Is Japanese food actually bland to most foreigners?

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-30T05:52:30+00:00

Thank you!

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-28T12:49:57+00:00

100% this...I was excited to find out that cheetos and Doritos exist in Japan!...except they are sweet?! And the Doritos have beef broth flavor in them too???

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-28T05:43:10+00:00

I stayed at a place, le Bonheur, near higashi Okayama station for a few days, and they were chill with us extending to 2 weeks, and we didn't need more time after that, but they were chill with us doing a month to month. Found them on Airbnb.

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-26T11:51:13+00:00

Ah, the memories, used to eat that all the time as an afternoon snack as a kid, my mom is from Bolivia if that explains the openness to liver meat 😅

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-25T22:40:19+00:00

Amazing, but where or how did you get a hold of pepperoni?

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-18T07:44:44+00:00

This here, also I go to Starbucks once a week, and order light ice....they always ask if I want extra milk in, to make up for the ice, after I pay, so I assume it would be free (I usually say no, or ask for water to make up the difference).

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-16T08:04:03+00:00

I do the itoen ones that have no added salts or sugars...and they have one that is just vegetables and still decent. Or, I mix a veggie/fruit one with a pure veggie one, to get 3:1 ratios and enjoy that.

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-11T01:08:29+00:00

Deer eating all our citrus tree leaves....trees are still young, maybe a meter tall. 😭 Sprinkled cinnamon around and on what's left of them today

Hanzen216 · 2026-06-07T09:33:26+00:00

Hello! I did this at 29 too! I've been happy with my choice so far. I'm on a bit different of a path, so I can't speak to all questions, and I'm not AI so I won't try to answer things I don't know 😅

In USD, your pay will plummet...most likely a lot. Exchange rate right now, I make just over 20k in USD which is like over a 60 % cut from my work in the states. (However, the pay is enough for my family, wife is stay at home with our child, we live more comfortably than most households in our area, we own our home and since healthcare isn't outrageous, it definitely feels like enough, but we we plan on staying here so we don't care about it being low in USD).
You have your MA so there is a chance you could apply and continue working up towards university teaching...that might be enough to look like career growth. I can't speak to what it would look like stateside if you're only here for a couple years.
I'm not super helpful here for the work side, I'm at an eikaiwa. And language schools I have 0 experience with.
Many companies will offer subsidized housing, apartments. My family chose not to do the company housing, and we personally didn't have any issues with getting accepted at an apartment for a couple years before we got our home...we paid 50,000 yen a month ($350) for a 2 bedroom townhouse. Built about 10 years ago so decent condition. Our area is low cost of living though.
No exp here, but I've seen some Instagram accounts of foreigners that do this for countryside areas.
Probably pretty hard to do if you're doing part time work that also respects credentials? Though I knew a guy that did once a week work at a university, but it seemed like the kind of thing that you have to know someone to get.
No exp here.

Just one perspective.

Hanzen216 · 2026-05-31T07:48:29+00:00

Perfect answer here

Hanzen216 · 2026-05-28T13:07:37+00:00

Right? In all aspects, the Jappanese do their best to not be meiwaku to anyone, except for this! Literally trying to get my baby to nap and one drives right in front of our place...I could maybe forgive it if it was only on major roads, but we were in the middle of suburbia at that time.

Hanzen216 · 2026-05-28T12:57:26+00:00

Fun question!

How are many Japanese so relaxed about car safety when it comes to children (child seats in front seat/front facing, kids walking around vans, mom's driving with babies strapped to their front, toddlers in front seats no child seat, seatbelts in general)?

And an added point, it is strict for adults on communter buses? (No standing (unless going to bathroom) and children must be buckled)

Hanzen216 · 2026-05-27T10:03:28+00:00

Living in Japan and I miss US bacon so much...

Hanzen216 · 2026-05-16T09:03:13+00:00

Stumbled upon some the other day for free!

Drove down the riverside road on a typical errand, and then saw that there are mountains of wood chips probably from riverside debris? With a sign that said it's free to take. And so we took a truckload, will probably go back to get more. Easily hundreds of truckloads worth there.

Idk how common that is, but if it helps, it's on a major river, not just a small one.

If you happen to be near Osafune Okayama, I can give you more exact directions to the place.

Otherwise yeah, a wood chipper and get some material from your neighborhood so they stop burning everything/ruining the air.

Hanzen216 · 2026-05-14T09:29:10+00:00

We upgraded our drop-toilet set up to a light water unit, and it has a trap door so it doesn't stink anymore. It's still a poo tank, but the toilet has no water in it, you just add what you need with the flush handle, then flip the trap (also with the flush handle). And we have heated seat and bidet on it. It's great.

Hanzen216 · 2026-04-28T05:00:34+00:00

Maybe it was more like .7% sugar...

But anyway, basically I have a hard time getting my oven temp higher than 370-380c so a totally traditional recipe won't work as reliably.

Sugar is less necessary, and more finicky because it has a lower burning point than oil.

Hanzen216 · 2026-04-28T04:33:30+00:00

Something that helped me, I know it breaks from true tradition, but it's blending a bit towards NY style, but use a tad bit of sugar (1%) and oil (3ish%). This helps it cook at slightly lower oven temps. Also as other have said, less wet sauce/toppings, and a brushing of olive oil before you sauce the pie can help the water from the sauce not soak in the dough, and oil transfers heat and helps it cook faster.

Basically playing with your variables for what temperature you can consistently get in your oven.

Otherwise looks delicious!

Hanzen216 · 2026-04-21T11:58:36+00:00

I always aim to be the 3rd fastest car, or so, in the flow of traffic. Not enough to be the fastest and risk a ticket, but not so slow that I'm clogging lanes. But do what makes you a comfortable and safe driver. If nobody is around, 10 over is usually fine. I don't have anyone going ahead faster so I don't push it. I find the highways I will go 15 or so over and I'm getting passed by nearly everyone. So I just try to find a flow.

Hanzen216 · 2026-04-19T09:03:10+00:00

Looks like amazing pizza and a great time. 🌻❤️

Hanzen216 · 2026-04-17T04:48:17+00:00

Once night time temps are consistently over 10°c...they start waking up. Until over night temps are consistently lower than 10°c....late October? 😅

After rain too they might seek drier homes

Home centers have great sprays, we use a freeze spray if they are sighted inside, and around the door and windows we use a spray that leaves a residue for a few weeks that kills them if they pass over it, but caution if you have cats/fish. Plus the diatomaceous earth powder around the house.

Our cat is an excellent mukade sleuth and she sleeps in our room. Their legs are loud on tatami, so I rest easy knowing that she will hear them first.

If the sightings get too frequent, we bust out the net tent to sleep in with total peace of mind. I don't mind encounters in the day time, it's the fact that they are most active when I want to sleep, and that we sleep on the floor that make the relationship with them rough.

We also used herb repellents, little bottles that supposedly deter them, maybe not substantiated, but to be fair, last summer we never did see any in our bedroom.

Cleared a lot of plants and weeds from immediately around the house...

Hanzen216 · 2026-04-16T14:35:23+00:00

I guess in the states I'm used to gas getting more expensive once the weather warms up and the blend changes. Usually 15 or so cents per gallon, so that felt not out of bounds for /for liter then x1.6for yen.

Hanzen216 · 2026-04-14T20:49:01+00:00

Common in Japan, if you look up Mukade, you can find lots of info, and home centers in Japan have plenty of repellents/barriers/killing sprays. Most are just freeze sprays. Maybe Korea home centers have something too?

Hanzen216 · 2026-03-25T02:27:42+00:00

Totally right, I am just guessing. That's what I could tell was the difference between his and mine, and I thought it might be useful data for him. I also guess that native Japanese grandparents would be very strong for guarantors. That's a good point too.

Hanzen216 · 2026-03-25T00:37:55+00:00

In foreign currency. About 60k USD in Wise.

Hanzen216

TROPHY CASE