24 Sep · Jessica Iragne ·
I’m Michela from Italy and I’m 29. I live in Tokyo, in Suginami-ku a nice area between Shinjuku and residential areas.
I moved in Japan in June of 2017, so now is something more than one year.
After 4 trips to Japan I’ve finally had the chance to move here. I love Japanese history, traditions and culture, and the Japanese lifestyle and people make me feel more comfortable than the ones in my country (Italy).
Actually, I’ve studied a lot about Japan and Japanese before I came the first time, so I was pretty ready to the cultural shock, food, opposite habits and so on. I had very high expectations, so I was a bit worry to have a delusion, like sometimes happens in those cases. But Japan was able to exceed my very high expectation, this is the thing that surprise me more! It is an incredible country, and once you enter more deeply in it, is a continue amazing discover!
I moved here with my italian boyfriend, so I mainly speak Italian at home. I use english for work and I’m studying Japanese in a language school. I also try to use Japanese in my daily life, but this is the language I speak less during the day!
I came from a small town in north of Italy, surrounded by vineyards…so I’m super excited to live in a megalopolis like Tokyo, where I have a lot of opportunities and from where I can easily travel for day trips, weekend and long holidays.
I love Japanese cuisine, in my opinion is the only one that can compete with the Italian one 😁My favourite dish is absolutely sushi, especially fatty tuna nigiri, but I love also the taste of miso and the incredible high number of ways Japanese people can cook chicken. I’m not a vegetable person, but here in Japan I also love vegetarian dish and their way of cooking and mixing vegetables.
Japan has an incredible number of dishes and so many ways to cook the same ingredient, with a food tours you can discover new dish, taste and enjoy typical Japanese ingredients that you can probably hardly find or try by yourself.
Well, out of the golden route, I absolutely recommend Kyushu, especially for those love nature and countryside. And in this area there are also a lot of famous dishes!
Autumn, late November, when yellow, red and orange explode! Generally the weather is nice, sunny, clear and the days are warm. Definitely my favourite season!
The morning I tried nattō.
I eat almost everything, so even though nattō does not loos really delicious, 95% of my Japanese friends love it. Everyone thinks that the main problem is the smell…well, you’re talking with a gorgonzola cheese lover, no worry about smell!! Well, one day, I was in a ryokan with some Japanese people for a job and I decide to try nattō…..there is a video with my disgusted face while I’m trying to mix it and eat that strange consistency….definitely, the smell is ok, but the taste….how can Japanese people eat it?!!!! Of course, that video is now locked somewhere 😅
Japan is an amazing country also for its peculiar and sometimes crazy culture and rules. Visiting Japan is a trip among contrasts, opposite cultures and a lot of ancient habits. Don’t judge Japan or ask “why”, just take it as it comes!
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Tags: everyday life, Expats, interview, Japan, Japanese food, Nattō, tokyo, Warmcheaptrips
Category: BLOG, Expat, interviews
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Aimyon, Nattō & Ikura Lover <3