Living Situation in Rural Hokkaido

Ok, to call Yakumo rural might be an exaggeration, but in this town of about 20,000, only a few people have conversational English ability, a clothing store for young people does not exist, and there is actually a road named "Milk Road" (gyuunyuu) because of all the dairy farms.

Living in rural Japan has its benefits. I spent a couple hours walking around town this morning and I reached the edges of the commercial and public buildings on all sides, so nothing is too far away (unless you want to buy clothes, that is). There are many parks and serene nature is everywhere, from the Sea of Japan to the Pacific Ocean, to the mountains and rice fields...

Here are some photos of Yakumo so far. View from outside of town somewhere...

On the street where I live.

Road sign! Can you read it? :)

Here are some photos of my apartment. From outside & the entryway. Also the beginning of my first major cultural misstep - literally - when my supervisor brought me in to show me my new apartment, I was so excited that I walked in without removing my shoes. Luckily, my supervisor is very forgiving and reminded me that in Japan, you remove your outside shoes and put on slippers.

Living room - with the heated table (kotatsu) for the winter, and a television. The TV shows are all in Japanese - even Spongebob Squarepants and Sex in the City are dubbed over. Occasionally I will find one in English with subtitles. I have been watching lots of Japanese childrens shows because I can occasionally follow them. Ampanman or something like that.

My kitchen. It came with a fridge, stovetop, electric kettle, blender, rice cooker, microwave, and toaster oven.



Washroom - including a topload washer and frontload dryer!

Common Japanese style bathroom. One sits on the stool and cleanses oneself thoroughly before bathing. I am trying to figure out the best way to do this.

The only thing that could make my apartment better is having my husband, Tom, there to keep me company!