Two naked Caucasians fall from 47 floor of Keio Plaza

[Larmia]

This is a bit too surreal...a person related to one of these victims is here on this forum? Oh geez, and I seen some of the comments folks made about this topic too...

[Mulboyne]

The Keio Plaza Hotel in Shinjuku has a higher proportion of short-stay foreign visitors than many Tokyo hotels. Many non-Japanese travel web sites include it as a link and it is easy to book on the internet so it appeals to tourists as much as businessmen. Shinjuku also has convenient bus and train links to the airport.

Shinjuku is a major hub in Tokyo; as well as being the centre for the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (a short distance from the hotel) the other main image among local Japanese is of its large entertainment district. However, it is more common for foreign nationals to be found in the bars and restaurants further away in Roppongi and Shibuya.

Shinjuku's entertainment district, mostly on the other side of the station from the hotel, is regularly associated with the activities of the Japanese and Chinese mafia. Also nearby is the largest gay area in Tokyo. This, perhaps, explains why so many people were quick to wonder whether there were any such links to your brother's case. However, most residents in the hotels of Shinjuku are unaware of either connection and generally do not spend time on that side. It is not always an easy place to find your way around if you are new to Japan and if you don't have much of the language.

One thing that struck us as odd in the news reports was the detail that clothes had been left folded in the room and shoes lined up neatly. This is a common feature in many Japanese suicides but less so in Western cases so it stood out. Since the two men has arrived only recently in the country, it wasn't immediately apparent that they had any special knowledge of Japan. You can see from some of the earlier discussion that we imagined the possibility that someone Japanese had attempted to cover up a violent incident by making it look like suicide. This is clearly not the case.

Also, back in April, there were several drug-related deaths among foreigners who had bought a lethal cocaine supply so, again, speculation about drug-use as a factor was an early part of the news coverage.

Any death is tragic but I think the people on the FG Forum took this news to heart because, sometimes, Japan can be a stressful country to live in for foreigners and I think we all wondered whether this played any part. If you look at the pages of this site, you'll mostly find stories about the weirder aspects of Japan. But it can also be a place to share news, experiences and even problems which can certainly help you realize that you aren't alone in this country. The idea that maybe two men didn't find that kind of support here was sad news indeed.

[Larmia]

Any death is tragic but I think the people on the FG Forum took this news to heart because, sometimes, Japan can be a stressful country to live in for foreigners and I think we all wondered whether this played any part. If you look at the pages of this site, you'll mostly find stories about the weirder aspects of Japan. But it can also be a place to share news, experiences and even problems which can certainly help you realize that you aren't alone in this country. The idea that maybe two men didn't find that kind of support here was sad news indeed.

So...living in Japan is really that rough?
Now I have *SECOND* thoughts about ever going there....

[Taro Toporific]

Any death is tragic but I think the people on the FG Forum took this news to heart because, sometimes, Japan can be a stressful country to live in for foreigners .... maybe two men didn't find that kind of support here was sad news indeed.

So...living in Japan is really that rough?
Now I have *SECOND* thoughts about ever going there....

The old song New York, New York goes:
"A-a-a-nd if I can make it there,
I'm gonna make it anywhere
It's up to you"

But Frank Sinatra never tried to live in Tokyo without the fatcat-expat housing and living expense "Package."

[amdg]

[GomiGirl]

I see I caused some confusion. We have already been contacted by the embassy and the police, the bodies have already returned "home", we also had a funeral. There was no foul play, we found a suicide note in his room here at home. He was a student. It is just that, as his sister, I will keep on asking what he has been doing during his last days for the rest of my life...

Stay in contact if you need explanations of anything Japan related that may help you understand. Suicide is the hardest for those left behind as there is often no logical explanation and nothing that you could have done differently.

It was their decision, don't take it personally but take the time you need to gain the closure necessary.

[chatterley]

Thanks a lot for your sympathy and help. Japan is very far away for us and we are not familiar with the culture at all. Why my brother choose to go to Japan (as he had never been abroad before) is not clear to us. We only know that he was terribly afraid of getting old and having to take up responsibility for his own life (we only found that out afterwards and via his letter-he had always been a very happy young person). Therefore, I try to learn something about Japan's culture via the internet. He had a lot of Japanse comics in his room, which described a perfect world where everybody loved everybody. I guess he thought that in a way, Japan was the only place on earth where there was no such thing as stress or violence. And is it a coincidence that a relative found her way on this forum? I think not. I scanned the internet with words like "keio plaza" and other related subjects to find any information about my brother's trip, and I ended up here. One question: what does "gaijin" actually mean?

[Mulboyne]

[Taro Toporific]

He had a lot of Japanese comics in his room, which described a perfect world where everybody loved everybody. I guess he thought that in a way, Japan was the only place on earth where there was no such thing as stress or violence. And is it a coincidence that a relative found her way on this forum? I think not. I scanned the internet with words like "keio plaza" and other related subjects to find any information about my brother's trip, and I ended up here. One question: what does "gaijin" actually mean?

F'ed "gaijin" sort of Outlander raus.

If he was living a Keio Plaza, I don't think had time to reach "f'ed status". He and his friend sound like an extreme version of culture shock perhaps with preplanning of suicide before they came.
If you have his computer or laptop, use a data recovery program or he a geeky friend use such a program to see what he might have erased that what reveal his inner nature. (Ohhh, if I got hit by a truck today, my hard disk would be too revealing.)

As far as "Japanese comics in his room, which described a perfect world where everybody loved everybody"]manga[/i]/comics are generally anything BUT "a perfect world" --- 50% violence, 40% porn, 10% harmless childrens fare.

[amdg]

Chatterley, if you tell us the titles of the comics, I'm pretty sure some people here will be able to give you some good background information on them and their genre.

[Skankster]

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I just did a quick Japanese Language search. I found no new information regarding this.

[chatterley]

As far as "Japanese comics in his room, which described a perfect world where everybody loved everybody"; this sounds odd because Japanese manga comics are generally anything BUT "a perfect world" --- 50% violence, 40% porn, 10% harmless childrens fare.

I didn't see the comics myself as I found it too hard to go into his room after the incident. My husband told me. I will try to find out later. I only know it said "manga" on the cover.

[same]

we found a suicide note in his room here at home

He and his friend sound like an extreme version of culture shock perhaps with preplanning of suicide before they came.

So he came to Japan to die? With the comments about the manga describing a perfect world, this may be where he chose to end it all, in this land where there is no stress and everybody loves everyone else.

Sad, but at least he made his choice.

[Marked Trail]

...Japanese comics in his room, which described a perfect world where everybody loved everybody.... I only know it said "manga" on the cover.

That's a good clue on the type of Japanese comics (manga) he was reading.

There must be only a few Japanese manga/comics with Roman letters saying "manga" on the front.

Come on guys. I thought you all were manga and anime freaks? Sombody must know the commic with '"manga" on the cover' that inspired two suicides.

[Skankster]

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suicide pacts are all the rage here in Japan of late tho...

[Mulboyne]

The manga titles that are translated and published overseas are usually fantasy, science fiction, samurai, humour and romance stories. While it is true that the typical level of violence is higher than you would find in American comics not so many of the pornographic and extremely violent titles that Taro wrote about get translated. It is true, however, that many manga fans outside Japan do track them down. The film versions of manga are called "anime" and the sex/violence available on DVDs and videos is higher because these are cheaper to produce than comic books.

Japanese popular culture - manga, anime, video games and music - is going through something of a boom outside Japan. It isn't rare these days for young college-age guys to have have an interest in it.

[amdg]

There must be only a few Japanese manga/comics with Roman letters saying "manga" on the front.

No, there's a lot. They get translated and then because 'Manga' is a big selling point, 'Manga' gets written in bold letters on the front. There are even publishers who have named themselves 'Manga'.

Lets have less part-time experts, and more poeple who know something.

[fatslug]

WOW !

i didnt know this shit happened.

[Buraku]

Did anyone see an update as to what the keystone J-cops found out about these dead 'Fu-ransu-jins'