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he comes from a state where they drink a lot and are very proud of their drinking culture (Wisconsin) and even he is shocked by the alcoholism in Japan

This interview was better than 90% of the interviews and videos because this man has gotten to know the real Japan and gotten a feel for it of both it’s pros and cons… not the idealized version most young people adopt setting themselves up to become negative, sour, and toxic when expectation doesn’t meet reality. This was real. Thank you.

This man could easily become a storyteller/storywriter. The way he describes life in Japan is amazing and has a great voice to listen to! Nice thing to be able to meet unique people!

I lived in Osaka now, I’m from a high crime rate town, and considering myself to be not emotionally invested in others, moving to Japan was the best thing I’ve ever done.

As a Canadian who lived in both the rural AND urban parts of Japan for years, I will say now that I prefer the countryside.

Great job, this American man is incredibly inspiring, he does sound so passionate & kind. He's the best "advertiser" for Japan you could have found.

I'm from Boston,MA USA and my family and I moved to Osaka, Japan in 2015. We lived there for four years then we moved to Nara, Japan. We prefer the countryside, but really enjoy Japan in general. It is such a wonderful place to raise your children. The countryside is cheap and we grow lots of vegetables. The people here are so friendly and it is a very different experience from the city. You can check out our lives here by watching Real Life Japan. Cheers!

I like that saying: "Perfectionists can't learn languages." So true. You have to be willing to speak poorly at times to improve.

The way he speaks english sounds super japanese in the cadence and rhythm its interesting

I have been sober 6 years in Tokyo. Real friends aren't made while drinking. Its unfortunate how much people drink here.

"Japan needs more people" - Just make sure to keep it meritocratic, so people have useful skills *and* are a culture fit / want to integrate and help keep Japanese culture alive. Japan doesn't need people who don't want to contribute to Japan.

I know Quinlan, actually he"s almost a celebrity up here, so everybody knows him, great guy who loves to share what he knows about the area, which is a vast amount. He helped me out finding the best places for pretty much anything I was looking for after I moved from Sendai to Iwate. I also didn't actually even want to move to Japan, but after a few months, I didn't want to go back, and made good on that. Sold everything I owned back in the US, and started a farm.

I like how at 1:54 you see people walking on the path and then the clip is seamlessly edited. It just shows that they didn't rudely take up the walking space and moved out of the way of the people walking.

When I met my wife she lived in Morioka, I lived in Misawa. The Northern part of Japan is absolutely beautiful.

this man is all i want to become. he just seems like the type of guy everyone wants to have around and is just super grounded.

My wife and i are in the middle of planning out trip to Japan for later this year, and this interview made us completely re-think which areas to visit. Looks like we're going to check out Northern Japan now! Thanks for the video

He seems like a friendly dude. I would be friend with him

great interview ! this man is the perfect advertising for japan. a foreigner that tells people to visit the rural areas of japan.

I appreciate this guy’s directness and honesty. He’s really telling it like it is, from his viewpoint.

He came to Japan when he was pretty young. It isn't easy to have close friends in the Midwest, unless you met them really young and didn't lose contact. I have a couple of friends like he's talking about, and they took me a lot of time to find. They're kind of unicorns. They're the old fashioned kind of friend who would help you out in an emergency situation. Although, he's up north pretty far where they get 20 foot walls of snow on the sides of the roads and you have to constantly dig footpaths to your door so you can get out of the house. I think that area might be more down-to-earth. Less people too.

It seems to me that, the reason it worked out for him is the privilege of being self-employed for 19 years😃 well-done!🎉 I think it’s much easier to be happy anywhere in the world when you don’t have a job you hate. He seems like a really nice guy. What a great interview, Takashi!❤

Japan was amazing in the early 2000's, I spent hours in internet cafes just to connect to the world. I had my first flip phone there. No social media back then. I don't even think texting was a thing yet... Used to work and live in Ikebukuro too... but first Roppongi, Nishi Azabu.. Foreigners gravitated to Sports Cafe as a social hangout spot from all around the world and a bunch of other places I don't even remember... Before that Sapporo Susukino, Flore Cafe, and Rad Brothers, my god what memories, we were drunk like non-stop :D Last, Osaka Dotonbori. Good times.

It was really nice to hear from an American Midwesterner, who values nature and didn't have an attachment to being in Japan for a long time originally. The countryside sounds like a really great place to explore on a visit too.

This is easily one of the best interviews that you've done. I saw that it was over a half hour and initially hesitated, but I just kept on and it was riveting. Really great stuff!

I really appreciate how indepth your interviews are, he was very eloquent in his description of his journey. Thank you for a well put together interview with a great host and interviewee. I'd love to see some of the rural shrines and architecture, they are so interesting. I watched a online walk through of one of the traditional houses. It was beautiful. My mom used to live in Okinawa in the 70s, but came home due to a family member passing, she had some stories.

Takashi's videos should be available on all air plane flights to Japan from overseas, I think they would be great.

I lived in an isolated small city in Japan for 5yrs. I believe what he says is accurate, especially the parts about making meaningful Japanese friendships. This resonates.

Wow, we have a lot in common. I also moved to Japan in 2000 (though not to teach English), lived in Yokohama and Tokyo for 17 years, got tired of the pre-Olympics noise and congestion of Tokyo and up and moved to a small fishing town on the coast of the Japan Sea in Toyama Prefecture. And now, though I miss my friends in Tokyo (most of them bartenders), I'm happy here in my small town, where I live in a renovated 'machiya,' continue doing translation work by day and run a bar (in one half of my house) at night. I find even short visits to Tokyo unexpectedly exhausting.

The scenery in the countryside is pure beauty, Takashi san! I admire his energy during the whole course of the interview. This is one of your best videos in my opinion! 本当に素晴らしい！ 👌

His honesty is breathtaking. I love it !

As a Hungarian who grew up in Sheffield, England I can say that the way the world is going it's becoming less and less about money more about a pursuit of a life more in touch with ourselves, our immediate environment but most of all nature. In other words there's a big shift in people starting to be digital creators instead of digital consumers and I think from what I can see is from people wanting to live a more mindful life and I believe that's why many western people are drawn to countries like Japan for similar reason. A sort of self discovery. I am in the process of sorting out my affairs so to speak in England/UK, getting my British Citizenship and going back to my "motherland" as that's what I see my country of Hungary as, however I see England specifically South Yorkshire as my "fatherland". But yeah it's amazing stuff that's happening in the digital and physical world. There's a lot of terrible things too but I believe it's all a sign of a world's end and a new world's beginning. Thanks for the cool videos Takashii I'm interested in the Art of Archery side of things in Japan as it corresponds with my own culture. After my time spent in Magyarország ie Hungary, perhaps the next one will be Japan who knows where the wind of destiny will take me. I plan to do similar to you tbf just for Hungary and the carpathian basin eventually too, there's a lot of my country's beauty that people miss out on. For now I'm just researching and learning the basics :)

This dude is incredibly well spoken. Great dude, he would be an outstanding guide.

I find these interviews a little funny in the sense that if I were in Spain and asked these questions I would hear very similar answers about Spain. It seems that the global economic situation is tense everywhere

Wow Takashii, this is a fascinating episode. It might be my favorite that you have shared. Your interview skills are impressive, your guest had many thoughtful responses and seems like a good dude, and the enthusiasm and joy you both have for story telling is infectious. Cheers from NYC 👋 Edit: To add, I love how your guest says "we" when discussing how Japan must change. He has gone completely native! Very impressive. Edit 2: This guy is an inspiration for all humans! I must emphasize his point at 29:57: HAVE FUN WHILE YOU LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE! 🚨🚨🚨 Like the children that Takashii once interviewed who watched English cartoons and played video games, THEY HAD FUN WHILE LEARNING and had mastered American English on their because it was fun! This is such a great episode.

This is such a great video. When I moved to Japan, I was slightly sad to not be in Tokyo. Now, I'm super greatful that I live far outside of Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto. Honestly, Tokyo feels like one of the least Japanese places in Japan to me. I can only stand to visit for a day or two at most. A lot of people love Tokyo, and that's awesome, but there's so much to see outside of Tokyo. Great video, I'd love to see more people speak about this so people visiting know about all aspects of Japan!

Takashii, I really appreciate the in-depth interview with someone who found their way from the city to the countryside. It has been a long time dream to spend my later days in rural Japan, simply enjoying the feeling of its environment and way of life.

Mass immigration is the worst thing that could happen to a country. Japan need to stay this way where it's welcoming and have no problem with foreigners who wanna settle in yet still very strict about its border and say no to a good for nothing immigrant. please be careful about this before it's too late

I really like this guy…soo friendly

I came to Japan on an artist visa. I’m a jazz musician, and I constantly change cities: Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka , each with their own ups and downs. It’s hard to choose where to settle. It’s really fascinating to wee the difference in culture within Japan between these three cities. I’ve been to other places as well, but I like those three cities in particular

We appreciate these interviews. They're very insightful.

quinlan's the best! got to stay at his airbnb and book his tour back in july, definitely recommend it. north japan is absolutely incredible and it's definitely worth checking out

This video comes at a right time with Morioka’s recent nomination as the 52 best places to visit by the New York Times! Tohoku region is a hidden gem in Japan and I am also looking forward to seeing more tourists visit lovely cities like Morioka. Moving to Hirosaki was one of the best decisions I made and I really love the warmth of the people from outside the big cities. Let’s discover the charm of Tohoku together! 😊

This is my favorite video I have seen from you so far. Seems a lot more real that a lot of the other shorter interviews, would love to see more longer form interviews with Japan natives 👍

more interviews like this one, please. I also really like how you made it longer, for such topics, longer is better, I mean it's logical, you talk an entire lifetime, 15 minutes isn't enough.

I really enjoyed this interview, Quinlan has such a calming voice that I could hear him talk about anything.

Takashii-san, your channel is endlessly fascinating. You have a knack for finding truly interesting and eloquent interviewees. I have to agree with Quinlan - northern Japan is special.

This was an incredible video to watch! Such an insightful interview, some quality questions were asked, and some great answers provided. I really love how honest and open that gentleman was with his answers. The only thing I was wishing while watching, was wanting to maybe walk a little to get a small glimpse at the area he was so fond of. Thank you so much for the upload, this was 10/10 video!

I’m definitely pushing for that move to Japan in the near future, mainly for the culture and peace. I’m from South west Africa & it’s not bad here, but I’m depressed most of the time cause of the changes in our culture & current state of economy. I’m self employed & I everyday dream of moving to Japan. This interview just opened up my ideas of where to live and what to expect from the locals

This guy and Pete from premiere two are the nicest, kindest, coolest Americans you will ever meet. I know because I'm from the same place in America as him. Great interview! 🙏

I lived in Japan for 4 Years and LOVED everything about it. Family and I would love to move back, so looking forward to seeing more videos like this @takashiifromjapan

I really like this sitting on a countryside quiet road. It feels peaceful and wonderful.

i love how he talks passionately.

You're really doing a great social experiment, with these interviews!!

Great interview and packed full of insights. Found the topic of Japan's future direction particularly fascinating.

Another excellent interview. Really balanced views, showcase both the bad and the good of Japan.

This was a fantastic interview of an American making a life in Japan and I truly appreciated the questions and openness and forthright responses of the interviewee. I have always appreciated being honest, forthright, open and willing to help each other. I love the Japanese culture and people and would plan to buy a second home property\airbnb. I love your content. I strongly agree with everything the interviewee has said. It would be great to chill with this guy and have a beer and\or sake. It would be my treat!

He’s so sweet, his personality really shines! I’d love to be his friend! 😊 I grew up in Yamagata when I was little and I recommend visiting there too! Lots of hot springs and beautiful temples and shrines. I also LOVE Shimane. It’s a hidden gem. I went to Iwamiginzan, it’s a world heritage site but literally, nobody was there and I was able to have the whole place to myself! Amazing experience. Love Shimane!

great to see quinlan on here! a very positive force in the north of japan!

Great interview, thanks to both of you.

Wonderful to be somewhere that has easy access to everything you need - a great quote from thr interviewee!

I really love how you are really exploring so many peoples' stories and experiences to educate non-Japanese people. Thank you, Takashii! 👍

Very nice interview! Insightful , thank you for the interview.

That was interesting and overall beautiful conversation . Thank you 👍

If i move i wanna live more rural for various reasons but id wanna be somewhere where i can walk to a station to go to tokyo so i can still do things with friends in the city and go buy manga and stuff.

Takashii, I am enjoying your videos more and more. You have such an adorable personality. This is a compliment coming from a Texas grandma.

I LOVE Quinlan San!!! He does awesome videos about the northern area of Honshu and its awesome to see a different part of Japan then the normal places people show.

Wow welcome to Iwate! Glad you could meet up with Quinlan. Great bloke!

Fantastic interview, great questions, and wonderful complete answers. Thank you for this episode.

You got your first sponsor. Awesome. Congratulations

Mr. Takashii, im really enjoying your show and any time that you drop your video and I always Love to come around and watch it. It's a breadth taking every bit of the way. I knew that I will be in Japan some day and I will love to see you.

Wonderful interview, thanks!

Wonderful interview. Many thanks

Just found your channel. Very informative and now I want to visit Japan in my 70th year. Keep up the good work.

Great interview. Quinlan is awesome, inspiring and passionate. I got a lot of insight about north Japan and will definitely want to visit when I make plans!

Great interview. I've watched Quinlan on his channel and he always is so respectful and honest. Great all around person.

Thank you for this high quality interview, Takashi san. Quinlan seems like a really chill dude.

What an amazing interview!!

Very nice and insightful interview as always

I appreciate his honesty of how life is there in Japan from a traveler to a local perspective. Explains a lot and can see his point who's from the States. Excellent video, this is the content I enjoy hearing as a US citizen travling there next year.

takashii the audio is so on point. and this video what a great interview

These always make me smile, I'm actually from Milwaukee WI and I can tell he carries our Midwest traditions of politeness with him. Can't wait to see your interviews from the states

I really appreciate at 9 mins in, you talking about how there are places in Japan that are not insanely packed!! I'm from a rural area, and i love the extra space.

That was a great interview! It would be great if you do more interviews with people living in the country side. Thanks Takashi, I appreciate what you are doing!

I really enjoyed this interview. The questions you chose made for an informative and enjoyable interview. I appreciated how honest he was about his personal experiences and thoughts about where things are going. I live in Wisconsin (an hour from Madison). I wish I had discovered Japan when I was younger, so I might have had an opportunity to live in Japan. I can't wait to go back for a visit. I am still working on my Japanese everyday, however, I have slacked on writing. I need to crack down on that. I do believe the act of reading, writing, and speaking are instrumental in the acquisition of language. Well done, Takashii san.

I love these videos. I learn a lot every time! Hello from San Diego

Great video, Takashii. Really great insights like all your videos. My son is considering moving to Japan, and I've learned so much from your videos that are helping us with information to make his decision.

Great interview! Sei un grande Takashi! The man is solid and knows what he wants

A very fascinating interview. So cool to hear some of the perspectives on your channel

This was a great interview! Man this guy has done it all 😂 I’ve been considering staying in Japan for some time as I’m also self employed and do my work remotely. It feels like it could be a good move.

So many awesome insights. Love your channel!

I really enjoyed this interview. This gentleman is very well spoken and he permeates a positive energy. Much love from Michigan.

What Amazing Interview!!!! Thank you Takashii for sharing and showing us this amazing view of your country from a foreigner perspective.

Great video. Full of insights. I spent 3 weeks in Japan in October this year. I really enjoyed it. I envy people who discovered it when they were younger. I have so many commitments now that it would be really awkward to make the move. I did spend one day in Morioka and it was a very pleasant experience. Didn't have enough time to see the surrounding countryside but I'm sure it must be beautiful. Looking forward to my next trip to Japan. Thanks Takashi san for all your terrific content.

This was a great interview. Probably the best you have done yet. I even stayed up late to watch the whole thing. Now I really miss not going to Japan back in the 1980's to teach English there. I too would want to live in the country side and have a big garden. Will have to look into visiting northern Japan too. I just bought a mini Komatsu in Japan and it will be in the US in early February.

I came from Zurich, Switzerland and been living here in Tokyo for almost 9 years. I agree that sometime Tokyo can be overwhelming (and summer's heat and humidity's just awful). That's why I bought a second house in a rural area up in the mountain of Nagano. It's such a bliss to go there to escape from Tokyo's summer !

Absolutely sensational interview. Keep up the great work!

I love linguistics and love this guys and his views on learning a new language. Some facts is that it takes countless repetitions to master a new skill, however a skill learned through play can be mastered in about a dozen turns. Making things fun and learning through okay is so important. And I agree with him saying immerse yourself and learn it all together, even if it’s a little at a time. It’s true, Japanese really isn’t as hard as many other languages!

Best video yet! What a cool guy!

That was interesting Takashii. Thank you. ありがとうございます