I LIVE IN JAPAN / Stephanie C / Content Creator & Traveler

December 2025 (VOL.218)

Stephanie C

Home country/city: USA / New Jersey
Occupation: Full time worker
Duration of living in Japan: 6.5 years
Why do you live in Japan?:I’m working here because I love the culture.

Can you talk about your activities in Japan?

I work a full-time, Monday to Friday job, but I have a lot of hobbies here in Japan, too. I love traveling. I’ve been to all 47 Japanese prefectures, a feat which wasn’t always easy or cheap to pull off. When I’m traveling around Japan, I love to eat new food, try new taiyaki shops, learn more about Japanese culture, collect manhole cards (they’re free and fun!), and take in the scenery. In addition to Japanese domestic travel, living here has let me travel around Asia a bit, too, which has been great.

Because I love traveling in Japan so much, I am a content creator. I want to help tourists and travelers get off the beaten (largely crowded) path and discover all the hidden splendors that Japan has to offer. You can find me on Instagram @stephysays.japan or YouTube @stephysays. It’s honestly not easy to be a content creator with a full-time job, but it’s a hobby that I really enjoy.

What do you miss about your home country while living in Japan?

I miss so many things! Over time, the things that I miss have changed, and I’ve largely adjusted to life in Japan, but there are a few things I still long for. One of them is authentic foreign food. In Japan, most foreign food is adjusted to local tastes, becoming more of a fusion food. This isn’t a bad thing, of course it’s natural, but the availability of authentic and original tasting foreign food is sparse. This can be frustrating in many ways, and I find myself thinking things “Why is this bagel with cream cheese sweet?” and “It doesn’t taste bad, but I wish they wouldn’t call it jambalaya if they’re gonna change it that much” more often than I’d like.

What do you appreciate most about Japanese culture?

This might sound kind of silly, but I really like the omnipresence of puns and dad jokes in Japan! Shop names, menu items, local tourism advertisement, nothing is off limits to a clever (sometimes questionable) joke. Don’t get me wrong, Japanese people still roll their eyes like presumably any other country’s people, but that doesn’t stop these puns from lurking around every corner.

Are there any aspects of the Japanese culture or its people that you find bizarre or unique?

I think it’s really interesting that Japanese people don’t notice the funny things around them, and often question why foreigners like them… but Japanese people are the ones making these things! Everyday items such as manholes, construction barriers, and streetlight pole toppers are often designed with beautiful art or silly decoration. Every time I’ve brought it up with a Japanese friend, they say “I don’t know why they’re like that. I also don’t know why foreigners love them.” Of course there is a possibility that some of these things are designed to attract foreigners, but by my calculations that doesn’t really track. There are plenty of Japanese fans of manholes, as any Japanese internet search about it will tell you, but perhaps it’s a niche interest. Also, many of these things were designed several decades ago, before there were droves of tourists, such as the streetlight poles.

What are your favorite Japanese foods?

I love so many Japanese foods, you really can’t go wrong, but a few of my favorites are taiyaki, donburi rice bowls, and hamburgers. Taiyaki are snapper shaped waffles with a filling. “Tai” means “snapper” (the fish) and taiyaki are sort of lucky because of a pun on the Japanese word for “occasion to celebrate” (“omedetai”—notice the “tai” at the end).

Donburi, or rice bowls with some toppings, are such a classic staple. They’re really satisfying and customizable! You can get a big bowl of rice topped with beef (gyudon), chicken and egg (oyakodon), even sashimi (kaisendon, often called “chirashi” in the US but that’s a tad different in Japan).

And finally, you might be surprised to hear me say hamburgers are one of my favorite foods in Japan, but Japanese burger shops often do gourmet burgers really well! There are so many burger shops throughout Japan that make a mean burger, and it’s not just me—my foreign and Japanese friends love them, and even my dad dug them!

Writer: Minobu Kondo
Photojournalist in Tokyo, writing for Japanese and American magazines. Publishing an essay “101 of green stories” with the other Japanese artists such as Kosetsu Minami. Languages: Japanese, English and French.

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