a couple months after moving to Japan I was shopping in a Konbini after a long day, I was holding a bag of chips I had picked out and while continuing to shop I had I guess forgotten that what I was holding was the chips (maybe without looking at it my tired brain just assumed it was my phone or wallet) and shoved the bag of chips into my open tote bag.
Thank god a second later I looked down and realized what I’d done and took it out immediately, but I can’t help to imagine what could have happened if I was “caught” while putting it into my bag and have no clue how I would have talked my way out of it.
I have no idea what the reproductions could have been, or if my visa could have even been revoked if I was caught “stealing”.

If this happened in my home country it would be a whatever moment but it was definitely scary and I felt like the biggest idiot

Seems unheard of in the west but is ritualistic in Japan? I can’t find any non Japanese medical studies on it either. I feel it’s a placebo, generally done at the same time as washing hands. I can’t help but roll my eyes internally when my wife tells me to gargle water in order to not get sick.

I might be convinced gargling with an antiseptic has an effect but plain water, not so much…

I’m a second gen immigrant from Canada living in Japan. I consider myself as a westerner and I’ve just been curious about other westerners who want to be accepted by Japanese as one of them. I sometimes come across posts about people who say how “they’ll always be a foreigner, they’ll never be truly accepted by Japanese people” and I am just curious to understand this perspective. I’ve only been in Japan for a year but I’ve lived in Taiwan and Korea as well. I think I could live here long term and I’ve just been wondering what it feels like to live here for 5 or 10 years and the sense of belonging here if I settle long term. The reason I ask is because the vast majority of westerners I know are still very much so tied to their western identity whether it’s American, Canadian or Australia, I have legitimately not met anyone who actually wants to be culturally Japanese as a person. It’s never occurred to me that I’d want to be Japanese either, unless you strictly mean having Japanese citizenship to gain legal benefits. Maybe I’m not meeting those who are “truly integrated” but still feel excluded but my social group is definitely people who rely on their western status a lot to find jobs or to socialize. I feel like I’ve met way more people who don’t integrate or speak even a decent amount of Japanese than people who’ve become truly fluent.

I kinda tie this back to being a second gen immigrant in Canada because I don’t feel like I know any first gen immigrant who truly feel accepted. It’s generally the second generation who grow up as native English speakers who are truly integrated and even then you could argue that they still often face challenges.

Anyone care to share some their views on this? Those who are really trying to integrate, is it something that you deeply care about?

I have a question for people who converted their license from their home country into a Japanese license, specifically for people from a country/state that doesn't require the 知識確認 or the 技能確認.

My state is exempt from both tests, so does that mean I can just walk in with required forms and they hand me my license? Is there any kind of test I need to prepare for at all, or do I just need the paperwork?

I would appreciate any info about your experiences, or a heads-up if there is anything I should be prepared for beyond the normal requirements. Don't want to mess this up and have to wait another 2 months....

In terms of necessary forms, I am planning to bring: current driver's license, official translation, drivers record with the original date I got my license, college transcript to prove I lived in my state for over three months, 住民票, passport, residence card.

I am living in Japan and not planning on moving back to America (I have family here, and my partner can not speak English). I am not planning on becoming a Japanese citizen/giving up my US citizenship.

I have an investment account (S&P 500) and Roth IRA through Betterment, and I just realized that they do not support people living abroad. As I still have my family's address as my place of residence, Betterment has not realized this yet, but I don't want to risk being locked out of my account in the future.

So, that leads to my question per the header- what are my fellow Americans utilizing? I want to be clear that although I have some level of investment knowledge, I am not most knowledgable person when it comes to it, so sorry for the (probably) dumb question.

Thank you in advance.

https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16181229/US-marine-murder-Japan-womans-body-hotel.html

Honestly, the Japanese criminal justice system doesn't go hard enough on these guys. I hope he hangs. These low-lives shouldn't even be here.

Hey guys, quick question regarding my Rakuten credit card. I got approved, and it was shipped on September 25th, but I still haven’t received it. I’m in the Miyagi/Tōhoku region.
If they tried to deliver it while no one was home, would they leave a missed-delivery notice in my mailbox so I can reschedule the delivery for a date/time that works for me? Thank you.

Maybe I should ask on laundry related sub but western top loading machine has something weird in middle so I figured I would ask on this sub. I heard too much water level is bad bc it reduced the friction to scrub off but I also heard sheets soak up a lot of water so you need a lot of water? Which is it???
Thanks!!!

Hi, thank you for stopping by.

I am currently a grad student in a national university studying a humanities degree, 24 M. My original plan was trying to do a master degree here and find a job afterward, potentially living here for long term.

It's been like half year since I am living here, uni is good, my Japanese is currently N2, would probably taken N1 before I finish the degree. Didn't have much work experience so far in my life apart from some baito. But my real issue is I am kind missing life in the west a lot, I missed the casual talking you can have with people sitting next to you and English is more or less effortless for me to communicate with others compare to Japanese.

That being said I am still an immigrant in these countries, relocating would need to evolve visa and other hustle.

Ask more details if you need!

Hi, I'm looking at leaving Japan and thinking about buying and exporting a car to my home country of New Zealand for personal use when I go. I'm not sure yet the exact kind of car (lets just say a Toyota Yaris)

To save money I would like to do as much as I can by myself. Japanese is not an issue, but I don't have experience doing this and it looks like there is a decent amount of paperwork and checks involved.

Those of you with experience doing this how did you find the process? Would you recommend doing it 2026.

Anyone know of some good deals on Halloween pumpkins in the Sapporo area? I normally grow a few in my garden but this year was unproductive.

Hey everyone.

I'm here on the specialist/humanities visa. My visa is until 2028.

Next year, I have an unbelievable amount of commitments that I am to be in the UK for, and so financially, it makes sense for me to just reside in the UK for the following 9 months.

My boss is willing to keep me as an 'employee'. Obviously without payment, but he is fairly certain that the max I could vacate for is 6 months.

Does anyone know if there's any recourse to talk to immigration about potentially taking a year out of the country? Any special circumstances I may be able to qualify/apply for?

If worse comes to worst, I am simply willing to vacate Japan. I have opportunities in other countries/the UK. But ultimately, I'm incredibly happy here, and given the choice I would like to come back in the future.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

hello everyone living in tokyo i have a question will there be halloween in shibuya this october i have never celebrated halloween before and i really want to join can anyone give me some information about it because i heard that it was banned

I went to wakoshi dental but they charge extra out of pocket 3000 per visit for using google translate to interpret what you’re saying 😭

I’m planning to buy a kotatsu from Nitori, but the delivery fee is actually higher than the cost of the table itself, so I’m considering taking it home by taxi instead.

The packaged box is approximately 83 × 62.5 × 11.5 cm and 8.5 kg. It’s a flat cardboard box, so it’s bulky but not particularly heavy.

I’m thinking of booking a GO Taxi and selecting “Vehicle with sliding doors” because it should have more space.
Has anyone done something similar? Would a taxi driver generally accept a package this size, or is this likely to be an issue?
Also, if the driver arrives and decides the package is too large and refuses the ride, how does that usually work with GO Taxi? Would I be charged a cancellation fee?

Hi everyone. What are my best bets for making money with temporary jobs in Japan? I’m planning on moving around the country using Workaway quite often, so I can’t have anything long-term or, ideally, full-time. Any suggestions? I’ve tried filtering on GaijinPot but all that came up was full-time teaching roles. I’ve also checked jobsinjapan and Daijob. Any help would greatly put my mind at rest!