RE: My Digital Nomad Journey. Was it Sustainable?
I love hearing about other people's lives and their personal journey and goals so I'm more than happy to read long comments like yours.
Ahh I see, Japan is like your ultimate location. I'm not too familiar with Japan Visa Hacks if it is similar in any way to Thailand. But for Thailand you can get a month free and can extend it for another month or if you're prepared you can purchase a 60 day visa before you land and extend that for another 30 days. Then if you want to stay even longer you can do a 'visa run' where you leave the country either by flying out or you book a service that is specifically for people that want to stay longer but there visa is about to run out. So you fly/drive to another country close by and then come back in so you can get another 30 days free and then rinse and repeat. A lot of Nomad do that to stay in thailand for as long as they would like.
If Japan is your big goal, I would totally go for it because it sounds like this something you would never regret. Even if it is just for 3 months at first. But I can see how your housing situation poses some challenges and I haven't been in a situation like that before so I can't relate on that end. But I will say that if this is something you want, don't close the idea of living in japan because it seems impossible at this moment. Keep researching, see how other people made there way to japan and the steps they took and keep weighing up options, if this is what you want you don't stop till you get there even if it takes a few years of preparing. Baby steps!
You probably know this but I only found out that recently many japanese families celebrate christmas with KFC 😝I thought was interesting.
Out of curiosity because you mentioned that your ideal life would be alone with your wife away from the world, have you ever done/heard of the myers briggs personality test? I would love to know what your personatlity type is. You can do it here if you are bothered https://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test but if you are familiar with it, I'm a ISFJ (naturally introverted). After moving so many times and losing touch with almost all my friend I too don't have many people at the moment who know me and who I can hang out with. Well now that i'm living in the sunshine coast a new territory for me I only know my boyfriend here hahas.
Anyways... I should wrap it up other wise i will keep going on and on. Thank you again for your kind feedback and I am inspired to make more videos 😁
lol @ this. I am a programmer so my job involves finding problems, figuring out solutions, predicting all possible problems with each of my solutions, solutions to each predicted problem and so on and so forth until I reach a point where I can pick a solution and preemptively fix any and all problems that might arise from each possible part of the solution. As such, having a personality type of "Debater" is actually quite relevant. lol 😱
I never knew these kinds of tests existed until I saw the episode of "Adam ruins everything" where he explained the origins of these tests being (literally) two bored housewives just sitting down and creating it as a fun pass time and that was that. Every learned individual will tell you that these tests are absolutely pointless and thus I said to myself "Well, good thing I didn't know about it and now I will never care" ... and here you got me taking one. lol 😅
As for Japan, unfortunately South African's don't qualify for "Land and get entry" visas. We need to apply in advance of travelling. That is the case with most countries for us 😪 Unfortunately my mother gave birth to me on the wrong side of the ocean so I need to spend my life paying for that greatest of sins
fortunately, though, I have found a way to move to Japan and live there permanently! I can just start a business and then issue myself a visa to work at my business. This is actually allowed! Yeay! 😁😁😁 All I need to do is invest $50,000 into my business and prove that I have a monthly income of 10 times what I earn now. 😱😵 If I can do that then they will welcome me with open arms...
I am still investigating but so far it seems that is the best option for me. That or I must learn German, go to University in Germany, live and work there till I get citizenship and once I am a citizen of a developed nation then I can do what you suggested...
Nevertheless, I am working towards my goal and if I must pay $50,000 to get entry into Japan then at least I now have a definite goal to work towards! 😎🐱👤
Hahas I never thought too much about personality tests but this one I found really describe me to the T and I love learning why I do things and why I react to certain situations the way I do and I just being more self aware so I can improve my short comings. I've tried a few other test after this one but none of them really made sense to me as much as this one.
That is very interesting thanks so much for screenshoting i love seeing the percentages on each spectrum.
So happy to hear your japan plan!! That's awesome now you have a blueprint you know it is very much possible for you to get there. Can I ask what got you so into Japan? Have you always interested in japan growing up? and Have you been to Japan previously?
My obsession began in the 90s. At that point I thought samurai were cool but didn't think about Japan any more than that. Then I discovered anime and I loved how not everyone always spoke with a smile on their face, the entire town doesn't join in song every time someone has had 5 seconds of silence in their life... and in the case of Fist Of the North Star, people actually blew up :)
Actually the first anime I ever saw was an episode of Captain Harlock where a young, abused orphan was sent into the forest alone, saved from a wolf by the captain and received a flute from him. Later the flute was thrown onto the roof of the church and while she tried to fetch this prised possession of hers she got blown off the roof and died. Coming from a background where everybody always smiles and sings for no reason at all to see an orphan being abused and dying in a cartoon I just thought "What the heck is this?" ...but I was 8 at the time and only discovered anime for real 9 years later.
Akira gave me respect for the medium and got me interested in having an authentic experience, not the badly dubbed "Sir, he is here, sir. Hmmm? What was that? Is he here? Is that what you said? Well alright then." dialogue. That got me interested in the language and from there I got interested in the religion... then the samurai in detail as I looked into bushido... that got me real interested in the culture back then and now...
Basically, I started looking at Japan because of anime but since then I discovered that I love absolutely everything about the place from their culture, their values, their language, their architecture, Hello Kitty and even Piccachu painted on their airplanes. The more I learn the more I fall in love.
As a child I hated cheese but I loved the Turtles so I started eating pizza and now love cheese. The only thing I don't like about Japan at all (apart from them not wanting me there because my mother gave birth to me in the wrong country) is their love of fish. Bathing naked with strangers outdoors, that I'm okay with. Eating fish... I am trying really hard to condition myself to not hate all fish as much as I do... ;) :P
A country where everyone is taught basically from birth "Don't be a nuisance to other people" and where shop assistants have the motto "Customer is god"... Heck, where we have the habit of saying "Hey" or "Excuse me" to attract attention, in Japan the common say-thing is more along the lines of "Excuse me for causing you effort but...". To quote Sean Connery in Rising Sun: "Their way is better". I apply that to basically everything Japanese...
Anyway, from anime to language to history to religion to culture... the more I learned the more I wish for reincarnation to be true so I can return to this life as a Japanese girl one day so I too can wear that cute sailor suit uniform ;)
THIS, though, is just wrong on so many levels and why I wish for reincarnation to be real! :P
So yeah, it STARTED with anime but my love grew over the course of decades. I have never been, though, and unless I make a fortune with one of my games I doubt I will ever get to go. :(
...but that just gives me motivation to try my best! :D (As they love to say! 😅)
hahahas that video you linked :P Yeahh not the best way to live out your sailor suit uniform fantasy better off being reincarnated.
wow! That's so interesting that your affinity with japan goes wayyyy back, I've haven't had any sort of fascination with a hobby or culture that has surpassed years. I usually get obsessed with something (past obsessions: crocheting, filofaxing, knitting, sticker making, korean/taiwanese/hk the list goes on..) and I usually go really hard out at it for a few months till I burn myself out and I get over it. You must of been japanese in another life time for sure.
I have yet to read your other message because I'm planning on watching Walter Mitty tonight. I've heard the title of that movie ages ago and a few times too but never felt inclined to watch it because I just don't like Ben Stiller :P but I think it's time.
How is your Japanese? Can you speak it enough to get by in japan? I was lucky enough to have learnt a little in high school, it was the only language that was taught at my school but I really enjoyed learning it. Unfortunately I only remember the hiragana now not much else hahas.
I tried to get into anime but I don't think it's my calling. The only ones I watched were Chobits, Fruits Basket, Love Hina, Ichigo Mashimaro and in eng dubbed too (eekkk.) I of course adore all the Studio Ghibli movies but everyone and their mother's do so doesn't really count.
Ahh yeahh I'm not the biggest fan of fish either but I didn't mind salmon sashimi only with a good helping of wasabi and soy sauce. Have you tried natto yet? if so are you a fan of it? Have you been to japan before for a holiday?
I really enjoy your long messages it's like a penpals letters a really good read :D Anyways I'll let you know how I find the movie!