Hey, I want to take a month long course in Japan. I am just wondering what would be the best city to do it. Where would I be able to meet people, interact with the culture and have a good time? I’m not sure about the big and fast paced Tokyo, is that the best option?
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If you are in japan/going to Japan then I recommend visiting the Go Go Nihon website. It should help you pick where you’d like to study Japanese.
Areas in Kansai are quite popular for that — Kyoto and Osaka. Kyoto people tend to be more reserved/refined (is the stereotype anyway) and Osaka has a more “friendly” reputation so that could be a good option.
The stereotype/joke is that if you’re walking down the street in Tokyo and point at a random person like “pew pew!” and pretend to shoot them, or pretend to slash them with a sword, they’ll look at you like you’re crazy and walk away. But if you do the same thing in Osaka, they’ll play along and pretend to die in very dramatic fashion. (there was some variety show a few years ago that tested that out, it was pretty funny.)
And I have found that stereotype to be fairly true, in that it is maybe easier to meet people in Osaka than Tokyo.
Another option is to go somewhere a bit smaller, where you will be one of only a few foreigners, and that of course gives you much better immersion/makes it easier to avoid falling into the “gaijin bubble.” I did a summer program in Hakodate in Hokkaido a long time ago, and it was a really great experience.