Is japan a good place to move to?

10 comments

1. You’re not going to get a visa to work in construction in Japan.

   Take a look at the visas that are granted for working purposes: https://www.mofa.go.jp/j_info/visit/visa/long/index.html. Also, note that work visas require a bachelors degree or 10 years of work experience.

2. You should study up on Buddhism in Japan. My Mother-in-Law (Japanese citizen living in Japan) is a “devout” Buddhist (goes to temple often, says her prayers, etc.) but her diet is omnivorous and whenever she cooked for me (a lacto-ovo vegetarian), had to ask me what’s OK for me to eat or not. It just may be her specific branch (denomination?) of Buddhism but that blew me away! I always thought that Buddhists were vegan or vegetarian.

   Now, with that said, Buddhist temples in Japan are known for serving good/great vegan food (if they are open to public) but still..

3. If Buddhism is your focus, try looking for a deliberate Buddhist community to join. Here’s a place to start:
   https://plumvillage.org/community/international-sangha-directory/

4. Obligatory basic advice: you need a bachelors before you can even entertain the idea of Japan; it will be super hard to get a visa for a construction job, because those aren’t the sorts of jobs that Japan typically hires foreigners for (unless you’re on one of the questionable ‘trainee schemes’); you should start learning Japanese immediately, and make every effort you can to become as good as possible in the next few years while you do your bachelors.

   More specifically, I would seriously rethink why you want to go to Japan. Reading your post, it doesn’t seem like you’ve done *that* much research into Japan and what life there is like. It sounds like you really want to leave the U.K., and that Japan is just somewhere that you think sounds like a good option (you say it’s not a spur of the moment thing, but it really sounds like it is). Coming to Japan because you are a Buddhist is so odd to me.

   It’s like Christianity in the U.K. – it’s the primary/default religion, and loads of people observe Christian holidays like Easter and Christmas, but general British society is not particularly religious. Traditional, sure; ritualistic, sure; but not particularly *religious*.

5. Let’s for a moment ignore the fact that you’re probably not gonna get a visa in constructions, a couple of questions for you to ponder:
   – If you’re contemplating Japan mainly for religious purposes, why not pick any of the other SEA countries? There are several whose main religion is Buddhism. E.g. China, Vietnam, etc. You clearly said you don’t really care much about which country anyways? I’m not sure I get why “Japan is the only truly valid choice”. In what ways?
   – Why are you seeing no future for yourself wherever you are? What makes you think you have a future in Japan, or any other country for that matter? Is it because you think your country is doomed? Or is it because of yourself having no ability to create a good future? FWIW, moving a new country doesn’t magically give you new and better opportunities to have a better life. In reality, you probably start with worse than a blank slate, where you have no connections, don’t speak the language, and not integrated into society in any meaningful ways. Since you have no attachment to the place you’ve been living for the last 19 years, I’m gonna make a wild guess that you don’t have much relationship. It’s gonna be the same, or worse, when you move to a new country.

   TLDR:
   – You’re not gonna get a visa
   – You’re might not have a better life compared to where you are now, and that’s irrelevant to Japan

6. 1. no, your reasoning is not lucid considering the fact that most people don’t know or care about what buddhism is beyond tradition here
   2. it’s not a good place to be if you have a reason to worry about discrimination beyond being a foreigner
   3. no, it doesn’t qualify you for a visa, and it’s a grueling low wage job
   4. maybe start with what visa you’ll qualify for

7. I was a teenager once too, like you I felt that I didn’t really have an attachment to the place I grew up in (although I later came to appreciate where I grew up ) and life would somehow be better else where so I understand the way you feel, It’s actually quite normal for people of your age to feel that way. Japan won’t necessarily give you better life, I’ve moved from UK to Japan. Whilst my experience and time here is a lot shorter than some of the other people posting here, I can tell you that some things will be better, some things will be worse and other things will just be different. The UK does have a lot of strong points such as greater access to country side, a relative lack of natural disasters and super markets being general being cheaper than japan for example that you might miss. Despite how much we British like to complain about our country, it does have some positive points.

   However I will warn you that Japan can be hard country to make friends in, especially with a language barrier. As others have said you will need to study the language if you really want to make the best of things here. Although you can get by with minimal and limited Japanese. I have met people who have lived here 10 years+ and can barely order from restaurant. Those people are usually hopelessly dependent on a Japanese partner, (their partner is often the only thing that is probably still keeping them here). Believe me you do not want to be like them. Japan is not like one of those countries where every other person you meet seems to be able to speak perfect English, especially in north japan where I live, being able to speak at least a little bit of language is essential. Because so few people speak my native language well. Otherwise you will just feel frustrated, like your hitting a brick wall and basic things you can do back home will feel very difficult. I am conversational in Japanese and even I hit the odd bump in the road every now and again and realise the limit is of my ability but things normally work out in the end. You can go far just knowing a little bit of language but if u plan to do anything other than English teaching you’ll have to become very good at speaking and reading before someone will employ you. If you do move here before you get proficient in the language there are definitely apps, videos and guides on the internet that can help you untill you get better. Many places also have cultural centres with will help and support foreigners with every day things.

   I can’t advice you on what practicing bhuddism will be like in japan, however I suspect you will have to learn a lot of dedicated vocabulary to understand what your reading.

   I know it’s expensive but I would recommend saving up money and visiting Japan before giving up the life you have in England. I know travelling is very different from living in a country, but a lot of people who have never come Japan, have an image of what the place and Japanese people are like that just doesn’t match reality. I would also recommend travelling around the UK and visiting a lot of local places in this country before you move too. This is what I did and I realised how much the UK had going for it.
   　
   I believe you will need a degree before you come here. I wish you all the best in achieving your goals.

8. They say Japan is a Buddhist country but I still have to meet someone that knows the Four Noble Truths (apart from monks that is).

   Also the main denominations are Pure Land based… Not sure what your philosophy is but it surely isn’t mine.

9. I wouldn’t go to Japan for Buddhism. Japan is not defined by religion and some Japanese follow a few traditions that they have learned from their parents, but they know nothing deeper than that. You marry Shinto and Christian and you die Buddhist, because the respective ceremonies look the cutest.

   If religion is your thing and you want to live in an “advanced” country, then I’d choose Thailand, China, or Vietnam. Japan has stagnated for the last 30 years and is 99% secular. And if you search for happiness, you’d have to find that first, before you move IMO.

10. So…I still struggle to understand the “moving to Japan because of Buddhism bit” – perhaps there in lies a deeper reason that I haven’t identified.

    Irregardless I think it’s a totally valid reason to try living and working in another country if you feel that there isn’t much of a future for you in your current place.

    Discrimination will definitely exist for all foreigners but it’s also a luck of a draw thing I feel. Just know that as an outsider coming to a host country, try your best to be respectful of their culture by picking up on Japanese mannerisms, ways of interacting and work culture/team dynamics. You know the basics – be kind, considerate, polite, respectful, etc. It can get quite hierarchical over here but that’s just what it is.

    I think it’s more pronounced in Japan that you have to put others/the company/your team above yourself most of the times. Maybe that’s just how I felt. It’s definitely a must for the construction industry here.

    I apprenticed for a traditional Japanese carpentry company and I’d say it depends. If you’re looking at it in terms of being a salaried tradesman then I think it may not be much. But then again it might depend on which city you’re working in. But for sure, what they earn is definitely good enough to get by.

    It may depend from company to company but one of the construction companies we were partnered with for one project had all their men housed in a nearby house and they would work everyday (including the weekends) on the nearby construction job. It’s really tiring but these guys still came to work each day with a smile and put in their 100%. Construction work over here is another level my friend. Their work ethic is insane.

    I’d recommend learning the language first to a certain level so that you can then try out an apprenticeship or an internship in the trades over here on a cultural exchange visa (but it means you can’t get paid). This will give you a sense for how living and working in Japan might be like.

    I personally enjoyed my time here. And yes I’d also recommend saving some money not just for the visa requirement but also to give you the peace of mind while you are exploring.

    All the best!