An article for all you long-term gaijin!

You neither feel a representative of your home country nor do you feel Japanese.
Is that a bad place to be?
The author argues that it isn't, and I tend to agree.

In my limited experience in Japan since I only actually lived there 6 years I would tend to agree. A life of Charisma Man isn't all bad.

But I feel for the people who are born there and know almost nothing else yet are always looked upon as gaijin.
It happens to black/brown people in the U.S. in certain communities too.

This relevant video just popped up today.

Bummer Tokyo Drew passed, I had heard of him and seem some content and did not know him. Interesting to hear that even for a Canadian health care is cheaper in Japan.

On costs yes it is much cheaper in Japan (except some things like fruit) but if cost is your motivation Thailand has in some people's view better medical care for cheaper and has a retirement visa. Malaysia also has a retirement visa. Japan does not. Still I think a rough off the cuff calculation I would need 60% of the money I'd need in the US so yes financial is significant of course wife's demand is the biggest but I like Japan and have the inlaw family support network. Wife is set on Japan a big nope on anywhere else.

One whom we posted about earlier and I know in person came back to the US as he wanted newer treatment than Japan had available so he came back to the US. No idea how he can afford it after retiring on yen doing his whole working life in Japan. Most people do not need some cutting edge treatment that is only available in US but that is something to keep in mind for some conditions.

This is not the first time I've seen black people say they feel safer in Japan, police won't shoot you for being well tanned in Japan.

I also agree with you young woman that strangers are more likely to help you in the US than Japan, also US volunteers more. However Japan you probably need less help.

As mdchachi mentioned earlier if you are a different color and born in Japan you are still treated as a foreigner, if you take citizenship you are still treated as a foreigner like our young high school friend.

Here is an American guy who moved from Japan to Thailand. He also interviews some Japanese who moved to Thailand. More friendly, cheaper, easier to get a place to live, no refusal of service etc. He says Thailand healthcare is even more welcoming than Japan.






For me personally Japan is better but I think for many it is not, I think most should explore options.

Penang was a popular destination for retiring Japanese even in the late 80s (esp those who cashed out/retired before the bubble popped). I think at that time it was more 'developed' and international than Thailand (even Singapore then, for the richer), which (along with some other places) has since caught up. And both (and other places) have gotten more expensive than they once were.

#1) Unspoken in videos/articles about retiring abroad (and this goes for all versions of this) is that the retiring person/couple is willing and able to leave family behind. For example, my wife and her sister have taken care of their mother (now in her mid 90s and in one of those 介護施設 places) for years now. My wife still visits her 2-3 times a week. A time or two, her mother has been transferred to a hospital for some treatment, then back. My wife's sister may have been able to handle everything while my wife and I 'retired' to Penang (we'll just come back when she dies?), but that's less than ideal on all sides.

#2) Unspoken is that the retiree couple has kids, who may have their own families. I suppose the retiree couple could choose to visit their kids and grandkids once or twice a year, and that would be enough. But others are more engaged with their kids than that.

#3) Unspoken is that the retiree couple (in addition to family) will have no social network to speak of, or that they're willing to leave those people behind. Or hobbies as a component of that network, which could be more location-independent (photography), or more closely tied to Japan (eg, taiko/shamisen).

#4) While "healthcare is great" in SE Asia, unspoken is what happens and what life will be like there when a person needs longer term care--some level of assisted living, or where licensed care-givers/nurses may be at the facility 24/7. Even for a gaijin like myself here in Japan, this angle is of some concern (and this has been discussed on the RetireJapan forums)--how well would I 'fit in' and be accepted at the kind of place my mother-in-law is at now? So, lots of videos/articles about how wonderful eternal life can be in Malaysia/Thailand/Panama/Costa Rica/etc, and while I might die in my sleep after playing golf the day before, I've yet to see a video/article on what is called 'long term care' in these same countries. Even whether it's available or not (oh, you'll go 'home' for that?).

There's a song lyric that goes, "The sun always shines on TV." I think that's something to be considered when watching these videos.

All very pertinent points johnnyG.

johnnyG said:

while I might die in my sleep

Click to expand...

That was basically my mother's plan whenever we tried to discuss next steps for when she couldn't live alone anymore. Her dream was to die peacefully in her sleep. But that's a wish not a plan. As she gradually lost her capabilities, physically and mentally, we finally moved her in January of this year. Now she's 93. My wish is that she leaves us (ideally peacefully in her sleep) before the dementia takes her mind completely. She still remembers her children but if I visit her today she won't remember that I was there tomorrow.

Speaking of hospital bills, my mom was hospitalized for pneumonia this year. The hospital stay was 6 or 7 days. Bill was $40,000. Thankfully her insurance covered it and we had to pay nothing out of pocket so far.

Good points indeed especially on elder long term care. My mother in law will depend on us which is another great pressure for us to move back before she is infirm. My father has two other children (besides me) in the area if i were to leave, to be honest though I expect him to pass before I move just due to age. In my case our children are younger than my age suggests so we will take them with us. Of course my wife focused on raising kids to native Japanese rather than developing her English so she would not fit in here.

I too have never seen long term care discussed in these videos. So far my ancestors have not needed it but that does not mean I won't. The price differential is a HUGE difference though, US has become so expensive one really would have a higher quality of life in most of those countries IMHO. The elder care there are various sites for different levels but no videos about it A luxury retirement facility in Thailand. In some ways Japan may be less accepting than some. We had a perception the care my grandfather in law got was not as good as it could have been.

I've been following the discussion on the article I posted by British people in Japan on Facebook. One woman pointed out that there was a whiff of white, male privilege about it: that it would be far more difficult for a foreign woman or a Black man to adopt an eccentric persona and hang around with Osaka's demi-monde without social pressure to be more conventional or attention from the police. I think she's right.