TL;DR: University student considering living with host family in Japan, asking for your previous experiences in this situation with an emphasis on how strict the family is regarding curfew and overall freedom.
Hi there! I’m a third year student at Canada’s McMaster University, and I’m going to be going to Japan for foreign exchange pretty soon! I don’t really know anyone that has gone to foreign exchange in Japan before so I was hoping people with this experience could provide some insight
Before I get into things I just wanted to say I don’t use reddit very often so pardon my poor reddiquete 🙂
So here’s some background:
I’m currently doing some research into potential living arrangements and I’d say the one I’m leaving most towards atm is homestay. Other options include potentially living at a dormitory or renting an apartment on my own.
I barely know any Japanese but really want to learn so being in an authentic Japanese family setting is very appealing to me.
I am also deeply interested in Japanese culture and traditions and would love to participate in activities such as ceremonies and festivals with a host family.
However, I am also a rather free spirit, and I love to travel, so I would like to be able to explore Japanese nightlife and take the occasional roadtrip to different parts of the country.
My exchange is going to be taking place in Tokyo, but there’s a good change the hose family would be residing an hour or two away.
Here are my questions:
In your experience, how much freedom has your Japanese host family provided you?
How strict have they been with curfew?
Have they been okay with you taking a few days or weeks to go traveling on your own?
Are they okay with you not coming home for dinner a couple nights every week so that you can spend time with your friends, go to bars and party? I would of course provide sufficient notice and text them ahead of time.
I have a rather large tattoo on my right forearm, I know that tattoos are somewhat looked down upon in Japan so I was wondering if a host family would be okay with this or if they would look at me differently because of it? The tattoo is a black and white phoenix if that helps 🙂
I am aware that it varies from family to family, but please feel free to provide your own opinions, experiences or a general consensus you feel is true in regard to the questions. Please keep in mind that I am a 20-year-old adult in University, but I appreciate experiences from people of all ages who have lived with host families in Japan.
Thank you in advance for your answers!