Tokyo or Osaka
Frank
2,379 Posts
My wife and I are toying with the idea of moving to Japan for a few years.
What would be a better place to live? Tokyo or Osaka?
After speaking to a few Japanese friends, we're somehow leaning towards Osaka.
What would be a better place to live? Tokyo or Osaka?
After speaking to a few Japanese friends, we're somehow leaning towards Osaka.
Comments
realized shortly after posting, but "Only Moderators May Delete Posts"
From what I understand, radiation is not an issue in Osaka. The information about Tokyo is different depending who you talk to. Some people told me their friends in Tokyo don't use tab water, check their groceries with geiger counters etc. International radiologists consider the Tokyo area to be safe but I guess this issue would be another reason to chose Osaka. The distance from Fukushima to Osaka is still about half the distance as from Chernobyl to Berlin so I don't think there's much reason to worry.
I heard nice things about Kobe and from the information I'm getting on public transportation, Kobe to Osaka would only take about the same time as the commute from Park Slope Brooklyn to midtown Manhattan. Do those trains run 24 hours?
My wife isn't Japanese but this would be for her work and visa would not be an issue.
First we were planning on going to Central America but now the Japan possibility came up and I'm starting to think this might give me a shot at another few years to dj and then go to Latin America and retire...
Did you sell all your us funk 45s? Maybe it's time to fire up that party again.
Tokyo if you want that big city feel with a lot going on.
Both cities are fast paced. Both have cultural elements and things you won't find in each other. Both places are beautiful in their own right. If I had to go back and live again, I'd do Osaka, but I would never trade me Tokyo experience ever. Depends on what you want out of the trip really.
I'd probably recommend Tokyo and just go hard!
B
I lived in the countryside slightly southwest of Kyoto and northwest of Kobe for a few years and absolutely loved it. Spent my weekends in Kansai (Kobe, Osaka, Akashi) or in Kyoto, unless we went to other places. I spent most of a summer in Tokyo, and loved it as well, though I guess I liked Osaka and Kobe because I knew my way around them. The Kansai area is 15 million people, so it's not like you'd be lacking for stuff to do, and Tokyo via shinkansen is a relatively quick trip. I even remember a record and instrument shop dedicated to African music in "Amemura" in Osaka with loads of great Nigerian stuff and imported instruments.
So that's my bias, but Tokyo probably wins for the sheer amount of stuff happening.
are lots of things happening as Sheep said and a plethora
of record shops. The food in Tokyo is fire and if you want
Osaka food, you can get it in Tokyo too. The crowds haven't
bothered me that much, but adjusting your schedule to avoid
the rush hour is a big help.
As far as the trains go, they aren't 24 hours. It's a pain in the
ass sometimes, but overall I've got used now. Most of the
trains stop around midnight and depending on where you live
you can push that to 1AM but it depends if you live in central
Tokyo or out in the burbs (the burbs runs later than the trains
coming into central Tokyo). I'm not sure about how late
the trains run in Kansai, but I assume its about the same.
The Shinkansen is amazingly fast and comfortable, but not sure
I'd wanna shell out the money every weekend for a show (1 way:
13,700 yen or $178 US)
Anyway, hope this helps.
http://www.konosuke-sakai.com/
Eat till you drop!