“It’s amazing how few social connections we are away from each other. I once met these doctors who showed me pictures of their now grown-up children. I realized the photos were taken at the exact same place where my husband had traveled to many years ago in India. I suddenly remembered the story of howContinue reading
“He’s very shy. He won’t even let me take his picture with my phone, let alone a stranger. But his older sister’s not camera shy. Actually, she’s inside this building, auditioning for a TV commercial role as we speak. We’re from India and I’ve been living in Japan for 13 years. Both of my kidsContinue reading
“I wasn’t very serious in life. That’s why I’m desperately making up for it now. I’ve been here since 1989 and it’s only five years ago that I finally opened this restaurant. I’m from Nepal. I learned about Japan when my uncle got captured by Japanese soldiers during the war. You see, we got involvedContinue reading
“I think my Japanese friends like hanging out with me because they feel free to be who they are when they’re around me. In a way, I know more about them than their friends do. I feel like people don’t normally open up or share their opinion or problems here. But for some reason, theyContinue reading
“I’m trying to be the next Middle Eastern doctor in Japan. There’s only one so far. He’s Egyptian like me. And he’s famous. He practically inspired me to come back to Japan to pursue my career as a physician, even though I have to overcome a big obstacle—the language. I was actually here until IContinue reading
“The train commute in Tokyo is horrendous. You get pushed around, touched, and sometimes even groped. For four years, I did a 40-minute commute to work and it was brutal. The only way to survive is to feel nothing. To be on zombie mode. So I practiced feeling nothing. Otherwise your emotions get the bestContinue reading
[Tiếng Việt ở dưới]“It’s always been my biggest fear to not be heard. I’m from Vietnam and when I was 10, we moved to Hanoi. I felt ignored by people from the big city because I was a ‘village girl’ who came from the countryside. I didn’t have that ‘city vibe’. Years later, I cameContinue reading
“I’m from a place in Japan that’s called ‘Ninja City’. I was a high school teacher for 10 years. While teaching social studies to Japanese students, I noticed how strong their stereotypes about other countries were. But they didn’t engage in deeper discussion and had the same opinion (or no opinion) as their peers. IContinue reading
“My mom passed away when I was 10. She was diagnosed with breast cancer right before we all moved to Australia because of dad’s business. We were supposed to stay there only for four years, but she wanted to come back to Japan for treatment before that. Me and my siblings remained and I beggedContinue reading
“We met online. I’m from France and she’s Japanese. We decided to meet up in real life so here we are, lining up to watch a traditional Japanese kabuki theater performance. I’m a student and she works as a mechanic at the airport. By the way, we’re just friends. I’m only here for two moreContinue reading
Him: “We’re from Germany. We joined Servants to Asia’s urban poor, an organization that helps the poor. This is also where we first met and fell in love. We’re doing this because we care about social justice and why some people are poor and others rich. We moved to Manila to show solidarity with theContinue reading
“I’m trying to qualify for the Olympics. If not 2020 then the next one. I’ve been racing for 6+ years now. I got into cycling because when my younger brother broke his femur (thigh bone) while we were playing soccer, I was a bike mechanic and the doctor suggested I help him out. He wasContinue reading
