Back in Japan!

I'd never expected to find myself at the beginning of September 2007, in Tokyo. I'd had dreams of possibly working in Europe (or still chasing after jobs at this time of year), which is one of the reasons that I went to business school abroad: I wanted to get an MBA and be able to savor Europe at least once in my life. And that I've done.

Through a whole mysterious chain of events, I now find myself here in Tokyo, far away from my previous life in Kyushu. I'd always heard about people "going to live and work in Tokyo" but hardly expected that I would join their numbers some day. Of all places to work, I had thought that life in Tokyo would be miserable and crowded and expensive. Hardly the type of place where I'd like to live.

True, the mass media does like to focus on the high rents and miniscule apartments, and the occasional expensive items found in Ginza department stores. But Tokyo is also a hodgepodge of high and lowbrow culture: side by side with the LV stores and countless boutiques near Omotesando are the small eateries selling meals for 300-500 yen, not more than 2-3 EUR at current exchange rates.

Sure, in some ways Tokyo can be expensive, but the quality of life can be pretty good if you know how to live smartly. In the next few weeks I hope to touch on different aspects of my new life here in Tokyo. I hope you find it either instructive, entertaining or both. If anything I hope it will give you some insight into what it means to live in Tokyo.

It is a challenge, and (like New York), you do have to work to live here. But it is a city brimming with things to eat, see and buy and I hope that I won't get fed up with this place too soon. I've only been here one month!