Is Tokyo boring?

[Dreamy_Peach]

This may have been asked before, and apologies if so.

I've lived here in Tokyo for seven years and am really very bored.

There just doesn't seem much to do in this city. Parks are rather limited; museums and galleries are not so interesting and tend towards the conservative and well-trodden most of the time. It often seems that unless you like shopping, there is not really much to do here.

Once you get a bit tired of the Japanese festivals, which I find rather tiring anyway because of the number of people and the shouting through megaphones etc, there are not many other types of festival. There don't seem to be any free concerts in the park; no free film festivals. Sporting
events exist, but are limited and not really world class in most cases. There are few places where you can go and just relax or stroll around people watching. Constantly the pressure is on shopping or spending money. There is very little diversity within the city. Sure you can go to Korean town in Okubo or up-market in Marunouchi, but the level of diversity is very limited. One part of town is pretty much the same as another part of town. In fact, Tokyo is very much like any other city in Japan.

Tokyo is lucky in being relatively near to the countryside and sea so it is possible to escape, but the city itself just seems extremely dull.

I've lived in other cities around the world, and I must say that the boredom I feel here is a lot more intense than elsewhere.

Do other members of this forum feel the same?

Am I missing something?

[Greji]

Am I missing something?

If are looking for something interesting such as goat herding, I just might be able to find a deal for you!

[Russell]

[quote="Dreamy_Peach"]This may have been asked before, and apologies if so.

I've lived here in Tokyo for seven years and am really very bored.

There just doesn't seem much to do in this city. Parks are rather limited]
You need a hobby.

[Taro Toporific]

Am I missing something?

Nope.
With more money, Tokyo becomes more interesting. But hey, it's only money.

[Iraira]

Ok, I see where you're at, but deal with this concept. There are some days you just don't feel like dealing with anyone, right? But, at the same time, you don't want to hide in your place like some hikkikomori asocial future-lunatic. So, you can go to a cafe in Shinjuku or Shibuya and be surrounded by all kinds of people, from those attempting to be elite to those attempting to be freaks to those in from the countryside with their circa 2003 style everything, and all the while, the mad play of human life in Tokyo cascades around you like an endless stream of Pachinko balls flying out of hell at warp gazillion. Just as everyone is a character in the very play you are watching, you are a character in theirs. Now and then, something very strange happens: a person trips coming up the stairs, a couple has a blow out fight in public, a beautiful woman sits down next to you and starts to pick her nose, one of Greji's goats escapes, etc., and you are witness to the spectacle to which there is no rival, one that no piece of art hanging in any Louvre can even come close to capturing; the rituals of humankind. Savor it, study it, participate in it.
There will come a time when you are just about to flatline, and in will walk the most gorgeous of nurses, but you are too far gone to even contemplate how to nanpa her. That will be your last thought before passing onto wherever your past deeds will take you.
True entertainment is merely a good conversation.

[Jack]

when I read this dude's post first thing that I thought was: "is this guy for real?" Tokyo aught to be the last place on earth you can get bored. But then it dawned on me that if you don't speak and read Japanese and you don't have local friends you could really get bored in this metropolis of 38 million people.

I have never lived there a long time but I have travelled to Japan over 50 times and we have been here for almost two months now. I have never gotten bored in Tokyo. Fuck, even if I am dead bored all you have to do is go to a cafe in Shibuya or Ikebukuro for people watching.

[Mulboyne]

Tokyo isn't really about places to go and events to see - although the options do improve greatly if your Japanese is up to it. It's more a city to hang out with people. If you aren't doing that, then you might want to start thinking about how you can. There are quite a few barflies on this board who can give you chapter and verse about the amazing night life on offer but you don't just have to drink or go clubbing to find your niche.

Russell recommends getting a hobby and I'd agree with that. It doesn't have to be an obsession, more just a pretext to meet some like-minded people. You might have to force the pace and come up with something you want to commit to. Sports are an easy one but you can try arts or even something like joining a volunteer group.

[Samurai_Jerk]

[quote="Dreamy_Peach"]This may have been asked before, and apologies if so.

I've lived here in Tokyo for seven years and am really very bored.

There just doesn't seem much to do in this city. Parks are rather limited]

If you can't find shit to do in Tokyo, it's you who's boring.

[Coligny]

If you can't find shit to do in Tokyo, it's you who's boring.

Tssss for some people a good evening is like :


$ make menuconfig
$ make
$ make modules
$ su -
# make modules_install
# make install
# cd /boot
# mkinitrd -o initrd.img-2.6.25 2.6.25

Tokyo never rest... There is 0 serenity except maybe in the Garden of the Imperial Palace. The place is fine for shopping one weekend at a time...if you know what you want and where to find it... because if not... everything being so noisy and crowded it's nearly impossible to think...

[Samurai_Jerk]

Tssss for some people a good evening is like :


$ make menuconfig
$ make
$ make modules
$ su -
# make modules_install
# make install
# cd /boot
# mkinitrd -o initrd.img-2.6.25 2.6.25

Tokyo never rest... There is 0 serenity except maybe in the Garden of the Imperial Palace. The place is fine for shopping one weekend at a time...if you know what you want and where to find it... because if not... everything being so noisy and crowded it's nearly impossible to think...

Exactly.

[syrup16g]

Yes, Tokyo is boring. A giant city of lonely and desperate people looking for something they'll never find. Money and sex is everything. You should've known this when you signed up. However, living in a city is what you make of it. What exactly did you enjoy about the other cities that you lived in? Once you figure that out, you can seek it out in Tokyo. If you aren't enjoying life in a large city, maybe you need to move--don't know your job situation etc. From your post it doesn't seem like you are bored with Tokyo or Japan but with your life in general.

What sort of museum or gallery are you looking for? Tokyo area is the best for contemporary and experimental art. Of course there are also many places with older, highly regarded art which you don't seem to be interested in. Shows on loan from foreign museums will also be well-known artists. But really, if Tokyo isn't working for you on the contemporary/experimental art front, the closest place for that is Beijing.

What kind of festival are you looking for? You are going to have to travel outside of Tokyo if you want something different.

Concerts cost money in Japan, unless you want to see rockabilly bullshit. Sorry, but everything can't be free, especially in one of the most expensive cities in the world. Film festivals? Look up Short Shorts and PFF (Pia Film Festival), they are definitely in Tokyo at some point.

Sporting -- what do you want to see? Baseball, soccer, horse racing, sumo/judo/kendo readily available. If you want basketball or american football you can watch college or high school games free.

Diversity - who are you trying to meet? I've met many people from many various countries in Tokyo, and people from all over Japan as well.

Japanese will never admit but yes, Tokyo is basically the same as any city in Japan with over 200,000 people (there are hundreds), but they are convinced that Tokyo is where the best and brightest succeed and can only do it there. Maybe you need to take a visit to some of these other places. Have you traveled around Japan?



And just going out on a limb here, you aren't getting laid? And have no Japanese friends?

[Akage]

Just about any time I hit Yoyogi park, I end up invited to a giant picnic or game. Another option is joining a social group... like HHH.

[IparryU]

And just going out on a limb here, you aren't getting laid? And have no Japanese friends?

didnt read the first blah blah of your post... but this jus bout sums it up

[Greji]

Money and sex is everything

You obviously found the holy grail of Tokyo and just clued him in. Nothing more to look for....

[Typhoon]

No, Sir, when a man is tired of Tokyo, he is tired of life.

--- after Samuel Johnson

[Typhoon]

Just about any time I hit Yoyogi park, I end up invited to a giant picnic or game. Another option is joining a social group... like HHH.

Came across the HHH in several different countries.

HHH: a drinking club with a running problem

[dimwit]

When I get up to Tokyo it is almost always on business, which cuts out the all night drinking. If it weren't for a couple of nice craft brew pubs I'd be bored out of my tree when I go up there as well.

[prolly]

OP needs friends. ANY city is (eventually) boring without friends.
And money, of course.

[Dreamy_Peach]

Thanks for all your comments and suggestions.

Just to add a point of clarification: I have money, friends, a hobby and get laid reasonably often enough.

Aside from all these points, I'm still bored out of my skull. Thank god I have a lot of work on. I have no idea what I'd do otherwise.

Just look at Metropolis (granted it's a shell of its former self) but there's fuck all in it regarding events and stuff.

The thought of drinking and playing around in the pong /shibuya fills me with boredom. Talking some inane crap with some lass who wants to talk about food or some such nonsense doesn't inspire. Been there, done that, good memories, but there is a limit to how much a man can take. What else is there after that?

Going and sitting in a cafe - yeah you might get a chance encounter but in most cases you'll sit there while everyone around sits there playing with their keitai. A perfect example of social anomie. Same on the trains, same in the parks, same just about everywhere. Just no interaction or social element to life in this city.

So far no-one has really persuaded me that Tokyo has that much to offer.

Before people start telling me to fuck of home, that's reasonable enough. It's an intention in a couple of years.

I have never lived there a long time but I have travelled to Japan over 50 times and we have been here for almost two months now. I have never gotten bored in Tokyo. Fuck, even if I am dead bored all you have to do is go to a cafe in Shibuya or Ikebukuro for people watching.

Until you live here you won't know basically. Visiting somewhere is always exciting.

This is why people like Tyler Brule etc like Japan so much. They only visit occasionally. Once you live here, it's a different kettle of fish entirely.

[Jack]

OP needs friends. ANY city is (eventually) boring without friends.
And money, of course.

Bang on. You could get bored in New York City or London or Paris or Hong Kong if you don't have a social circle.

[Coligny]

Bang on. You could get bored in New York City or London or Paris or Hong Kong if you don't have a social circle.

yes but it's also 10 times easier to grow a social circle from 0 in a city like Paris rather than in Tokyo... me think...

[Samurai_Jerk]

yes but it's also 10 times easier to grow a social circle from 0 in a city like Paris rather than in Tokyo... me think...

Wouldn't know about Paris but I've never had much trouble making friends during the 9 years I've lived in Tokyo and Saitama. I think a lot of people mistake the inability to connect with people the way they did back home to be a Japan or Tokyo thing when it's often really more of an age/don't live around the people you grew up with thing.

[Christoff]

Bang on. You could get bored in New York City or London or Paris or Hong Kong if you don't have a social circle.

I dont know that I agree, when I moved to hong kong and NYC I didnt know anybody. What I did know is what I liked to do and went at it by myself. Met lots of people with similar interests on the way.

[Jack]

So far no-one has really persuaded me that Tokyo has that much to offer.

Before people start telling me to fuck of home, that's reasonable enough. It's an intention in a couple of years.

Look, I'm just gonna put an end to this thread right here. If you think Tokyo is boring you are fucked beyond redemption. Beat it.

[Typhoon]

yes but it's also 10 times easier to grow a social circle from 0 in a city like Paris rather than in Tokyo... me think...

Helps to be French in Paris, no?

[Proxy]

Yes, it's boring.
I walk around seeing self-obsessed people everywhere trying to look cooler than everyone else and that's just the gaijin.

is it......?

[Mulboyne]

So far no-one has really persuaded me that Tokyo has that much to offer.

I don't think anyone can convince another a place is interesting if they've decided it's boring, any more than you can tell someone food is delicious if they hate it.

Nevertheless, you still haven't really given a good indication of what your hobbies are or what you like to do. Or, indeed, how good your Japanese is. That's not to play any one-upmanship games but your ability does make a difference to how much you can enjoy what's on offer. If you can't understand Japanese, then theatre, lectures and debates are mostly off the menu. If you can't read, then you can't get as much out of galleries or exhibitions. If you can't speak, then it's going to be more difficult to engage people you don't know. If you have any limitations, then you either operate within them or find a way to lift them.

Music doesn't require much language ability. There aren't many free concerts of any real standard but there is plenty of music if you put your hand in your pocket. Mix with musicians and you'll find out where they hang out, sometimes where they play impromptu gigs. That will need a bit of Japanese but I know people who don't speak much and still somehow find a way in. One friend now takes photos at gigs and has held an exhibition without ever really needing Japanese at all.

There's also more on offer on a night out in Tokyo than chatting up girls in Shibuya or Roppongi. Spend some time in the smaller bars of Shinjuku, Naka Meguro, Shimokitazawa or Asakusa. After a few visits, you can become part of the furniture. Certainly, a few will be total dead-ends but, in the best case, it leads to dinner and party invitations and a new circle of friends. You won't get that in one visit but, if you are living in a city for a few years, it's worth the effort. You can meet actors, writers, artists, businessmen, students, designers, sportsmen, architects, lawyers, politicians and many more. There's no better way to get your hooks into a city than to speak with a wide range of people.

As a foreigner in Japan, one advantage you have is that you can meet Japanese - and indeed other foreigners - from a wide social spectrum. That's a big help when it comes to finding people who share your interests.

I'd agree that Tokyo is short on parks. Yoyogi Koen and Shinjuku Gyoen are decent enough but I don't use them much. For more open spaces, you need to get on your bike or on the train. That tends to limit spontaneity but planning anything is considerably easier with mobile phones and the internet.

Personally, I don't go shopping or out to see the sights. A city for me is about the people so that's where I put my priorities. I don't doubt you've got some good friends in Tokyo. However, if you are bored, why not find some more? That doesn't mean cutting the old ones dead but instead adding to your circle. If you have to strike out on your own on occasion, then give it a go. Two more years is a long time to spend not having any new experiences.

[Samurai_Jerk]

So far no-one has really persuaded me that Tokyo has that much to offer.

So far you haven't persuaded me that Tokyo is boring.

I've never been a Roppongi regular and haven't hung out in Shibuya much for about 5 years or so. However, even those places have great little back-street bars and restaurants where you can meet some really interesting locals.

If you're using Metropolis for your social life, it tells me you don't know shit about this city. I find out about most events through word-of-mouth or online sources in Japanese.

[Jack]

There's also more on offer on a night out in Tokyo than chatting up girls in Shibuya or Roppongi. Spend some time in the smaller bars of Shinjuku, Naka Meguro, Shimokitazawa or Asakusa. After a few visits, you can become part of the furniture. Certainly, a few will be total dead-ends but, in the best case, it leads to dinner and party invitations and a new circle of friends. You won't get that in one visit but, if you are living in a city for a few years, it's worth the effort. You can meet actors, writers, artists, businessmen, students, designers, sportsmen, architects, lawyers, politicians and many more. There's no better way to get your hooks into a city than to speak with a wide range of people.

That's so true. Like all newbies I did the rounds at the Yamanote line first and then Roppongi but later I thought to take other trains and go in residential neighbourhoods. When the surrounds of the station looked interesting I jumped out and stroled the streets. There are so many small (tiny) bars in residential areas and everyone is friendly. Almost everytime I go to one people there strike out a conversation. It's kind of hard not to get in a conversation when the place has only 8 stools.

My point about New York and Paris waqs that any city can be boring. It's what you do with it.

[Mike Oxlong]

Look, I'm just gonna put an end to this thread right here. If you think Tokyo is boring you are fucked beyond redemption. Beat it.

You trying to scam a handjob before he goes?!:p