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[Zornica]

honest question:
aren't there any spontaneous persons living in this country? Everybody seems super busy all the time, and it's a real pain to get anything going (which apparently has to be planed weeks in advance...).
Or am I just living in the wrong place with all the boring people?

I'm usually not someone who would particularly care (or complain) about something like this, but it's getting quite ridiculous.

 

[Gromph]

honest question:
aren't there any spontaneous persons living in this country? Everybody seems super busy all the time, and it's a real pain to get anything going (which apparently has to be planed weeks in advance...).
Or am I just living in the wrong place with all the boring people?

I'm usually not someone who would particularly care (or complain) about something like this, but it's getting quite ridiculous.

I think it depends on the people and priorities.

I'm always available to my friends, but not always for the rest of the people, you know i still have my own life, with work, social compromises, and my own time.

 

[Ayumi]

honest question:
aren't there any spontaneous persons living in this country? Everybody seems super busy all the time, and it's a real pain to get anything going (which apparently has to be planed weeks in advance...).
Or am I just living in the wrong place with all the boring people?

I'm usually not someone who would particularly care (or complain) about something like this, but it's getting quite ridiculous.

The only reason I know of is because people are busy working. Most of my friends work at least 10 hours every day and are usually busy with late meetings. So if I invite them over for dinner, they have to check when they can leave work in time, if it's during the weekdays.

People say it's hard to make friends in Japan, I'm guessing it's because of everyone's schedule. But I wouldn't say no one is spontaneous. They are if they have time or are in the area.

 

[Zornica]

yeah, that's what I figured, thanks! A lifestyle like that doesn't sound particularly healthy or fun to me though. It's quite the opposite to what I'm used to ._.

calling up some friends at 2 am to go for a drink somewhere is pretty much out of the question here it seems

well... no point in moping around.

edit:

Video related: https://youtube.com/watch?v=po8IPh64rVM

fun fact: a friend sent me the exact same video about 9 hours ago
I wonder if anyone could pinpoint his location be looking at the background. the part at 1:03 looks kinda familiar...

 

[Ayumi]

Video related: https://youtube.com/watch?v=po8IPh64rVM

 

[urfe]

Well that puts my 12 hour day today in perspective!

 

[Kaworu]

If you post the error will be more easy to help than doing estimated guess

Amazingly I just tried again and after some small problems I've been able to do it. I don't know what went wrong the first time but it was probably related to the input method. Thanks!

 

[dani_dc]

Japanese people are way too nice, in my first day I had people helping me carry my traveling bags up stairs without me even asking, at one point I just suddenly felt as if my bag was lighter, I look behind and a salary man was grabbing the under side of the bag.
One lady that did so even insisted in taking me to the location in the map, and wouldn't take a no for an answer, even running around to ask people about stuff when she didn't know, apologizing whenever I was not under her umbrella, and later apologizing when she noticed I was the one carrying the umbrella.

I was honestly overwhelmed by all of it.

My friend, who came for the same program as me, also had similar tales to share the day after when we meet again.

I'm using a cheap data plan from Yamada Denki. It's probably your best option right now.

Thanks, I'll look into it.

 

[Ayumi]

Japanese people are way too nice, in my first day I had people helping me carry my traveling bags up stairs without me even asking, at one point I just suddenly felt as if my bag was lighter, I look behind and a salary man was grabbing the under side of the bag.
One lady that did so even insisted in taking me to the location in the map, and wouldn't take a no for an answer, even running around to ask people about stuff when she didn't know, apologizing whenever I was not under her umbrella, and later apologizing when she noticed I was the one carrying the umbrella.

I was honestly overwhelmed by all of it.

My friend, who came for the same program as me, also had similar tales to share the day after when we meet again.



Thanks, I'll look into it.

Japan is so great, you're gonna feel bad when you go back home and have to deal with reverse culture shock. I love travelling so much, but going to other countries make me straight out scared, lol. Recently went to France and I ended up just leaving my phone in the hotel and hid my bankcard in my bra. ._.

 

[dani_dc]

Japan is so great, you're gonna feel bad when you go back home and have to deal with reverse culture shock. I love travelling so much, but going to other countries make me straight out scared, lol. Recently went to France and I ended up just leaving my phone in the hotel and hid my bankcard in my bra. ._.

I don't doubt it, in my home county I'm always checking my pockets to be sure nothing is gone, here in Japan I just feel at ease to walk with whatever I want in my pocket.

Six months is starting to feel like not enough.

 

[Axispowers]

Japan is so great, you're gonna feel bad when you go back home and have to deal with reverse culture shock. I love travelling so much, but going to other countries make me straight out scared, lol. Recently went to France and I ended up just leaving my phone in the hotel and hid my bankcard in my bra. ._.

Aw man! I didnt think about that... From Cali and I'm not sure if going back is an option anymore xD

On a side note, I was walking around Shinjuku and saw the huge display for commercials. It's super strange seeing Tommy Lee Jones advertise a coffee drink.

 

[Zornica]

I'm always quite curious when I read stuff like the above.
Going to Japan never felt that strange to me really. the difference between here and my home town also isn't as big as I'd have imagined going by most peoples experiences (at least not in terms of safety), which is probably for the better, as I regularly forget to lock my door when I go out. >.<

[...]
On a side note, I was walking around Shinjuku and saw the huge display for commercials. It's super strange seeing Tommy Lee Jones advertise a coffee drink.

you'll get used to it soon enough. also watch out for Doraemon-Jean Reno

 

[Axispowers]

you'll get used to it soon enough. also watch out for Doraemon-Jean Reno

Oh man what!? Haha I can't wait to see xD

 

[dani_dc]

I'm using a cheap data plan from Yamada Denki. It's probably your best option right now.

Btw, I have problems with my NESICA account registry. I input the name in Japanese ( I tried with kana and kanji ) but the webpage keeps denying it. Some ideas to spare?

Should had asked early, where did you get the sim card?

 

[Kaworu]

Should had asked early, where did you get the sim card?

Yamada Denki - LABI in Shibuya.

 

[Valkerionseven]

On a side note, I was walking around Shinjuku and saw the huge display for commercials. It's super strange seeing Tommy Lee Jones advertise a coffee drink.

Not odd at all... now lol. Came to promote Men in Black 3 with Will Smith a few years ago and kinda never left haha. At least one new commercial with him every season or so. Him and a few other celebs, like the aforementioned Jean-Reno are in Japan a lot for commercials and what not. Not sure whats up with the French actor these days but seems like he's always been popular here since back in the day. Most foreign celebs do a one off commercial and go their merry way, some stick around. George Clooney and Leo Dicaprio been doing a few lately too, mostly drink ads, beer and Jim Beam ect.

 

[Zoe]

Tommy Lee Jones has been doing Boss for almost a decade.

 

[Mailenstein]

I use Spotify here with my European card (like Netflix). Except Spotify doesn't require a proxy. It would still be cheaper (I think) if it had an official release in Japan though.. That's why I'm excited for Japan Netflix so I can change my payment/account and pay less finally.

Also have Hulu. I think both are good. But I prefer to watch everything with English subtitles.. Most stuff on Hulu is only Japanese subtitles and a lot of the jokes/context gets dropped from them. So it's extremely weird to watch English audio with Japanese subtitles. lol

I feel my English is good enough, but sometimes I can't hear what they say anyway. So I always keep my Netflix subtitles on. ._.

Yeah, I could sign up for a german Spotify account, but I guess I'm too lazy for that. It will eventually start someday here in Japan, so I will just wait. Not a problem.

Well, my wife is Japanese, so she is used to english movies with japanese subtitles. Her english is not good enough to watch a movie without subtitles but it pisses her off how wrong some translations are - which is a common thing anyway. I guess it will definitely be a plus for her to be able to switch to english subtitles. Didn't know Netflix had that option (since I never used it..). Thanks for the info tho!

Video related: https://youtube.com/watch?v=po8IPh64rVM

I'm a salaryman myself, but this is plain stupid lol.

 

[Jaffaboy]

What's up JapanGAF! I'm going to be flying out on Monday to Nagoya to teach there for a year or two. Anyone located there, or know any great spots in the city? I'm gonna be living around the Kurumamichi subway line once I move into my apartment at the end of the month, but before then I'll be in a hostel.

 

[Deleted member 12837]

Just bought my airfare for an upcoming 9-10 day trip with a buddy of mine to Japan at the end of April. I haven't been since 2006, and that was for a school trip, so I'm pretty pumped!

I plan on reading through this whole thread for inspiration. I feel like I'm going to have a tough time narrowing down what to do in the limited time we're there, and planning an itinerary where we don't feel rushed in any one place.

Any tips on good iOS apps to download while I'm there (translation, offline maps, etc)? Haven't decided if we want to get data sims or portable hot spots yet.

 

[MikeHattsu]

Just bought my airfare for an upcoming 9-10 day trip with a buddy of mine to Japan at the end of April. I haven't been since 2006, and that was for a school trip, so I'm pretty pumped!

I plan on reading through this whole thread for inspiration. I feel like I'm going to have a tough time narrowing down what to do in the limited time we're there, and planning an itinerary where we don't feel rushed in any one place.

Any tips on good iOS apps to download while I'm there (translation, offline maps, etc)? Haven't decided if we want to get data sims or portable hot spots yet.

This thread might be better:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=539079

 

[Deleted member 12837]

This thread might be better:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=539079

Oops, thanks for that!

 

[Axispowers]

Not odd at all... now lol. Came to promote Men in Black 3 with Will Smith a few years ago and kinda never left haha. At least one new commercial with him every season or so. Him and a few other celebs, like the aforementioned Jean-Reno are in Japan a lot for commercials and what not. Not sure whats up with the French actor these days but seems like he's always been popular here since back in the day. Most foreign celebs do a one off commercial and go their merry way, some stick around. George Clooney and Leo Dicaprio been doing a few lately too, mostly drink ads, beer and Jim Beam ect.

Interesting, I had no idea that foreign celebrity commercials were a thing. There are SO MANY culture differences that I'm learning about. A lot of stereotypes I've heard over the years is usually not the case. Well, from what I've seen I guess.

 

[Valkerionseven]

Interesting, I had no idea that foreign celebrity commercials were a thing. There are SO MANY culture differences that I'm learning about. A lot of stereotypes I've heard over the years is usually not the case. Well, from what I've seen I guess.

Yup! Show biz money works kinda opposite in Asia than North America/Europe. The most famous people can roll in a few million for a good role/album/play but thats about half of it, the big bucks are landing commercials and ads. If you watch Japanese or Korean or w/e TV enough you will notice how much people get excited about the prospect of being in a commercial as opposed to a normal acting gig, even for stuff like baby wipes or w/e haha. It's big money for minimal work hence why foreign celebs do a few in between films.

And yeah a lot of stereotypes are unfounded I find as well or based off a random occurrence and spread as if its fact. Glad your enjoying finding out random facts though, its always fun for me personal haha.

 

[urfe]

I'm a salaryman myself, but this is plain stupid lol.

Agreed, working out after a long day? No one has that kind of motivation.

 

[Sakura]

Video related: https://youtube.com/watch?v=po8IPh64rVM

I want some granola...
Real talk though, I don't think I would want to be a salaryman, though I know not all salarymen work that many hours.
I have worked ~13 hour shifts at my job sometimes, I don't think I could do it every day lol

I'm always quite curious when I read stuff like the above.
Going to Japan never felt that strange to me really. the difference between here and my home town also isn't as big as I'd have imagined going by most peoples experiences (at least not in terms of safety), which is probably for the better, as I regularly forget to lock my door when I go out. >.<

Yea I don't know.
I arrived in Japan and I was like, ok this is Japan. And that was it. No real culture shock or anything lol. Though now that I think about it, I do regularly carry around like the equivalent of 500~1000 dollars cash in my wallet. I don't think I've ever/would ever do that back home.

 

[dani_dc]

I'm still getting used to the lack of garbage cans in general, so odd to have none of those.

Yea I don't know.
I arrived in Japan and I was like, ok this is Japan. And that was it. No real culture shock or anything lol. Though now that I think about it, I do regularly carry around like the equivalent of 500~1000 dollars cash in my wallet. I don't think I've ever/would ever do that back home.

I suppose it would depend of your country of origin as well.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Video related: https://youtube.com/watch?v=po8IPh64rVM

My time as a salaryman in Japan wasn't quite this bad, but I 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. days were pretty common. Luckily my commute was *only* 30 minutes or so. Honestly, even that kind of schedule was pretty soul draining and devastating to my health and I only did it for about two years.

 

[dani_dc]

My time as a salaryman in Japan wasn't quite this bad, but I 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. days were pretty common. Luckily my commute was *only* 30 minutes or so. Honestly, even that kind of schedule was pretty soul draining and devastating to my health and I only did it for about two years.

I have a hard time understanding working that many hours, since you lose productivity it's actually rather counter intuitive.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I have a hard time understanding working that many hours, since you lose productivity it's actually rather counter intuitive.

I agree. I can't speak for others, but I only did it because everyone else was doing it, not because I needed to spend that much time at work in order to get things done. Most people I knew in the company spent a lot of time 'looking busy' but not really working. I don't think it's possible for most people to actually be productive for 13 hours straight.

 

[Hasemo]

I agree. I can't speak for others, but I only did it because everyone else was doing it, not because I needed to spend that much time at work in order to get things done. Most people I knew in the company spent a lot of time 'looking busy' but not really working. I don't think it's possible for most people to actually be productive for 13 hours straight.

That's why I don't do overtime. Since I'm finishing my tasks well before the deadlines, higher ups don't have any problem with it. But yeah, 95% of people in my company are doing at least 1 hour of overtime every day.

 

[putarorex]

I usually get out of the office before 6:30, but many days I can almost describe my departure as Teiji Taisha. They try to enforce a go-home-before 7 rule in my company, though many do not follow it.

I would say many days most of the expats at the office are much more productive than the Japanese that stay late. It might be the nature of our work (translation with tight deadlines), but we seem to be working more intensely than they do. I have seen a few of the Japanese dozing at their desks.

I don't think I could translate for more than 10 hours, The mental fatigue kicks in and typos and mistakes start popping up.

 

[rrvv]

Thinking I want to eat Sushi in Tsukiji also buying a Knife. any sushi/sashimi shop recommendation?

 

[dani_dc]

Any good sites with information on monthly passes in Tokyo?

Can't find any decent information online and the machines aren't quite clear about the difference between passes or what I'm paying for.

Thinking of buying the Yamanote line monthly pass since I can commute directly from Uguisudani to Kanda and walk 15 minutes to work there. But I rather know how the system works before subscribing.

Also, Any other train/subway lines that are useful to have passes for for general mobility?

I agree. I can't speak for others, but I only did it because everyone else was doing it, not because I needed to spend that much time at work in order to get things done. Most people I knew in the company spent a lot of time 'looking busy' but not really working. I don't think it's possible for most people to actually be productive for 13 hours straight.

Having to look productive for that many hours would frustrate the heck out of me.

 

[MikeHattsu]

Any good sites with information on monthly passes in Tokyo?

Can't find any decent information online and the machines aren't quite clear about the difference between passes or what I'm paying for.

Thinking of buying the Yamanote line monthly pass since I can commute directly from Uguisudani to Kanda and walk 15 minutes to work there. But I rather know how the system works before subscribing.

A commuter pass you mean? This info might be useful:
http://blog.qiqitori.com/?p=34

 

[Zornica]

speaking of overtime... is there any kind of compensation?
like earning a higher hourly wage or being able to use those hours later to take a few days off or something like that?

 

[Hasemo]

speaking of overtime... is there any kind of compensation?
like earning a higher hourly wage or being able to use those hours later to take a few days off or something like that?

Depends on the company. Some have paid overtime, some have free overtime and some allow you to use that time later.

 

[Mailenstein]

I have a hard time understanding working that many hours, since you lose productivity it's actually rather counter intuitive.

Judging by my experience, japanese salaryman tend to take on more tasks than they actually can finish. So to be able to finish them, they stay longer. In my opinion they know they are taking on too much, but do it to show their passion. Also, japanese staff are not the best at time management imho. Things that could've easily been an email are turned into meetings. And those aren't always that productive either. I do only things I can actually finish until the deadline and still have enough things to update/fix/etc. if needed without ever doing any real overtime (max 30mins sometimes).

It's a cultural thing.
Overtime in Japan = S/he is working very hard to successfully finish the project.
Overtime abroad = Something went wrong with the time management within the project, which is bad.

Well, this is speaking me from my experience. My company has no problem with that so I won't change it.

 

[Kama_1082]

I've tried searching, but didn't find anything worthwhile, but here goes:

I'm thinking by the end of the year or the start of 2016, to move to Japan to possibly continue my career as an electrical engineer. I know this is probably a huge pipe dream that I should consider otherwise, but I'm at a point in my life that I'm due for a change.

-I'm a US Citizen
-I'm learning Japanese right now, and willing to go into overdrive in classes to learn.
- I have a bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering with 8 years of experience in the power industry.

Does my degree and experience count for anything in Japan? I know it's a long shot, but it's worth throwing a few feelers out there to see if it is indeed worth it.

 

[urfe]

I've tried searching, but didn't find anything worthwhile, but here goes:

I'm thinking by the end of the year or the start of 2016, to move to Japan to possibly continue my career as an electrical engineer. I know this is probably a huge pipe dream that I should consider otherwise, but I'm at a point in my life that I'm due for a change.

-I'm a US Citizen
-I'm learning Japanese right now, and willing to go into overdrive in classes to learn.
- I have a bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering with 8 years of experience in the power industry.

Does my degree and experience count for anything in Japan? I know it's a long shot, but it's worth throwing a few feelers out there to see if it is indeed worth it.

Engineers are in high demand, I have no idea if they need to know Japanese though. Assuming some places wouldn't place too much of a priority on it, but I'm honestly not sure.

 

[bigmit3737]

My time as a salaryman in Japan wasn't quite this bad, but I 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. days were pretty common. Luckily my commute was *only* 30 minutes or so. Honestly, even that kind of schedule was pretty soul draining and devastating to my health and I only did it for about two years.

13hrs a day?
Zefah, what kind of job do you do now?

 

[Natetan]

I got my permanent residency today. That's nice I guess right?

 

[rrvv]

Decide to post some picture here. Kamakura is amazing

rest of picture
http://imgur.com/a/Yjbl6

 

[Aizo]

I got my permanent residency today. That's nice I guess right?

Permanent?
Did you get citizenship?

 

[Ayumi]

Permanent?
Did you get citizenship?

PR is not the same as citizenship..

 

[urfe]

I got my permanent residency today. That's nice I guess right?

Nice, I got mine last month.

Let us now get loans for houses, and... well I guess thats it.

 

[Jubern]

Is anyone one of you guys using a DNS to access Netflix ? I recently subscribed to Unlocator, which does the job as far as "unlocating" goes, but significantly cuts down my speed.

I was wondering if there were any better alternatives.

 

[Gromph]

I got my permanent residency today. That's nice I guess right?

Congratulations

 

[Ayumi]

Is anyone one of you guys using a DNS to access Netflix ? I recently subscribed to Unlocator, which does the job as far as "unlocating" goes, but significantly cuts down my speed.

I was wondering if there were any better alternatives.

I dunno how allowed it is to speak about that here..?

 

[Mailenstein]

I dunno how allowed it is to speak about that here..?

Why would it be not allowed? Perfectly fine. He can either use a DNS service or a VPN service.