Apr 6, 2015
nogata city
How is life in Nogata city in Fukuoka?
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on Apr 6
I live in Tokyo but after some research, Nogata City is in the countryside. If you live near the station, you still need a bicycle to buy grocery. If you live far away, you need to ride the bus unless you have a car. Nogata City close to many parks and mountains, if you like hiking and nature this is a place for you. There are a few golf courses near the Nogata City, so if you play golf you will love this place. The city also close to the ocean, so you can go to the beach during summer time. Most of the shops will close around 9 pm, if you meet some friend they mostly will bring you to karaoke shop and drink. If you want to buy things, it is best to buy it online and have them ship it to you. It's really depending on what you are interested in, if you can tell me more about yourself and what do you want to know specifically I can give you more detail.
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on Apr 6
Hey VinR Seems like Nogata is about one hour on the train from Fukuoka/Hakata. I looks like Nogata has everything you need. There's a huge Jusco shopping mall where you can get clothes, food etc. Also, the Jusco has a multiplex movie theater. There's a Kaldi Coffee Farm somewhere in town, where you can buy all sorts of imported foods and treats! Very important! Look out for a bar called .. The Bar!. It has an English menu and they have live music artists every month. Could be a good place to meet fellow expats. As Kevin said, there seem to be some good hiking/views in/from the mountains outside of the city. Oh, in April there is a massive flower festival (about 200,000 people visit) in Ongagawa Riverside Park. They also do fireworks festivals here in the summer. The fireworks festivals in Japan are great. Hope this helps. I'll post again when I find out more. Enjoy!
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on Apr 6
Hi Kevin and Tomuu, Thanks a lot for the infos :D Actually I have a plan to go to Japan for studying Japanese, and the agency that I met is collaborating with one of the Language school in Nogata, Fukuoka, but I can't find a lot of info on google. And also I'm the type that like natures and sport activities, but I know when studying abroad there will be not much time for that, but Kevin said that there are many parks there so I think it's good enough for me to exercise. Also I think convenient stores and department stores are very important to shop groceries. Anyway can you guys give me some tips for suppressing living cost? like a place that sell cheap groceries? :)
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on Apr 7
I think one tip about keeping costs down is this ... In Japan food, restaurants, cafes, convenience stores, vending machines are everywhere. They are accessible and reasonably priced, as such it can be easy to get carried away with using them. But be careful here as costs can build up. Try cooking/making your own lunches/dinners as much as possible. In the short term it might not seem like you're saving much, but in the long term it can be important. Try to avoid the habit of using vending machines for your drinks, all the time. Make your own coffee to carry with you, and re-use bottles to keep some water with you etc. This will end up saving you quite a bit of money. As for shops/supermarkets, I think Jusco is at the cheaper end of the scale. Watch out for Kaldi though, it's expensive! Only use it for a treat every now and then. I used to use a supermarket called Big A. It's one of the cheapest I've found. I don't know if they have them in Kyushu though. In my opinion, what kind of food you buy, rather than where you buy it, is the key to cutting costs. Fruit is a good example. I love it but a lot of fruit is expensive in Japan. You have to be disciplined and restrict yourself to the cheaper stuff (bananas) and keep an eye out for seasonal bargains (buying out of season can be really expensive). Overall though, I don't think Japan is as expensive as people tend to think it is. When do you plan to be in Japan?
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on Apr 7
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on Apr 7
Tips to lower you living cost: 1. Most of the supermarket will discount the soon to be expired products just before the store closed. Get get at the right time to buy those 50% off bento(dinner package) and meat. I often get those A5 grade Japanese beef at the discounted price, it is the best steak you will ever found. 2. Shop from online retailers, like Rakuten and Amazon. 3. Get a data sim card for you smartphone and use IP Phone to call your friend. It will save you 5000 Yen a month. 4. Ask your school to help you buy a commuter pass for bus or train if you use one. 5. Try not to buy it from the convenience store, because it is a little pricier compared to the supermarket. For me, I don't think the economy have any significant impact on expats. Most expats are work in the education or IT industry, which is not affected by the economy situation directly.
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on Apr 7
Hi VinR I agree with Kevin, I think most expats don't really feel too much effect from the changes in the economy at the moment. The consumption tax hike last year slowed down people's spending a little and now I think PM Abe is encouraging companies to pay higher salaries so that people will start spending again.
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on Apr 7
8 Answers