Living in a Leo Palace Apartment

My favorite corner in my apartment:
Lucky bamboo and a framed silk

Finding an apartment in Japan is not an easy thing especially if you're a foreigner. You'll need a guarantor-a local who'll vouch for you to the property owner. You'll also need key money- it's a "cash gift" to the property owner for allowing you to rent the place. There's also the language barrier which might be used to your disadvantage.

So how will you find an apartment in Japan? 

Thank your stars if your company helps you in finding an apartment. Some companies can act as guarantors for you. They'd also help you understand the leasing contract. They may even loan you the needed key money. 

But if this is not the case for you, the most convenient rental option for you is by renting a Leo Palace Apartment.

Repost: Angry single men stage anti-Christmas rally in Tokyo

Christmas in Japan is all about romance
photo credit: www.punipunijapan.com

I saw this news report on a Philippine online newspaper. I found it both funny and sad. 

In a nutshell: 20 single Japanese men were protesting Christmas because it's a symbol of capitalism and commercialization. 

What they're using is absolutely true but I think the deeper cause is they have no one to celebrate Christmas with. 

In Japan, Christmas is an event for couples much like how Valentines is celebrated in the West. If you're unmarried, single or no guts to ask someone to a date, then you can just forget a Christmas celebration. No wonder these single men are protesting!

Repost: Making Friends in Japan

A display in Meiji Mura, Aichi

I came across this post a few days ago about making friends in Japan. I find it really enlightening. It made me realize why I'm not in deep friendships with Japanese people. 

This excerpt below really got me. Basically, the writer is saying it's hard to find a Japanese friend who would like to discuss things beyond the usual polite topics of hobby, weather and activities. 

I wholeheartedly agree with this insight. In more than 3 years of staying in Japan, I only met 2 people who enjoy a good discussion on politics, social issues, and other topics that need some kind of thinking. Interestingly, these two people are not the usual Japanese. One is a divorcee from an American husband who lived abroad for several years. The other is my student who refused to be part of the Japanese workforce. He's a freelance businessman who doesn't care about the society's expectations. 

Now here's the problem. These two people don't consider me as a "friend." To the divorcee, I'm just a co-worker. We don't hang out. We only get to talk when the students are doing something in the classroom. To my student, I'm a teacher. We can't be friends even though we're almost of the same age. So I've found people to talk to but they won't consider me as friends. Just great.  

Anyway, here's the excerpt: