September 5, 2026　18 Years In: The Small Things I Still Notice About Japan

Hello to all our visionary investors, global families, and brave pioneers! Magandang araw po! It is Anna, your bilingual client liaison and content specialist at Anhome. Welcome to another Culture Saturday with us!

I've lived in Japan for eighteen years now, long enough that most of daily life here feels completely normal to me. But there are still a few things that stand out some that I've come to deeply appreciate, and one area that, even after all this time, I haven't fully gotten used to.

What I still love, even after this long

The thing that keeps standing out to me, even eighteen years in, is how safe it feels here. I don't think about it every day, but when I do stop to notice it, it's still remarkable to me. Along with that comes the cleanliness public spaces, streets, stations, all kept in a way that isn't really matched anywhere I lived before.

People here also take punctuality seriously, in a way that shapes how everyone plans their day, and I've noticed a level of general kindness and good manners in everyday interactions that I don't take for granted. None of this is new to me anymore, but I still think it's worth saying out loud, because after this many years, I could easily stop noticing it and I don't want to.

The part that's still genuinely hard

Here's the honest part: everyday conversation in Japanese isn't a problem for me anymore. What still trips me up is business vocabulary specific to the real estate industry the kind of specialized terms that don't come up in daily life, only in work conversations. It's a narrow gap, but it's a real one, and it's the one area where I still have to actively work to keep up.

And the part where I don't have much to say

If I'm asked what I dislike about the culture here, honestly, I don't have a real answer. Not because I'm avoiding the question it's because I genuinely like it here. Eighteen years in, that hasn't changed.

Still here, still noticing

I think that's the most honest way to describe where I am after this many years: comfortable enough that most things don't register as "different" anymore, but still able to point to the handful of things the safety, the order, the manners that made an impression on me from the start and never really wore off. And still, in one narrow corner of my work life, learning the vocabulary that comes with it.

Get in touch

If you're one of our visionary investors, global families, or brave pioneers with questions about life or property here in Japan, I'd love to hear from you. Reach out anytime.

Phone: 072-489-5661

— Anna