There are many pretty girls in Japan. – (TRUE)

Every Japanese girl wants a foreign boyfriend.  – (FALSE)

In reality it’s more like 80 or 90%. No, but seriously though, Japanese girls like foreigners, but many find it difficult to have long lasting relationships with a foreigner. Others complain about not having opportunities to meet foreign men, also know as lazy women.

There are many jobs for foreignors in Japan. – (TRUE)

However most of them involve teaching English. Most jobs that don’t involve teaching English are in or around Tokyo, especially in Minato-ku if you ever look at a job listings.

You will be treated as an equal. – (False)

I’m sorry, this is not the land of opportunity where all your dreams come true. This is the land of capitalism at it’s worst. Don’t think of yourself as a person in Japan. You are more of a commodity or a product if you will. The better you look and the better you sell yourself the better off you are in Japan – monetary-wise.

You will meet some interesting people in Japan. – (TRUE)

I’ve meet a mechanic for a Shinto priest with near perfect English, a rally racecar driver’s mechanic, a scary policeman who knows all kinds of martial arts, a businessman who has lived in China, and a cranky Marine Biologist who hates America, and about a billion housewives with too much time on their hands so they take English lessons.

Everyone in Japan is friendly. – (False)

It depends on what you mean by friendly. Most people find the service in Japan to be excellent and quick and blah blah blah. Most of it is just a veneer. I’ve had a security guard smile in my face when I told him my bicycle was stolen. The same day I bought it, not less. A friend of mine put it best, “He suffers from smiling chimp syndrome.” But that was just one instance. People in America don’t always show their true feelings either.

Japanese people are soulless robots. – (False)

I’ve heard this from many people. Usually it comes after some kind of heartbreak. Maybe a girlfriend or boyfriend doesn’t return their love anymore or they don’t see eye to eye with a person. I find that we usually jump to the conclusion that Japanese are soulless when they don’t do something we like or it appears that they are being cruel. The longer I’m in Japan the more I see how Japanese people are just like all other people.

Japan is the best place in the world to live – (                  )

Japan has a lot of nice conveniences, culture, traditions, and a fairly low crime rate, but at the same time many people in Japan suffer from depression. A country is not the land, but it is the people. They have everything they could ask for physically, but feel empty without a cause or a purpose for their lives. A lot of people go through life, just going through the motions and trying to stay out of everyone’s way for fear of reprisal. Many try to stave off their reality through the escapism of video games, the internet, movies, and television. We have the exact same problems in America, so I can’t blame Japan. Japan is what you make of it. You want something, you got to go out and get it, but as a foreigner you are going to have a harder time getting it. It’s not impossible, but it is kibishii ne.