I Speak Japanese

oh wow another video. Aaron, your japanese sound great. How long did it take you to learn and speak the language so fluent. Would it be wrong if I was to say the japanese language sound sexy. Okay most people would think I’m weird for saying that.

Ok. I haven’t been to either but… from pics i’ve seen and articles i’ve read i gotta go with Osaka.

I like Tokyo better between those two choices, but I like Osaka better than Kyoto! I could understand most of what aaron was saying, but not really Kevin. I watch anime and have japanese character songs and stuff on my ipod, so I’m used to the sound of Japanese and have learned alot of slang like ‘Majide’ and ‘betsu ni’, ect.

For those of you that didn’t see the whole video, I vote Tokyo! Thanks for the great comments so far! Also, if you didn’t catch it, Kevin was speaking Kansai-ben (Osaka dialect) in the intro to show the difference between the two.

I lived in Yokohama/Tokyo for 3 years, and Osaka for 3 years. I like Osaka much much more! I think anyone who has really lived in both, and also taken time to familarize themselves with Japan and Japanese culture, will pick Osaka over Tokyo any day of the week.

Tokyo is fun for a visit once a year… But as for a great place to live with great food, great people, a wide variety of places to go (Kobe, Nara, Kyoto right next door!)… Osaka rules.

My wife is from Osaka so I’m totally biased. But still. I think many will agree.

- Harvey

I’ve been living in Kobe for close to a year, and I confess I’ve never been to Tokyo (or outside of the Kansai area), but I’m still going to say Osaka, just to uphold the Osaka prejudices towards Tokyo! The dialect, the food, the manners, even the skyline, from everything I’ve heard about Tokyo, Osaka’s been much better. So Osaka FTW!

大阪はまけへんでぇ

Yeah, I love Osaka. I suppose I’m biased because I’ve been living in Kansai so long but I’ve been to Tokyo a number of times and found the only real benefit is it has more of the stuff I miss from back home in the UK than Osaka does. The people, places, food are all better in downtown Osaka IMHO

I hate Osaka. In my experience very unfriendly, rude , unsafe, rough, easy to get into a fight when you are not looking for one, un-organized. travelling around, the most “un-Japanese” place/city in Japan; it feels like you have stepped into another country. Would recommend not visiting it basically if you were in Japan for your first time or a short time.
There are other places in Japan that are more Japanese and better.. therefore Tokyo for me. Having said what I have said I understand though why some foreigners would prefer Osaka.

Just wanted to comment to say thank you for the videos! I’m fiding them very useful =)

Have not yet been to Japan to comment on this discussion, but would like to visit both places when I finally make my way there!

@kevin
Die hard Tokyo fan? Hrm… Not many. No one is really -from- Tokyo. Just a bunch of immigrants who wish they could go back to their hometowns and get a job, but all the work is in Tokyo. Those who have a choice move to Kansai!

Osaka all the way! For one, the food is much better, and the vibe is more fun.

Also, it’s closer to more interesting destinations, IMO. I personally love rural Western Honshu, which are a day trip from Osaka…The coastal villages and towns in Shimane, Tottori, and Yamaguchi prefectures are amazing. For a great hidden gem go to the water city of Matsue on the Japan sea. Secluded enough, but with city amenities, the best food I’ve ever had anywhere, and an amazing historical and walkable cityscape (with a very cool Castle and shrines everywhere).

Overall, I find Osaka to be way more fun than Tokyo, and it’s closer more interesting places…

OSAKA! Easy choice. The people are more down-to-earth, friendlier, better sense of humor. The food is much better too. The Tokyo train system is a nightmare. Yeah, the people are kind of in their own bubbles, like you said.

Also, I don’t think that Tokyo-ben is necessarily “standard Japanese”. They have their own particularly irritating way of speaking (just watch a few dramas and you’ll know what I mean). The intonation makes you want to do a slow-motion head bob, and after hearing “sa” at the end of a phrase or sentence over and over I get tired of listening.

Go to Hokkaido if you have time!

haven’t been to either yet so can’t vote but looking forward to visiting in the future

I have only been through Tokyo three times but I have been to Osaka numerous times. I guess I have to go with Osaka. If the voted was expanded Kobe would be number one then Osaka then Tokyo. All are great cities but I have more experience running around Osaka.

It’s another vote for Osaka here! I’ve been to both and genuinely found that the people in both cities were very helpful and volunteered assistance anytime we looked a little confused.

However, I fell in love with a small (really small) yakitori place in Osaka. Despite the lack of decent language skills we managed to communicate with the locals and owners and when I asked some crazy Yakuza dude to take a photo of us he thought that I was Bruce Willis.. brilliant!

I’m also due to spend a year in Okayama soon so have to offer my allegiance to the closer of the two cities.

P.S. just discovered this site this evening via JapanSoc, have spent a few hours already watching the videos and loving it, great job guys!

osaka all the way the people are way nicer and will go out of their way to help you find where you need to go. i find that in tokyo, if you ask for directions people will just ignore you or walk away as if they didnt hear you. or stare at you because you are a “gaijin” except that im only half white. ahha and when they talk about you its funny to see their reaction when you respond back in japanese! haha they shouldnt think that all foreigners cant speak the language. imo they just seem more stuck up. osaka is way more down to earth, not to mention the food is amazing, the night lift is great and my mom’s family lives there! ^^

For women, I definitely prefer kansai-ben, but for guys it is about the same. I think comedy has to also go to Osaka.

Love your video on this topic Aaron and Kevin! All your other videos, as well! Very practical, funny, and informative! Being a nonJapanese living in Japan it is especially interesting exploring regional and local differences. Japanese seem to take pride in those differences. So true, stereotypes do not always apply.

I vote for Osaka!

Am an American living in Himeji many years and have visited major cities and beautiful rural towns in Kansai area more frequently than Kanto (Tokyo) area. Although, we do have very good-kind Japanese friends living in Tokyo we love to spend time with.

It has been my experience, as well, that Kansai folks are very easy to talk to, eager to assist foreigners, great sense of humor and enjoy sharing their culture with non Japanese.

For example, ridding in a cab, the Kansai driver will usually enjoy talking to the passengers; as you mentioned, comedy is also very different. Kansai slap stick humor may seem vulgar to Tokyo sophisticates; watching a Hanshin Tigers baseball game you will see rabid fans like that of no other Japanese team. Very different from the more subdued American baseball fans, for sure.
When the Tigers play the Tokyo Yomiuri Giants (long time rival) in Osaka, the Tigers fans are especially hysterical! Unbelievable team spirit! Love the underdog? Go Tigers!!

Love the people, the culture, the places in Kansai Region (Western Japan)!

I would vote for Kobe over Osaka, however. Osaka is so rush-rush, business oriented.
Osaka people walker faster than even the people in Tokyo! Get out of their way!
I find Kobe a much more soothing, beautiful and relaxing city than Osaka.

Viva la difference!

I vote for Osaka because it is central, airport is easy to get to, other large cities very close.. even Himeji..

Aaron and Kevin,
Found you guys by mistake but am loving every video I see. Unfortunately, I haven’t been to Japan yet. My daughter and son-in-law will be stationed in Sasebo in Dec. so I’m trying to learn as much as I can. There is no way I won’t see my 2 grandsons for 3 years! Thanks for all that you’ve shared.

I have to tell you that I lived on Okinawa, Japan for over 15 years and I can honestly say the “Okinawa” wins by a long shot.

I have spent 4 days in Tokyo ad like.. 1 hour in Osaka. So I can´t say so much about Osaka so I vote for Tokyo ^_____^ .

Of the 2 cities,I have lived in Tokyo for close to 2years.I have never been to Osaka,so I dont really know much about that city.So you see,the angel I know is better than the angel I dont know.I take Tokyo.Thanks guys for the videos.Its really something to look forward to.

I vote for Osaka! o(^__^)o
I haven’t been to Tokyo or Osaka but from what I’ve heard from other people Osaka seem to be a really cool place and I am going to Osaka in october

I vote Osaka, mostly because that is the area I was in most. People were friendly to me and for some reason I LOVE the dialect, though “wakarahen” was probably the only term I regularly used. As someone else said, Osaka also has the benefit of being near other interesting places, like Kyoto and Nara.

For some reason, I think there was a difference in escalator etiquette between Osaka and Kyoto…but don’t quote me on that. Oh, and maybe something slightly different about crossing the street - maybe Kyoto started crossing sooner?

Hey, I can’t vote because I’ve only been to Tokyo but I loved it there. I wish I could live there but I was able to live in Misawa for two years. I’ll have to check out Osaka when I go back.

I have never been to japan, so i cant really vote, but you mentioned escalators.. its the same in london, stick to one side. i dont think theres a rule to which side though. you paint a picture of a country divided at the beginning of the video. im imagine thats not the case tho!
cant wait till the next one XxX

^.^ Osaka

Um…. I haven’t seen either country or anything, but I have, however, seen “Teen Titans: Trouble In Tokyo”, and it had alot of pretty awesome stuff like:
A comic book factory and stuff like that.
Sooooo…………..
I’m just gonna go with Tokyo. Sorry Osaka fans!!!!!!!
^_^

Tokyo. Love it!

we stayed in osaka 2008, it was the best holiday we’ve ever had, it was our 3rd visit to japan, and here the people were more than helpful when we were stood in train stations peering at maps and looking like startled meerkats, we found tokyo quite unfriendly and way too busy.
osaka gets our vote

Neither. I live 40 minutes outside Nagoya a stones throw from Centrair (Chubu airport). Nagoya has the best of both and a lot of things they don’t have. I’ll take Nagoyan food any day. We also have a lot less people and a lot more green. Go to the BIG cities if you must but remember to get out and see the rest of Japan too.

大阪！！！！　Every day,and any day! I am always surprised, as a kind of Osaka-jin myself, as to how many tourists are surprised about how wonderful Osaka is.

Tokyo is great and all, but its like any other world city. Remove the kanji and your left with London, New York or anywhere. Boring and a bit generic with people who are too busy to care.

Everything about Osaka has soul. The language, the people, the FOOD (OMG!) the history, the Oba-chans. Everything. Its so much more inspiring than Tokyo, which is interesting because Tokyo is far more aesthetically pleasing.

For me, the people seem to be so genuinely interested, in helping, in conversing, and in finding out more. Even my rubbish Japanese gets praised on a daily basis, because people want to help you, they want you to have a great time in Osaka, where as Tokyo people are sooooo run up in their daily rat-race commuting lives, they don’t have the time, inclination or energy to help out silly-foreigners.

What really struck me hard about Tokyo is just how hard it is to find things to eat (other than a convini bento!) at crazy hours of the morning. I guess Osaka spoiled me with its late night restaurants, but man do they shut early in Tokyo?!

I love Osaka, everything, even how direct (and sometimes rude) they can be. Its some genuine human emotion - which your almost definitely not going to find in Tokyo!

I vote Tokyo. I lived there for 3 years, and have lived in Osaka 1.5. Tokyo as a place is bigger, and more exciting. Also, the transportation system is very well marked and cheap.

In Osaka you have just the opposite–expensive 230 yen for a bus ride (for example). And two private companies always fight for train ridership and don’t like to share stations. It’s a real mess–a bunch of selfish pr*ks run the trains here in Osaka.

On the other hand, I like the people in Osaka better. They’re more friendly and open. Tokyo is full of people walking around with corn cobs up their butts.

So, would love for the Osaka people to live in Tokyo. Osaka as a city is dirty and metchakucha.

I’m in Osaka now and can’t wait to get out. It’s rude, unfriendly, dirty and racist. I miss Tokyo. Anyone that’s planning a holiday to Japan, skip Osaka and spend the time in Tokyo instead. It’s much more organised and English friendly.

Osaka, Osaka, Osaka!!!!!!! I have fallen in love with the city.

Hey guys, what dialect does takayama speak?

Osaka!!
Amazinggg. Although, Tokyo was a stunning experience too.
Hiroshima is a must to travel too though, I cried when I went there; it’s so saddening.

Yeah as many people said about Tokyo is true even though Osaka it was biggest cit in Japan but now is Tokyo you know tokyo is very nice place for many things for enjoying there many bthing over there you can not compare with any anyplace here in Japan.So Mr I m living here in Japan some time I m use to go to Tokyo but I m living in Kanagawa at Yokohama.