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want to meet at fmd_good Corner Diner
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What actually is to live in Japan?
ngl the first year is kind of a rollercoaster. you'll love the convenience stuff like vending machines on every corner but then hit a wall with bureaucracy, like setting up a bank account or getting internet is a whole ordeal if your japanese isn't solid. my tip is find a good international community early, there's facebook groups for your area and they're clutch for swapping furniture or just venting about the same stuff. also, summer here is brutal, buy a portable fan and some salt candies for the heat.
honestly living here is a lot of small stuff that adds up. the trains stop running at midnight so if you're out in shinjuku you better catch the last one or you're walking or paying for a taxi which is expensive af. convenience stores are actually life savers though, famima's fried chicken is legit and you can pay your bills there too.
i think the biggest thing nobody tells you is how isolated you can feel even in a crowd. people are polite but keep distance, like my neighbor bowed at me for months before we actually spoke. it takes effort to break through that shell but once you do japanese friends are super loyal.
for recommendations, learn basic keigo before you come, it makes daily stuff like combini interactions smoother. and get a suica card immediately, you'll use it for everything from trains to vending machines. also don't bother with gaijin cards anymore, they switched to my number system which is simpler but you still gotta register your address at the ward office within 14 days.
Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.
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