Post: #1

I am planning to move to Tokyo for a year or two and I am wondering wondering where to live?

A little background about me: I'm a mid 30s Eastern European living near San Jose, California. I work as a software engineer and get around 340k. I have no social life here and hate the suburbs, so I decided to transfer to Tokyo. The move still requires some approvals and I don't know all details, but I assume I'll get it. In Tokyo I'll be earning around 220k (I think my tax rate will be around 40%). I will be working in a central location in Shibuya.

My objectives for the apartment are: reasonable rent, good logistics for dating, and good commute. I did some research using realestate.co.jp/en/ and it seems like there is lots of choice between ¥100,000 and ¥200,000 per month ($900-$1800).

What's the best place to stay? I know that Shibuya and Roppongi are the main party districts, but I'm wondering how important is the apartment location for dating. Should I aim at something 10 minutes walking distance from Shibuya crossing or it doesn't really matter?

If it matters, I'm 1.75m tall (5'9" and half an inch), thin, and balding. My game is poor. I subsist on online dating in US, where I can pull women my age. I started learning Japanese using Pimsleur for speaking and Heisig for Kanji. I'm going to keep learning, but it's a very difficult language and I don't see myself improving to a level that would help me with women.

I've seen other threads about Tokyo, but they focus more on a short-term budget traveler with good game, which is something different than my problem. Last but not least, I don't want to spend all my money, because I'm saving for a trip around the world, surviving the next recession, and retirement

Post: #2

I would do Roppongi.

Nice neighborhood with walkable nightlife.

Also other expats live there. I met a lot of foreigners there in similar work situations to you (foreign company workers basically in professional service industry).

Post: #3

You have a decent budget, I'd go with somewhere within 10 minutes walk of a station within 10 minutes ride from Shibuya. It's great if you can set up a date meeting point at a well-known station that just so happens to be near your pad. That doesn't have to be Shibuya station. Nakameguro/Daikanyama and Ebisu are nice areas that girls will know and be impressed by. Pricey though. Basically anywhere within Shibuya-ku will be pretty good for logistics except for the small pockets furthest away from major stations.

Post: #4

(03-11-2019 07:06 AM)Black Caesar Wrote:  I would do Roppongi.

Nice neighborhood with walkable nightlife.

Also other expats live there. I met a lot of foreigners there in similar work situations to you (foreign company workers basically in professional service industry).

DON'T do Roppongi. It's insanely sketchy around there for a first world city neighborhood. It's basically where Tokyo dumps the foreigner migrants and kind of leaves them to do foreigner on foreigner crime that gets swept under the rug. I may be biased not liking that area at all even as someone that's been to Atlantic City, Manila and New Orleans, all having their own crime and degenerate problems as well, it's just a grind to be surrounded by a community like that 24/7 for a year or two. Gotta be on guard constantly and not really a chill place to have a drink at all.

I never felt like I could relax there compared to Manila. Pick somewhere not right in the middle of the bars/clubs, but a close enough train or taxi ride to get there. Shibuya is probably better for this as RawGod suggested.

Post: #5

Thanks for the replies!

I was initially looking for a place North of Shibuya station, close to Yoyogi park, but Daikanyama looks interesting. I watched some videos on YouTube and explored it on Google Maps. It seems totally different than the area near the Shibuya crossing.

I read somewhere that you can bike easily in Tokyo. Does it seem realistic to commute to work by bike? Do people bike to get groceries, etc?

I got used to huge apartment in US and need to adjust my expectation. Are 30 sq m apartments typical?

Somebody recommended me kencorp.com as a good place to start apartment hunting online. I was in particular looking at this list.

Post: #6

(03-11-2019 07:26 AM)RawGod Wrote:  You have a decent budget, I'd go with somewhere within 10 minutes walk of a station within 10 minutes ride from Shibuya. It's great if you can set up a date meeting point at a well-known station that just so happens to be near your pad. That doesn't have to be Shibuya station. Nakameguro/Daikanyama and Ebisu are nice areas that girls will know and be impressed by. Pricey though. Basically anywhere within Shibuya-ku will be pretty good for logistics except for the small pockets furthest away from major stations.

These are probably my favorite places in Tokyo. Add in Azabujuban and Hiroo you will love your life in any of these spots. Meeting girls in these areas is a cinch, there are literally hundreds walking around all day, every day. They are relaxed as these are neighborhoods and not the intense nampa spots of big stations.

I have always found the areas around embassies to be fantastic places to meet women. The Danish embassy for example has a Tstutaya nearby that is good to meet women. Lots of Japanese women work in the embassies and are surrounded by handsome, older men and develop a feeling of comfort and love.

These areas mentioned are among the best neighborhoods in the world. Especially Ebisu, on warm spring evenings watching the kinonoed women stroll around arm in arm will bring a tear to your eye.

Post: #7

Another neighborhood that is happening in the evenings is the bar district near the Akasaka Mitsuke station. Hundreds of workers come out from weds-sat night to drink and party. Sunday it’s chill. It’s not too far from Shibuya for work (by Tokyo standards anyway). You can also try to be near Tokyo Train terminal.

Much of logistics revolves around commuting home. That is why people eat and drink and even shop at the train station. Pulling from a bar restaurant is not as easy as it is in other cities, in my experience. From karaoke and bar/nightclubs is better. The trains shut down pretty early. The crazy punk girls in Shibuya almost all leave at midnight on that train. Getting her to stay with you requires leaving her set. That is difficult since social shaming in Japanese culture is a death knell.

Post: #8

(03-19-2019 06:12 AM)Sewage2016 Wrote:  Another neighborhood that is happening in the evenings is the bar district near the Akasaka Mitsuke station. Hundreds of workers come out from weds-sat night to drink and party. Sunday it’s chill. It’s not too far from Shibuya for work (by Tokyo standards anyway). You can also try to be near Tokyo Train terminal.

Much of logistics revolves around commuting home. That is why people eat and drink and even shop at the train station. Pulling from a bar restaurant is not as easy as it is in other cities, in my experience. From karaoke and bar/nightclubs is better. The trains shut down pretty early. The crazy punk girls in Shibuya almost all leave at midnight on that train. Getting her to stay with you requires leaving her set. That is difficult since social shaming in Japanese culture is a death knell.

This is a good point. Neighborhoods give you the added bonus of meeting women who actually live there, rather than having a drink at the station before heading out on the train.

Post: #9

Atlantic City is paradise! Lol as someone who grew up close to AC, it's had it's share of ups and downs. I attended a wedding there and as we exited the church gunshots rang out about a block away

Post: #10

(03-16-2019 11:27 PM)rogue Wrote:  Thanks for the replies!

I was initially looking for a place North of Shibuya station, close to Yoyogi park, but Daikanyama looks interesting. I watched some videos on YouTube and explored it on Google Maps. It seems totally different than the area near the Shibuya crossing.

I read somewhere that you can bike easily in Tokyo. Does it seem realistic to commute to work by bike? Do people bike to get groceries, etc?

I got used to huge apartment in US and need to adjust my expectation. Are 30 sq m apartments typical?

Somebody recommended me kencorp.com as a good place to start apartment hunting online. I was in particular looking at this list.

If your company's big enough to do international transfers, they should also be big enough to help with housing. Renting an apartment for a foreigner can be a headache in Japan.

If it were me, I'd focus on
i) locations that are close to key train stations
ii) proximity to office
iii) amenities/nightlife (tbh, if it's near a train station.. there'll be some amenities anyways)
.. in that order.
Though tbh I feel like you're over thinking this. If you're going to work in Shibuya, just rent a place that's at/near Shibuya.

And it sounds like you don't know much about Japan. I highly suggest going there before making these decisions but hey that's just me.

Post: #11

You'll be fine with your salary getting a place near Shibuya. Rents are not as crazy in Tokyo as in Silicon Valley, believe it or not.

Plus, many employers in Japan will give you a housing subsidy as a percentage of your rent.

Post: #12

I'm going to research all those neighborhoods on Google Maps etc. Ebisu and Hiroo look good and I could probably commute on foot or bike. Akasaka-Mitsuke and Azabujuban would require a short subway ride, but I'm a little concerned about crowded trains.

My company will help me with relocation and I'll get housing subsidy, so I'm mostly thinking of what will make me happy, but of course I don't want to blow money stupidly.

Post: #13

Avoid roppongi, do tachikawa

Post: #14

If you're smart enough to earn 340k

You're probably smart enough to be at least conversational in Japanese

My 2 Satoshi

Just focus on finishing all of the Pimsleur levels - worry about reading/writing later (you can just use Google Translate)

^^ assuming your goal is to talk to chicks face to face and not just write messages on dating apps.

Post: #15

Until you have a family I'd do anything to live near Shibuya. There are some real nice mansion in surprisingly quiet pockets near Shibuya. Perfect balance of night life, shopping, and central hub to all other parts of greater Tokyo.

Post: #16

(04-09-2019 12:31 PM)whiteknightrises Wrote:  Just focus on finishing all of the Pimsleur levels - worry about reading/writing later (you can just use Google Translate)

^^ assuming your goal is to talk to chicks face to face and not just write messages on dating apps.

I'm almost done with Pimsleur Level 3. There are 2 more levels to go. I learned most of hiragana and katakana over a few weekends. I also learned (and quickly forgot) a few hundred kanjis using Heisig method. Overall, I'm surprised how much worse my Japanese is than my French was after similar amount of study.

Post: #17

@Rogue

JapanesePod101.com is awesome too. I learned about them from their Thai language app, thaipod101.com and I was so impressed I signed up for a paid subscription. Now I'm going through the Japanese language lessons in preparation for Tokyo and I've found the structure to be fantastic and highly practical.

Post: #18

I've been studying Japanese for a few years now casually, and I'd say I'm probably intermediate level now. If I could recommend anything to beginner level students, I'd say download the memrise app to your phone asap and start working your way through Japanese 1-7. It'll teach you a lot of useful (and random words you many not normally encounter like: 宇宙船) vocabulary and basic sentences. Plus you can study anytime you have a little downtime, like waiting at the dentists office.

Post: #19

(04-10-2019 01:01 AM)rogue Wrote:  

(04-09-2019 12:31 PM)whiteknightrises Wrote:  Just focus on finishing all of the Pimsleur levels - worry about reading/writing later (you can just use Google Translate)

^^ assuming your goal is to talk to chicks face to face and not just write messages on dating apps.

I'm almost done with Pimsleur Level 3. There are 2 more levels to go. I learned most of hiragana and katakana over a few weekends. I also learned (and quickly forgot) a few hundred kanjis using Heisig method. Overall, I'm surprised how much worse my Japanese is than my French was after similar amount of study.

Heisig method is useless if you don't learn the compounds that actually make real words. Heisig is great for recognizing structure and becoming more familiat the Kanji but terrible for actual reading or writing. He even says so himself and released Vol. II which focuses on actually using it.

Not shitting on Heisig, just a warning so you're getting a balanced approach to Kanji. Better to learn slowly but mastering them vs. learning a lot without application.

Post: #20

(04-27-2019 11:18 PM)monsquid Wrote:  

(04-10-2019 01:01 AM)rogue Wrote:  

(04-09-2019 12:31 PM)whiteknightrises Wrote:  Just focus on finishing all of the Pimsleur levels - worry about reading/writing later (you can just use Google Translate)

^^ assuming your goal is to talk to chicks face to face and not just write messages on dating apps.

I'm almost done with Pimsleur Level 3. There are 2 more levels to go. I learned most of hiragana and katakana over a few weekends. I also learned (and quickly forgot) a few hundred kanjis using Heisig method. Overall, I'm surprised how much worse my Japanese is than my French was after similar amount of study.

Heisig method is useless if you don't learn the compounds that actually make real words. Heisig is great for recognizing structure and becoming more familiat the Kanji but terrible for actual reading or writing. He even says so himself and released Vol. II which focuses on actually using it.

Not shitting on Heisig, just a warning so you're getting a balanced approach to Kanji. Better to learn slowly but mastering them vs. learning a lot without application.

I'm aware that literacy in Japanese requires more than memorizing Heisig's book. There are two things I like about the book. The first is that kanjis are no longer a random sets of strokes to me, but I see how they are built and have a clue about their meaning. The second is that it gives me a sense of progress and it's actually fun. I think of it as an aid that will accelerate learning from other resources.