regardless, the experiences we gain in Japan are very rewarding in and of themselves and I would recommend them to any person. Japan has become my second home and I can’t imagine my future without a continuous connection to this country and it’s people.
Preferred area: I absolutely love living in central Tokyo. Life here is convenient, fast and fun. Shops and restaurants surround me, my favorite café is a 5 minute walk from my apartment, and the closest metro station is just 5 minutes away. Of course one does grow tired of the city occasionally. When this happens though it’s ever so easy to just hop on a train and escape to the country for a weekend. The transportation system in Japan is exceptional. I really wish Canada would adopt such an efficient, remarkable system.
Profession: I teach English. It’s a challenging yet very rewarding job — you are working with young people who are all coming from different situations. They are full of potential. It’s very exciting to teach them new things and see them growing and shaping their lives. In the future I might also try out translation. I’ve studied Japanese for three years in school and three years in practice here in Japan.
Passion: Judo. Judo was my first connection to Japanese culture. A lot of people visit Japan with an interest in martial arts like judo, karate, kendo, aikido or archery. I can list many good reasons to do judo — it’s fun, it makes you strong and you learn more about yourself and others. The first character of judo means soft and gentle. Judo is considered as the gentle martial art. You can practice judo in a way that doesn’t hurt you or your partner and yet be throwing each other across the room. It’s all about technique, not just about the fight. When you do judo — there is no winner or loser. It’s like a dance. You must have a partner in order to practice — you can’t just stand in front of a mirror and do it. You must be in close contact with someone and move with that person. You really get to know a person when you fight them. You must trust them to not to hurt you and make them trust you too. Judo challenges your concept of personal space. It’s all about creating a base for trust. It takes a lot of time, effort and frustration to learn all the techniques and very rewarding once you get there. There is a great philosophy of patience and culture of sharing and teaching inside the judo community. For me the main attraction of judo is the connection you share with others.
The Good: As much as I can appreciate living in small towns, and the sense of community, I love living in the big city. There is always a new experience around the corner — somewhere new to go, something new to do, someone new to meet. When I’m back home in Canada I feel everything is just too expected. Nothing really surprises me. But when I’m abroad — everything amazes me. Living in a big international city makes me feel almost like I don’t even need to travel — meeting so many international people here in Tokyo makes my experience even more diverse.
Another great thing about Tokyo is the safety! As a woman I feel free to leave my apartment at any time, day or night, and feel safe. In this city I feel 100% safe. In Edmonton, the city I lived in during University, after the sun goes down, it’s considered safer to not go out alone if you’re a girl. Why is Japan such a safe place to live? Well, I think it just boils down to the culture — Japanese people always put peace and harmony of the group in front of all individual motives. I believe that also the frequent natural disasters remind the community to stay together. If everyone just thought of themselves, how could they ever rebuild a society?
The Bad: There are of course both positives and negatives to everything. In a Japanese ESL classroom setting, sometimes you don’t see the kids being vocal. No one here wants to stand out. It’s better to stand back from the spotlight than speak out and be the know-it-all. There is a Japanese saying that sums it up: “the nail that is sticking out gets hammered down”. There is a small percentage of Japanese students who find their way to excellence in this quiet social setting, but unfortunately the strict social norm can also dim many who differ. However, there is a strong rise of individualism in Japan going on. Many young people demand to have more time for their personal lives outside of the excessive work hours of the Japanese work environment. That being said, I feel that whenever discussing other cultures from a foreign viewpoint we must remind ourselves of our otherness, or more specifically, our biases. My opinions are based on my personal experiences as a Canadian living in Japan. My value system may be slightly different from that of a Japanese person who was born and raised in Japan. What I see as a negative may actually be perceived as a positive by someone from another culture.
Tip: There are three types of foreigners in Japan — the tourists and travellers who are only here for a short visit, the expats who are here on a temporary work commission and the expats who learn the Japanese language and the culture and integrate into the society. The people who learn to live here long term build a strong base of friends and family, develop a thick skin and make it their home. I think that after living in a foreign place for a good three years you can make a judgment of whether or not you will remain in the country permanently or not. These three years teach you about yourself, the culture, the local people, the ups, the downs, the lifestyle and the expectations. Generally, if the positives outweigh the negatives, you stay. At the end of the day, the calculation formula is the same everywhere.