Japan vs. Korea: Expat Life Comparison & Culture Differences

외국인들은 서울보다 조용한 도쿄에서 더 강하지만 느린 우정을 쌓을 수 있다고 생각합니다.

### 일본과 한국, 외국인 거주 환경 비교: 어느 나라가 더 나을까요?
* 🇰🇷 **비자 취득**: 한국은 일본보다 비자 취득이 더 쉽다는 의견이 있었습니다.
* 🗣️ **언어**: 한국과 일본 모두 현지어를 모르면 생활이 어렵지만, 일본은 관광 산업이 발달하여 영어 소통이 다소 수월하다는 의견이 제시되었습니다.  
* 🍻 **술 문화**: 한국은 직장 동료나 친구들과의 **교류를 위한 술자리 문화**가 강하며, 일본보다 강한 술 문화를 경험했다는 인터뷰 내용이 있습니다.
* 🗣️ **소통**: 한국 사람들은 일본 사람들보다 더 직설적이고 활발하게 소통하는 경향이 있으며, 일본 사람들은 시간이 걸리지만 깊은 유대감을 형성하는 경향이 있다는 의견이 있었습니다.
* 🏙️ **도시 환경**: 서울은 언덕이 많고 주요 지역이 분산되어 있는 반면, 도쿄는 평평하고 다양한 지역이 통합되어 있어 이동이 편리하다는 의견이 있었습니다.
* 👩‍💼 **직장 문화**: 한국 직장은 업무와 사생활의 경계가 모호한 반면, 일본 직장은 업무와 사생활의 구분이 명확하다는 의견이 있었습니다.
* 🇰🇷🇯🇵 **외국인에 대한 태도**: 한국은 외국인, 특히 서양인에게 호기심이 많고 적극적으로 다가오는 반면, 일본은 외국인과의 교류에 익숙하지만 더 신중한 태도를 보인다는 의견이 있었습니다.
* 💅 **미용 기준**: 한국은 외모에 대한 사회적 압력이 크고 성형 수술이 흔한 반면, 일본은 자연스러움을 선호하는 경향이 있다는 의견이 있었습니다.

I lived in Seoul, South Korea for 2 and 1/2 years and now Tokyo for 5 years

The drinking culture, I think, in Japan and Korea is very different, as are the beauty standards for women.

Any differences you noticed? Yeah, so when I was living in Korea, actually that's the biggest difference; the people who went

to Korea, I think they know what I'm talking about. Getting a visa in South Korea is a bit easier than in

Japan. Can you say something in Japanese and Korean so that people can tell you speak both?

Hey guys, I'm Takashi. So today I'm going to interview people who lived in both Japan and Korea, asking them which

country is better to live in as a foreigner. Okay, let's get started. Please introduce yourself. Hi, my name is Shannon.

I'm originally from LA, but I'm half Korean and half white, and I live in Tokyo.  You lived in Korea as well?

Right. Yeah, I lived in Korea for 2 years. My name is Armen. I'm from California. I lived in Japan for 4 years, from 2016 to

2020, and then I was in Korea for 2 years during Covid, and I just moved back to Japan

last year. I'm from Spain. I've been in Japan for two years and I also lived in South Korea for one year. My name is Elia.

Um, I'm from Houston, Texas, originally. I lived in Korea for about 2 years; 15

months in Seoul and about 9 months in Cheonan, and now I'm currently living in Tokyo, working as a researcher for

anthropology research. I'm from Connecticut/the New York City area. I lived in Seoul, South Korea for 2 and a half

years and now Tokyo for 5 years. Yeah. My name is Aru. I'm from Russia. I was living

in Korea, Seoul, for one year by studying at a Korean University, and now I'm living in Japan for almost one year

Tokyo. I am from a British family, but um I was born and raised in Japan. Um, our family has been in Japan for three

generations now. Um, so yeah, I lived um in Korea for about six months, um and now I'm back

living in Japan again. You came to Japan from Korea. Yes. What are the differences between Japan and Korea? Certain groups in Korea are

very outspoken when it comes to politics or the things that they think about and like the views that they have on certain

issues. Maybe easier to meet Korean people when you're out at a bar or like a nightclub or something like that. They're more

they're more social, um, for the first... they're more, you know, talkative. They're more maybe kind of interested to

know like who you are or uh maybe they want, they just want to practice their English, which is fine. In Japan, I think

like people are obviously still nice and like open to foreigners, but it takes a little bit more time to like build a

relationship with Japanese people. But then once you become friends, it's like a really strong friendship. It takes some

time, but once you become friends, they're like friends for life. So Tokyo is a much larger city; there's a lot that you can

do here, and there's a lot of different populated areas. It's beautiful, and each one has its own culture. You can walk

forever, because it's not a super mountainous area, this area of Tokyo. So you can walk for a really long time; you can bike for

a really long time and not be too exhausted, which I love about this city, whereas in Korea it's a lot more hilly; their

popular areas are kind of spread out, so like Hongdae, Gangnam, and then kind of in between that it's more like

residential, so there's not much to really do or see in between those major areas, whereas in Tokyo it's

more integrated. In Japan, much more quiet. You compare Seoul and Tokyo, and you think Tokyo is quiet?

Yeah, I compare Seoul and Tokyo, and Tokyo is much more quiet than Seoul in terms of locals. Of course, of course, in Tokyo there are a lot of

foreigners, even in Seoul. But Seoul people are more loud than in Tokyo, actually. That's the biggest difference.

The people who went to Korea, I think they know what I'm talking about. So I worked in the K-pop industry in Korea,

and what I noticed is a lot of times they're more direct, and they kind of say it how it is, um, which on one hand, you

know, it's hard if you're maybe more sensitive, but on the other hand, you know, it's kind of endearing. I think there's a

lot more like playful teasing and like personal questions, so that line between work and personal life is more blurred

in my experience. And in Tokyo, I kind of feel like that line is more divided, so you know, people at my job don't really

like chat to other co-workers unless there's kind of a reason or like it's about work. So in that way, it can maybe

feel a little bit more lonely, um, but I think, you know, if you're more introverted or you like your privacy, it

can be a good thing. Um, but it's just different from Korea. In South Korea, people are more competitive, not about

themselves, like with other people. In Japan, I think they are competitive with themselves; like Japanese people like

just trying to improve themselves. So when it comes to housing in Korea, different system from Japan; the deposit

is a big lump sum of money that the owner will invest, and then they'll make um, some money off of that while you've been

Living in the house, and then when you leave the house, they'll return the original amount you put in.

It was quite an interesting system where you have to make sure you have that money ready to give over because in

Japan, I think it's only like one or two months' worth of deposit, so a very different system.

[Music] Which country is harder to live in as a foreigner if you don't know the

language? I think both countries are hard to live in because in Korea and in Japan, if you don't know the local language, it's

really hard to live in. I felt like the service industry in Korea didn't really speak a lot of English, so it was

tough for me to do everyday things like go shopping, get in a taxi, order at a

restaurant, unless I knew Korean. Whereas in Japan, the tourist industry is so large that most restaurants,

they can find someone that I can communicate with, or most taxi drivers know a little bit, so it's a bit

easier here in Japan. You can go literally days without talking to anybody. Like for the first three days

that I was here, I didn't really speak or interact with a lot of people, and a lot

of the restaurants, a lot of the activities are maybe not designed for one person, but they're comfortable with having

one person. If you're an extrovert, Seoul is the place to be. It's just a different

vibe. And there's also like not so many things you can do by yourself. Like, for example, if you go to a restaurant and

a soul barbecue place, for example, uh, usually you have to go with somebody because the minimum order amount is like

Two people talking about getting visas. I feel in South Korea it's a bit easier than in Japan; they have more types of visas.

And it's a bit easier to get. In Japan, it's a bit more complicated. Though, maybe another thing in Korea is that washing

machines or refrigerators are already in the house, so you don't have to prepare as much. Yeah, the only thing I

had to prepare was like a bed, um, and maybe a table, but it's very minimal. That makes it easier for foreigners to

just start living, whereas in Japan, everything has to be prepared; you have to buy everything and move everything over. So that part was really

easy. What about Japanese people and Korean people? Any differences, like, locals?

In Korea, it's really fast. Uh, Koreans like to say 'bali bali,' which means 'hurry hurry.' That goes into everything, I think, not just making

friends, maybe, but lifestyle; everything is done quickly in Korea. So if you're like an extrovert, you like to get out and

do things, meet people, maybe Korea would be more fun, so to speak.  The culture, like drinking culture, I think in Japan and in

Korea is very different. So, Korean people force you to drink...

I wouldn't say *force*, but you're not forced by your boss to drink; there's an unspoken, and sometimes spoken, societal pressure to drink because it's seen as

something that is either bonding with co-workers in a workplace environment, or it's like a community thing with your

friends. I think what both places have in common is people passing out, though. People pass out, they throw up, whatever.

But I think in Korea it's a little bit more intense. What about English skills of local people? Yeah, that's...

Korean people, on average, I would say speak way better English than Japanese people. If you think about it, there is way more

Korean people living abroad or interested in living abroad more than Japanese people, maybe that's it, I think.

Because of that, like, if you're just somebody who's going to decide they're going to live their whole life in Japan,

then why bother to learn English? Japan is very accommodating, especially nowadays, to tourists and foreigners that are living here. Um, but so is Korea.

Definitely, like the young population in Korea, they start English a little earlier; they're embracing Western

culture a lot there. So, from what I've heard, maybe even in just the last five years, the younger population is speaking

much more English, and they're definitely very engaging. When I went back in September, they'd talk to me and speak

English. Probably in Korean society, they put a very high priority on education in general, but uh, English

education, I think, in particular, there are very many English language hagwons. So I think just the amount of

studying that Korean children do is pretty high. So that's led to a lot of younger people being able to speak

English. In Korea, they speak English better; the pronunciation is also better—well, not better, like, just more like they

speak more English in Korea. Maybe in Japan, yeah, I can find fewer people that can speak English, but they try their

best. That's so nice! Like, even if they don't understand, they try to—I don't know—right on the Google translator, yeah.

They try to help anyway, a lot. So it's, it's so nice, so cute.

flight to visit Japan or Korea. You can watch movies or listen to music, but honestly, you can get easily bored. But

here's a secret: so you do not get bored, the ROG RX has been my travel buddy for

past 3 months and I absolutely love it. It's a favorite gadget for traveling. It runs on Windows, so you can play all your

PC games anywhere: Steam, Xbox Game Pass—anything. You can even plug into a monitor or TV with a keyboard and mouse; you can

use it as a PC. It runs all games smoothly without lag. I'm now playing Genshin and Elden Ring, and they both run

without issues. The ROG Ally is perfect if you want to play games everywhere, especially on a plane or when you are

traveling. It is also perfect for Mac users who, like me, don't want to switch to Windows. The views towards foreigners,

especially Western people... Any differences you notice? Korean locals in Japan? Because maybe it's a little bit hard to answer because, you know, you're

from Japan. But yeah, yeah, I felt like in Korea there was only one job that foreigners did, and everybody assumed you

were that one job: an English teacher. Oh, isn't the same in Japan, though? Very similar, but I feel like there's a bit

more variety in what foreigners can do in Japan—maybe IT or stuff like that. But um, in Korea, like if you're a foreigner,

Japan or Korea? which country is better to live in as a foreigner

Videos showing you Japan that the media fails to capture


TAKASHii

일본과 한국 거주 경험 비교: 초기 소개 및 거주 기간

진행자는 한국(서울) 2년 반, 일본(도쿄) 5년 거주 경험 소개

Shannon (LA 출신, 한국계 미국인)은 한국 2년, 일본 거주

Armen (캘리포니아 출신)은 일본 4년, 한국 2년 거주 후 일본 재거주

Elia (스페인 출신)은 일본 2년, 한국 1년 거주

Aru (러시아 출신)는 한국(서울) 1년, 일본(도쿄) 1년 거주

다른 출연자들도 한국과 일본 거주 경험 소개

한국과 일본 생활 문화 비교: 사람들, 사회 분위기, 그리고 도시 환경

한국 사람들은 정치적 견해 표명이 더 직설적이며, 사교적이고 쉽게 친해질 수 있음

일본 사람들은 친해지는 데 시간이 걸리지만, 일단 친해지면 끈끈한 관계 유지

도쿄는 넓고 다양한 지역과 문화를 가지고 있으며, 지형이 평평하여 이동이 편리함

서울은 언덕이 많고 주요 지역 간 거리가 멀어 이동이 불편함

도쿄는 서울보다 조용하고, 서울 사람들이 더 활기참

한국 직장 문화는 직설적이고 경계가 모호하며, 일본은 업무와 사생활 구분이 명확함

비자, 주거, 언어 등 실질적인 생활 측면 비교

한국 주택 임대 시스템은 높은 보증금이 필요하고, 일본은 상대적으로 낮음

한국은 영어 사용이 제한적이지만, 일본은 관광객 대상 영어 사용이 더 흔함

한국 비자 발급이 일본보다 더 쉬움

한국은 가전제품이 이미 구비된 경우가 많고, 일본은 직접 구매해야 함

한국은 빠른 문화, 일본은 상대적으로 느긋함

술 문화, 영어 구사 능력, 외국인에 대한 태도 비교

한국은 술 문화가 강하고, 일본은 상대적으로 약함

한국인의 영어 구사 능력이 일본인보다 더 뛰어남

한국에서는 외국인을 영어 강사로 인식하는 경향이 있고, 일본은 다양한 직종에 종사하는 외국인이 더 많음

일본은 외국인 거주에 더 익숙하고, 한국은 최근 외국인 증가 추세

한국은 외국인에게 친절하지만, 일본보다 외국인 거주에 익숙하지 않음

외국인 커뮤니티, 친구 사귀기, 그리고 서구 문화 영향 비교

도쿄는 외국인 커뮤니티가 크고, 서울은 소규모 커뮤니티 형성이 더 쉬움

서울은 K-pop, K-drama 등 한국 문화에 관심 있는 외국인에게 적합하며, 도쿄는 다양한 외국인과 교류 가능

도쿄가 서울보다 미국 문화의 영향을 더 많이 받았지만, 서울의 금융 시스템 등은 더 현대적임

한국은 문신에 대한 사회적 시각이 완화되고 있지만, 일본은 여전히 제한적임

미용 기준, 언어 학습 난이도 비교 및 마무리

한국은 외모에 대한 강조가 크고, 일본은 상대적으로 자연스러움을 추구함

한국에서는 성형 수술이 흔하고, 일본은 상대적으로 자연스러운 외모를 선호함

한국어는 한자어 비중이 높고 발음이 간단하지만, 일본어는 한자, 히라가나, 가타카나를 모두 익혀야 함

영어 사용자에게 일본어 학습이 한국어보다 쉬움

한국어 또는 일본어 학습의 중요성 강조