Santa Monica, California. Beautiful warm weather, next to the beach, big city (LA) - everything that I love.
Multi-hour commutes, though :(
Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
91–100 of 400 posts
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
Culture yes, but depending on the company, the working environment is not that awesome :p Also it's very easy to feel isolated as a foreigner and seeing thousands of people squishing themselves into the trains every morning doesn't make it better. Though the startup scene here is changing very strongly and bigger companies from all over the world open offices here and consider Japan as the 'gateway into the asian mar…
it's very easy to feel isolated as a foreigner and seeing thousands of people squishing themselves into the trains every morning doesn't make it better. I'm here now, have been for six months (on sabbatical; studying Japanese half-time). It's interesting...sometimes I feel isolated (as anyone would when you don't speak or read the language fluently), but folks here have been quite friendly and supportive. I've found…
Let me elaborate on the isolated part a bit maybe.
I speak almost fluent Japanese but the problem comes more in the very strong cultural difference that you are mostly not even aware of unless you are indeed fluent and surrounded by people that tell you your mistakes (which doesn't happen often).
It is (IMO) very hard to make 'good' Japanese friends (not talking about occasional drinking buddies). People seem nice but (especially in Tokyo) often don't tell you what they really think or feel. Being direct and honest about certain things is just not the way things are done here, that starts already at the language level and why you would rather say that something is difficult than not possible (それは難しいです・・・, pretty sure you heard that already a few times.)
Being direct as a foreigner and speaking in a direct way can work but is thus because of the difference in talking and nuance further isolating you and giving you the 'foreigner / 外人' stamp on your forehead, maybe without you really realizing that it's happening. A side-effect of that is that you get considered as, well, a foreigner. Maybe someone who is fun and weird to hang out with but not actually someone who could become a deep friend.
Then of course you have the other group of people that are strangely open and direct to you, but more than often that's the kind of people that only want a foreign boyfriend or someone to practice english with and nothing else.
Sure, everyone is indeed very very friendly and supportive but that can easily be confused with the polite nature that's rooted deeply in this country. That can also come over as shy and introverted, but if the majority of the people comes over as shy and introverted it's maybe not the people that's different but rather you.
Not saying at all that it's bad here. I am still really enjoying my time with a rough 4 years in total but it definitely depends if you want to be fully integrated or always wear that foreigner hat.
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#93Earlier quoted context omitted.
Culture yes, but depending on the company, the working environment is not that awesome :p Also it's very easy to feel isolated as a foreigner and seeing thousands of people squishing themselves into the trains every morning doesn't make it better. Though the startup scene here is changing very strongly and bigger companies from all over the world open offices here and consider Japan as the 'gateway into the asian mar…
I just got my visa for 1 year running a company here. I setup the company to be distributed. I am based in Tokyo. I can say despite not speaking the language it was the best decision I have ever made. Both locals and expats are friendly. If you are going to do business here it is best to have someone on your team who speaks the language though. Another big reason I love it here is how safe it is. After having lived i…
Are you talking about the normal startup visa here that's valid for 1 year? I wasn't aware that it's this annoying to get. From my understanding, you have to hand in the papers (with a basic business plan), incorporate your company and after a year, proof that you indeed make money.
For all other visas you just need a sponsor (company) / proof that you can make money as a freelancer and, well, a university degree.
Japan might even be one of the only countries that effectively lets you skip the university degree (and 10 years of work experience) requirement with the right certificate that should be no problem to get if you know your computer science basics
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#94Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes it's a good place to live. But...Industry is mostly composed of banks,insurance companies, basically a financial sector. Meaning : OLD LEGACY CRAP. Also a little bit boring and if you are not a "german" speaking person you will always feel unwelcome.
I found it to be amazingly expensive (I was there in 2013) but a phenomenal place to explore. Made amazing friends and loved the city but don't miss the $44 burritos.
I didn't live there but I did travel for work. Totally common to get stuck with a $50-70 bill for lunch. And, like a lot of places in Europe, getting charged for a pitcher of tap water is really off-putting to Americans. Geneva was by far the worst place I have ever been for charging for water.
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#95I'm already there. It's NYC. The only thing I would change is to give us some tropical weather.
You'd change the weather, but not the rent and taxes? :)
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#96Seoul. The city is so damn modern and the energy of Korea is amazing. It's so easy to get dragged into the fast-paced, high-energy lifestyle just by being exposed to other people long enough. Transportation is cheap, it's very easy to reach other places in Asia and Korean people are very friendly (IMO). If you like technology and shiny new things, Korea is definitely the place to be.
Any recommendations for developer jobs in Korea? Working at a Korean company and thus in their working culture (long hours, treated like a slave by higher-ups) and low developer pay is not recommended from what I hear.
Yeah that's the tricky part. You can subscribe to job alerts on stackoverflow careers and linkedin and hope for something to pop up. Alternatively I would say find a remote contract job and do that for a few months while being in Seoul. Go to local startup meetups and you will almost certainly find something nice as your first stepping stone
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#97Middle of nowhere with an internet connection. I'd be pretty happy in Alaska but living in Alaska is very expensive.
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#98Silicon Valley. High pay compared to where I stay. Companies based at Silicon Valley are working on interesting products. Developers in South Africa with University degree and 10 years experience and higher, earn less than $100k per annum. No startups working on interesting products here in SA also. You are stuck with big banks if you want to make money.
my $0.02 on this is you can work in SV for 6-12 mo, then if you play your cards right, you can transition into a remote role with your current employer. Myself and other friends have done this resulting in 6-fig salary anywhere we want to live.
Any leads on how to land a job in SV? (for non US citizens).
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#99Istanbul, Turkey.
Warm climate, fantastic food and friendly people. Modern city with developed infrastructure. I lived there between 2011 and 2013 and enjoyed every bit of it. Upon leaving, I knew that I would go back to live there again because I loved it so much. However recent events and overall political direction Turkey is taking is killing that wish within me. I really hope things get better in Turkey.
Re: Ask HN: If you could live and work somewhere, where would it be?
#100Seoul. The city is so damn modern and the energy of Korea is amazing. It's so easy to get dragged into the fast-paced, high-energy lifestyle just by being exposed to other people long enough. Transportation is cheap, it's very easy to reach other places in Asia and Korean people are very friendly (IMO). If you like technology and shiny new things, Korea is definitely the place to be.
Do you know the language? Is it necessary to in order to feel that life is as fast-paced as you mention?
It's definitely easier if you speak the language. Koreans don't really hold your hand and tend to bombard you with long, fast-spoken sentences even if you try to explain that you don't speak the language :p At the same time it's very easy to make friends that don't mind giving their broken english a try in order to make a conversation with you.
I am not fluent in Korean (still very far from becoming) but still consider Seoul as one of my favorite cities (if not my favorite) period