Would I find these in the countryside? [Archive] - Japan Forum
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tada
Oct 2, 2008, 07:45
I'd prefer to live in an urban area if I did move to Japan, but say I were to join JET, and got assigned to a place in the countryside. I've never been to a rural area in Japan (or any truly rural area) in person. Some of these may seem like really trivial queries, but I really have no idea what to expect. Would I find many of following kinds of places without having to travel to a major city?

- Soba/udon shops
- Fast food places (e.g. McDonalds)
- Karaoke
- Pachinko
- Game centers
- Convenience stores
- Public transportation

edit: removed some confusion
ASHIKAGA
Oct 2, 2008, 08:29
It depends on just HOW rural the place is but I live in an area up among the mountains and I have all the things on your list within 15 min. drive distance.
One question. What exactly are "specialized soba/udon shops"?
tada
Oct 2, 2008, 10:13
It depends on just HOW rural the place is but I live in an area up among the mountains and I have all the things on your list within 15 min. drive distance.
One question. What exactly are "specialized soba/udon shops"?

Well, I guess "specialized" is redundant. I was just wondering if you had to go to a general "Japanese food" restaurant like here. Just drop "specialized", or replace that item with "specialized restaurant".
ASHIKAGA
Oct 2, 2008, 11:28
There are Udon/Soba noodle shops everywhere. :-)
tada
Oct 3, 2008, 02:08
I wasn't planning on owning a car. Maybe a bike. Would I still be able to get to those places in a reasonable amount of time?
ASHIKAGA
Oct 3, 2008, 11:46
Unless you end up living in a REAL middle of nowhere, yes.
Glenski
Oct 3, 2008, 13:00
Yes to all of the items on the list.

As mentioned, to what degree will depend on how small the rural town is. I live in a city of 180,000 and it has bus service but it's pretty sparse. Many/Most people have second cars if they are a family.
Chidoriashi
Oct 3, 2008, 15:40
I live in a town of about 100,000 people and I got all those things in easy biking distance, of course, my town is one of the stops on a major train line.
bruno
Oct 3, 2008, 19:35
Me, in town of about 50,000, all and more in walking, biking distance !!