EY Y01 L41 Plural Japan

  1. Who was the first non-Japanese born person you can remember in your life having a conversation with? How old were you? How did you meet that person?
  2. How many non-Japanese people do you know socially or work with today?
  3. People from abroad come to Japan everyday as tourists, students, short term workers or to become permanent residents. Tell us about a tourist attraction, university, college, factory or business in your area that attracts many non-Japanese people. What impact does this have on the economy?
  4. Tell us about a town or area in the prefecture/county/state either (i) where you live now or (ii) where you grew up that has suffered from depopulation*, underpopulation** or aging population***? What happens when there are not enough people to fill jobs? What did the local government do to attract people from elsewhere?
  5. Have you ever seen a shop, hotel, bar or hot spring hang up a "Japanese Only" sign or explain to a non-Japanese that "foreigners are not allowed"? If yes, how did you react? If no, how would you react?
  6. What benefits will the 5 to 10 million non-Japanese who will settle in Japan over the next 10 years bring to the economy and to society? Will an internationalized Japan be better off than an aging and isolated one?
depopulation*=過疎問題, underpopulation**=過疎化現象 aging population***=老齢［老人・老年・高齢化する］人口

Question 1

I'll flip the question because I wasn't born and raised in Japan. 1. Who was the first Japanese native that you remember having a conversation with?. A>Her name was Jennifer Bariteu she as born in Japan and moved to America when she was very young. She was adopted by a French-Canadian family. She was my classmate in elementary school. She was very nice and polite.

Question 2

Too many to count. My best Japanese friend is Yamakawa-san. He was my neighbour when I lived in Osaka. He is originally from Nara. He is 52 years old and has four children.

Question 3

Nara park. Nara park is famous for many foreign tourists. I went there for the first time three weeks ago. It was very quiet because of the coronavirus. I enjoyed walking around and visiting the shrines and pagodas. I could do without the deer. One of them attacked my son Jun.

Question 4

It's similar in America, but America geographically is so big so it's on a different scale. Usually the countrysides are underpopulated, but they are utilised well as farmland. Some people prefer the serenity and quiet of the countryside. Florida has the most aging population. It is very warm year round and the elderly enjoy their retirements there.

Question 5

No. Never. I have seen no tattoo signs at onsen but that's about it.

Question 6

I think it will help the countries economy. However, if the Olympic Games are cancelled because of the coronavirus it could hurt the economy. I think that many people who come to the Olympic games will see how beautiful Japan is and it will boost tourism as well.

Tough Vocabulary