I travel to Japan twice a year, ask me anything...

[niko]

lol i was talking to the poster insidehoops...there is no need for him to sign jeff in his posts

sorry.

NIKO

[glidedrxlr22]

Are you a fluent Japanese speaker?

[niko]

Are you a fluent Japanese speaker?

No, not fluent. I can ask directions, say don't put sesame on my food, have very elementary conversations. Talk to my kids and tell them things in Japanese i don't want others to hear. But not fluent and i can't read outside of the phonetic language.

I've very bad at languages, always have been. It just doesn't stick.

[niko]

Is it really as "wacky" (for lack of a better word) there as lots of Americans seem to think? Strange things we hear about like sex hotels, vending machines to buy women's underwear, etc.

There is a bunch of strange stuff but the thing is it's not common (at all) and people in Japan frown upon it just like they do here. I think personally the disturbing thing is that there is this subtle sexualizing of young girls that i don't like, idol groups made of girls that look like JHS girls. I've seen a store that had pin up pictures of 13/14 year old girls (not porn pictures, dressed) that was creepy as hell. But the stuff like panty shops, etc. - it's not common.

[niko]

Is it really as "wacky" (for lack of a better word) there as lots of Americans seem to think? Strange things we hear about like sex hotels, vending machines to buy women's underwear, etc.

There are love hotels though, but that's not really strange, it's just different. Japan is small. And it's just a cultural thing that the girl doesn't want you in her house or her parents are just home and there is no privacy, so you go to the hotel. They are really cool, they have karaoke, video games, food vending machines. Also the trains stop at midnight so it's hard to get laid then go home because you'd be stuck outside.

We have the kids now so me and my wife would go to a hotel for a few hours (it's for a few hours, not hourly). And you pay via vending machine, no person at the door.

[FillJackson]

I wouldn't know (i've never tried to find one) but i'd doubt it, most of the sex toys, etc. are all aimed at men. (Unless men need that a lot which again, i'm not going to research).

They seem to make plenty of toys for women, including some that are quite popular here.

Considering the size of Asian p[COLOR="Black"]e[/COLOR]nises, are dildo sales high in Japan?

They seem sell a lot of these in the US of A. Do you also think that is due to ***** size?

[DuMa]

is the snow on hokkaido the best in the world?

[niko]

is the snow on hokkaido the best in the world?

Don't know.

[KevinNYC]

Quote:
Originally Posted by rufuspaul
Considering the size of Asian penises, are dildo sales high in Japan?
They seem sell a lot of these in the US of A. Do you also think that is due to ***** size?

just a test

***** Singular
Penises Plural

[niko]

Interesting. One more question.

How do you feel, a young black male would could fit in inside of a country like Japan? How difficult to overcome are the cultural barriers?

There is a subtle racism (and at times not so subtle) that would make IMO working there in any type of professional capacity difficult. I have friends who are young black males, but only 1 was a professional and he worked for an american company, the others were in the army, 1 a musician, etc. I think it would be hard for a black american to get a lot of jobs, and i think if you dated/wanted to marry a japanese girl, a lot of parents could have issues with that. Some don't, all my friends married Japanese girls and things wound up ok. It comes out in other ways too, my musician friend everyone is not surprised he's so talented musically, because he's black. Things like that.

The thing about Japan is it's full of Japanese people. That sounds silly but if you think about it, when you only know 1 thing, it makes accepting outside things more difficult.

[niko]

is the snow on hokkaido the best in the world?

Haven't been there. Will ask a friend from there.

[AK47DR91]

Is your mother-in-law easy to deal with? How did your Japanese wife's family treat you since you're not Japanese or Asian?

[niko]

Is your mother-in-law easy to deal with? How did your Japanese wife's family treat you since you're not Japanese or Asian?

She was divorced from my wife's father and didn't live with her daughters for a long time, and the father is a ****ing asshole (he's sick in a home and we have no contact with him). So she couldn't really complain too much. They were cautious but it wasn't bad. I had to take them out and get questioned and such but i don't think it was that bad. They love me now, because we have 2 gorgeous kids and my daughter is fluent in japanese so she can speak to grandma. It was not bad.

Generally if you marry a japanese woman she is probably not going to be so traditional that her parents would not allow it.

[gigantes]

hey, niko- i was just thinking about starting a "weird japan" thread one of these times. i've read so much about japan over the years, including watching video and films, that i could probably ramble on quite a bit, even though i've never been there... yet.

no doubt japan sounds like a truly fascinating place to visit and study, but a really shitty place to live long-term for a gaijin. for example, even working your tail off over the course of decades mastering the language and all the intricacies of their culture, you'll never EVER be really trusted, confided in, or thought to be on the same level as a japanese person. even japanese-born asians whose grandparents first settled there years ago are still commonly seen as 'outsiders'. even a japanese person who goes abroad for a year or two and comes back is seen as 'tainted' and often has trouble getting a job.

i don't know about you, but being treated as a second-class person would probably start to wear on me over the years, as it seems to do for many. even though they do have a huge fascination with the english language and with americans. indeed, apparently any caucasian person in japan is assumed to be an english-speaking american... even when the person tries to explain that they're german or french or whatever. anyway, i could go on forever with this stuff...

BTW the film i'm currently watching- "Japan - A Story of Love and Hate BBC":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_l5b6lZ0mM



anyway, my question-- i forgot where you said you went, but i wanted to ask about prices. apart from the fact that tokyo is probably the most expensive place to live in the country, in the blogs and sources i read, everyone seems to casually mention the prices for snacks and meals, even though those prices are insane! 500yen for a packaged cookie, 200yen for a banana, 3000yen for a small lunch... not sure how much a medium-sized bento costs, but i assume it's equally ridiculous:

How do you feel, a young black male would could fit in inside of a country like Japan? How difficult to overcome are the cultural barriers?

you should read azrael's blog. he went there as an ESL teacher... made it work... got married to a japanese girl... had a kid. a lot of fascinating stories there, including how the kids at his middle were always trying to stick their fingers up his ass. i'm not kidding-- it's called "kancho" and even has some kind of weird tradition behind it, like most things japanese. anyway, the blog:
http://gaijinchronicles.com/category/archive/

[senelcoolidge]

Are Japanese women very serving. I don't want to say subservient, that might be too strong. But is family life like taking care of her children and husband very important to Japanese women. I know it depends on the upbringing, but is this something Japanese. My wife is Asian and for her family is first. She puts our son and even me before herself. Very selfless. She reminds me of how women used to be. My wife loves being a wife and she loves her role. I have so much respect for her. She is strong without being a loud mouth or obnoxious. Doesn't nag. She reminds me that I'm the head of the family..so cool. So are Japanese for the most part similar to this.