Today’s Question
On this episode of Ichimon Japan we ask: What’s better: rural life or city life in Japan?
Topics Discussed
- The pros and cons of living in rural Japan
- The pros and cons of living in a big city in Japan
- Life in Ishikawa Prefecture
- Life in Kobe
- Life in Osaka
- Where Ishikawa Prefecture is located
- Whether rural people are friendlier than city people in Japan
- Eating udon meshi at Sururi in Shinjuku, Tokyo
- Eating gator in Ueno, Tokyo
- Magic: The Gathering in Japan
- The not so great rainy wather of Ishikawa
- Cheap and/or free housing in rural Japan
- Ishikawa’s delicious carrots
- How Japan’s declining population is affecting Japan’s rual areas
- The general lack of adults in their 20s and 30s in rual Japan
- And more!
Note: This episode was recorded before the declaration of the global coronavirus pandemic. While you should visit Japan as Ryan suggests, obviously, April 2020 is a pretty bad time to try to do so.
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Sources, Links, Videos, Etc.
The restaurant serving udon meshi that was referenced in this episode is called Sururi. You can find the location information for Sururi’s Shinjuku location below.
Sururi Shinjuku Main Store (するり新宿本店, Sururi Shinjuku Honten)
1-2-9 Kabuki-cho, 2F Citadine Central Shinjuke Tokyo, Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo
The Japankyo article on Sururi can be accessed via the link below.
During the episode a reference is made to a town in Japan that was giving houses to those who would agree to live in them for seven years. This was a mistake. It was actually 15 years. The name of the town is Okutama and you can find out more by watching the video below.
If you’d like to find out more aboutthe differences in escalator etiquette that exist between the eastearn and western regions of Japan, then check out the Ichimon Japan episode below.
Japanese Vocabulary List
Most episodes feature at least one or two interesting Japanese words or phrases. Here’s some of the ones that came up on this episode. All information is from Jim Breen’s WWWJDIC.
- Inaka
- 田舎 【いなか(gikun)】 (n,adj-no) (1) (sens) rural area; countryside; the sticks; (2) hometown
- Beddotaun
- ベッドタウン : ベッドタウン; ベットタウン(ik); ベッド・タウン; ベット・タウン(ik) (n) commuter town (wasei: bed town); bedroom community; dormitory town
- Kisha
- 汽車 【きしゃ】 (n) (1) train (esp. long distance train); (2) (orig. meaning) steam train
We Want Your Questions
Is there something about Japan that confuses you? Is there something about Japanese culture that you would like to learn more about? Is there something in Japanese history that you would like us to explain? We’re always looking for new questions about Japan to answer, so if you have one, please send it to ichimon@japankyo.com.
Special Thanks
Opening/Closing Theme: Produced by Apol (YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Fiverr)
Ichimon Japan cover art: Produced by Erik R.
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Full Show Notes
