I'm posting this in response to a request by several oher members who are interested about my experiences w/ living in Japan....here goes:

First I'll give you a little background. I'm a U.S. Naval Officer stationed at a base about 35 km South of Tokyo (in a city of ~1,000,000 called Yokosuka). As a member of the armed forces, Japanese law applies slightly differently to me than normal ex-pats living here, but it is mainly things like traffic tickets and paying taxes. Although I am still subject to 99.9% of Japanese law and customs.

Ok, I'd like to begin by saying that Japan is probably the most amazing and wonderful country I've ever been to. They have a very rich culture (MUCH more so than the U.S.......but Japan is older by centuries, so it stands to reason) and the most polite and hard-working people I've met.

The area I live in is highly urban; the Tokyo bay area consists of Tokyo-Kawasaki-Yokohama-Yokosuka cities (covering three Prefectures....the Japanese equivalent to U.S. States) and has ~1/4 of the entire Japanese population, so we have about 30 million people living within roughly 100 km. Japanese city life is much like that of any city in an Industrialized nation. The buildings are very modern and well kept and all the streets seem to be in constant construction, which has the effect that all streets look freshly paved. In fact, the technology in daily use here in Japan is several years ahead of what I'm used to back in the U.S.

As far as moving here, I didn't go through the usual immigration process, but I know that it is fairly easy to get a 90 day work Visa. Beyond that, I know several people who have left the military and are living in Japan permanently (and are only semi-fluent in Japanese) and they say that the process of getting residency isn't too hard. I think you just have to coordinate with the appropriate Embassy/Consulate (your home country Embassy if you are here in Japan or the Japanese Embassy if you still live in you home country) and they will begin the paperwork.

Obviously, one of the most difficult things about living in Japan is the language. To begin with, Japanese consists of three separate alphabets: Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji. Kanji is the character based alphabet based on Chinese characters. I believe that there are over 10,000 kjanji in the alphabet. Hiragana and Katakana are syllabic alphabets with each character representing one of 46 sounds. Hiragana is used to spell words of Japanese origin and Katakana is used for words of foreign (mostly Western) origin. Also, they use Western alphabetic characters to spell some words. I have been able to learn some phrases to get by, and carry a pretty comprehensive phrase book with me, but I haven't had the time to properly learn the language. The good thing is that many Japanese know some English. If you are willing to attempt speaking Japanese to them, they will try speaking English to you. I have found that between my broken Japanese and their broken English, I can communicate on a basic level.

As far as life in Japan goes, I'll put that in my next post. Also, any specific questions, I'm happy to nswer. I really enjoy talking about this (I bent my family's ear for hours last time I was in the U.S)

Don't they also use the Romanji also (the writing system that uses the Roman Alphabet)? or is that just for international jap expat use?
And i have another question: when you say years ahead, i want to see the latest computer stats, if you have those available could you post?

Japan is an interesting place which i hope to visit. Any pointers for tourists or cool places to see?

and on a separate note: Lost in Translation rules

Yeah, they do use Romanji to a certain extent, but not to the level that the other alphabets are used. Rather than using Japanese words spelled in Romanji, the word is actually in English. Typically, the entire sentence or paragraph is in English, as well (you don't see an English word tucked inside a Japanese sentence too often). All major road signs (directional in nature) are in English as well as Japanese, and a lot of signs on walls, etc. have partial English translations nearby. This is probably a result of both the large U.S. Naval Base (about 45000 sailors, family members. and civilian workers) and the proximity to Tokyo. The times I have been to the Japanese "countryside," there was MUCH less English to be found.

There are tons of things to do in Japan for tourists. I recommend staying in Tokyo for your first few days. It is much easier for Westerners to get around due to the prevalence of English-speaking Japanese. For your first few days, stay in a Western-style hotel with at least a partially English-speaking staff that can help get you started. I recommend learning the train system. Japan has probably the most extensive train system in the world. No place in the Tokyo area is more than a mile or two from a train or subway stop and there are probably three dozen or more lines serving the area. Plus, there is the Shinkansen (bullet train) connecting areas. These trains travel in excess of 200 mph and there are several leaving the staion per hour for all destinations. The best way to learn the train system is to ask your hotel staff. Maps and guides are available in English that show all the stops and transfers. If the hotel doesn't have the maps, the larger train stations will, plus the staff is very willing and able to help you. Also, I've found that if I am lost and look confused, eventually someone (another passenger) will come and assist.....yes, this is humbling, but better than being lost for hours. The Japanese are extremely helpful. Taxis are pretty easy, too, but can get expensive. I also recommend that you write your hotel name down and get the Japanese translation from the staff. If you get lost, you can show the translation to someone (cab driver/train attendant/etc.) and they can help you get back. After you have been in country for a few days, venture out of Tokyo and stay at one of the traditional Japanese inns, or Ryokan. It is an interesting experience.

Things to do:
- Asakusa (Tokyo): an old nieghborhood with a huge marketplace and one of the largest temples in Japan. Good for several hours of walking around.
- Akihabara (Tokyo): the electronics district; here you will find dozens of large electronics stores with the lastest TVs, cameras, games systems, etc. Not really a place for bargain hunting (although it has that reputation), but there is cool stuff. I like gadgets, so I love it.
- Imperial Palace (Tokyo): this is self-explanitory. the palace itself is only open two days out of the year, New Year's Day (American New Near) and the Emperor's birthday, but the outer grounds are very impressive.
- Chinatown (Yokohama): very similar to the Chinatowns of San Francisco and New York. Interesting shops and amazing restaurants.
- Kamakura (city outside of Yokohama): this is one of the early capitals of Japan. It is full of amazing temple and shrines and is home to the Great Buddha (Daibatsu), the largest statue of Buddha in Japan, if not the world.
-Kyoto (about 300 mi SW of Tokyo....2.5 hours by Shinkansen): This is one if the few cities not bombed during WWII, and therefore still retains much of the character of ancient Japan. It has amazing architecture and historical areas.

There are really too many tings to do to mention in a post, but I hope this helps.

As far as technology goes, it is more of an evolution of tech. vs a revolution. Like I bought my first cell phone here over a year ago for 4,000 yen (~$30) and it has a 2.5 Megapixel phone. I know that there are camera phones in the U.S., but they seem to be much more expensive and of lower quality. Plus, flat screen TVs (both plasma and LCD) are much more prevalent than the U.S. and are about 30% cheaper. I'll see what I can do about Japanese computer stats, but from what I've seen, the processer speeds appear to be about 50% faster than those available in the States.

Konichiwa, Harley Man. Out of curiosity, what percentage of Japanese do you think know, say, a first year course of English? And how many are truly bilingual?

Also, I hear lots about the Japanese love of respect and tradition, and so what odd customs do they have over there that must be adhered to, lest you be thought rude? I believe you have to take off your shoes before entering a building and such?

Unfortunately, my percentage of learned Japanese is too small to be measured. I know phrases, specific words, and can identify particular Kanji symbols, but would be unable to string multiple words together correctly without planning it out beforehand.

Truly bilingual Japanese? Hard to say, but I'd estimate about 10% of Japanese (near Tokyo.....English is much less common the farther you get out of the city) can carry on a reasonable conversation in English. All schoolkids take take English from elementary through High School and it seems that the younger generations have a better grasp of the language overall than older Japanese. Also, business professionals know the language better since they deal more often with Americans. Most of the shops around our base have fairly fluent employees since they deal with Americans daily, and an unfortunately large number of Americans stationed here refuse to assimilate even a little bit.

The Japanese do place a lot of importance on respect and tradition. Their entire culture is based on harmony and cooperation. Japanese do not respond favoribly to things that they deem aggressive, such as loud voices and extended eye contact. Japanese show obvious deference to those of authority and to their elders. Of course, the common custom is to bow rather than shake hands. Boisterous behavior is looked down upon, such as loud talking or cell phone use on the trains (although everyone check e-mail on their phones while riding the trains)

There are small cultural differences, as well. For example, when buying things, there is not usually a direct exchange of money. The buyer places the money in a small dish next to the cash regiser. The vendor then takes the money from this disk and make change, which goes in the dish. Also, Japan is a very cash based society. Most businesses don't accept personal checks or credit cards.

You generally only have to remove your shoes when entering a home. In fact, the lease for my home off-base specifically prohibits shoes from being worn inside the house. The way it works is that all Japanese houses have a tiled entryway where one removes and neatly leaves shoes, and wears slippers while inside the actual house. This isn't the case in public buildings, shoes are worn everywhere. However, some temples requires worshippers to remove their shoes prior to entry.

I think the thing that I am most impressed about Japanese culture is their work ethic. Compared to them, Amaricans are, in fact, fat and lazy when it comes to work. My first week here, I went to a Japanese McDonalds. The employee taking my order was impeccibly polite and efficient. Once I ordered my food, she RAN between the food bins to get my order. When my order was prepared, the employee apoligized profusely that my order took so long. I waited for less than a minute from the time my order was taken until I had my food. Even menial employees take great pride in what they do and work as hard as possible. I watch the trash collectors do their work; they jump from the truck, throw the bags into the truck, and clean up all stray trash in the area prior to moving along (in Japan, all trash in a neighborhood is left at a central collection point rather than directly in frot of one's home). The collection area is left impeccable and the whole process again takes mere seconds. Also, whenever someone enters a store or restaurant, the employees stop what they are doing a say a greeting to the customer. Overall, the Japanese are a pretty impressive people.

There are many more cultural differences, but I'm drawing a blank right now. I've lived here long enough so that I've incorporated those differnces into my routine and don't even consider them anymore. AS they come back to me I'll post about them.

Thanks for the information. Welcome to Allforums, i am pretty new here myself ^^

I really enjoyed our posts and I look forward to reading more if you write more. I'm considering studying aboard sometime next year (or the year after, once I take my GREs in the summer of '06) in either China or Japan. If I'm lucky, pehaps I'll have the same great experience you've had in a foreign yet beautiful country.

Harley, huge thanks for posting your experiences, I will post a bunch of questions at some point :) but nothing too extensive.

If i had the money to move out there I would and visit england sparingly. Truly I am Jealous!!

Very informative posts, HarleyMan. I just enlisted in the Army so I'm thinking of what to put on my "wish list" of places to be posted, and Japan is definitely a place I'm interested in. I hope you post more!

Good luck in the military. Many thanks for serving your country.

Thanks again to Harleyman for the information, definitely helpful

Many thanks for the info Harley! Your posts are extremely informative.
I've always wanted to visit Japan, their culture is so rich and their lives are so interesting it's like they lead an out of the world more advanced life.

I do have a few questions for you, it seems that their fad's are absolutely different from the ones in different countries, like one time the in thing to do was to play on one of those dance machines. Then they had this gambling game where you throw balls in and I don't know what happens. Their fashion is totally different as well, and they hold on to their history very tightly.
So my question is: What's new and funky :P these days?

Oh, and what do they like?

The gambling game you speak of is Pachinko, played all over asia, i think its chinese in origin. i love it and used to play it alot.

As far as the dancing machines, the game Dance Dance Revolution has been spreading in popularity to Europe and North America, perhaps somewhere in Dubai you would be able to find it, my friends over in Dubai still get to play alot of the Japanese or American game titles.

I hear they have an unhealthy obsession with Colonel Sanders and KFC, and every December 25th KFC buckets are a huge seller in Japan. As far as movies go, i watch alot of international stuff and they seem to be making more horror/mystery/paranormal nowadays. Oh, and they like John Travolta.

Just keeping tabs with my good friend over in japan keeps me informed. But i guess Harley has more firsthand experience and can be more elaborate.

So Harley, whats shaking up the old Tojotree? :P

Oh the Dance Dance Machine can be found in arcades all over Dubai, I just didn't know what it's called I'm not a big fan of arcade games myself I prefer the handheld consoles. Thanks for the info Evakian, Pachinko it's called, interesting.
Regarding the movies, I once saw on TV something about them having a special nickname for Brad Pitt?