The Japanofiles Podcast
Welcome to the Japanofiles, a podcast about Japan. This podcast, which began in 2009, presents interviews that have been recorded in Japan. Most of the interviewees are English-speaking foreign residents of Nagano Prefecture who live in the greater Matsumoto area. They share their stories about living and working in Japan. The host of this Japan podcast, Dave Carlson, is a long-time resident of Matsumoto.
Episodes
Today Dave talks with Jayelon Lasseign, an American who lives in Shinanomachi, a small town in the far northern part of Nagano Prefecture. Jayelon shares her experiences of working in rural Japan, and she talks about some of the challenges of living in a foreign country, as well as the importance of having a safety net with access to timely information -- especially during a pandemic.
Key Words: Shinan...
For today's Japanofiles Podcast, Dave talks with Kelton Boyer, fellow long-time resident of Nagano Prefecture. Kelton discusses some of the many interesting experiences he's had, including his most recent business venture -- Mount Desert Island Ice Cream Matsumoto.
Key Words: interview; discussion about Japan; life in Japan; podcast about Japan; Matsumoto, Nagano P...
This month Dave talks with Felice Forby, a web engineer with a diverse background in Japan that spans many fields. After sharing various Japan-related study and work experiences, Felice discusses some of the challenges of living and working in Japan.
Key Words: life in Japan; interview; podcast about Japan; challenges of living and working in Japan; career choices; Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture; Japan-r...
In Episode 78 of The Japanofiles Podcast, Dave talks with Alistair Ramsbottom, "a Brit who's been living in Asia for many years and experienced many cultures, (and who now) works in Tokyo, but still enjoys coming home to Nagano." Alistair explains about how he switched from living and working in China to being in Japan, about his connections to the Matsumoto area,...
After a brief visit to the Shinmai Media Garden, Dave talks with fellow Matsumoto resident Kevin Chang. Kevin is the founder and CEO of Kai Analytics, a Canadian-based market research firm. Kevin discusses some of the challenges of maintaining a base in both Canada and Japan, and he also talks about his podcast,
For Episode 76 of The Japanofiles Podcast, Dave talks with Betty Rioux about moving to Japan, and about the difficulty of deciding where to live and work.
Key Words: podcast about Japan; interview; discussion about moving to Japan; life in Japan; career choices; Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture; Japan-related conversation; Betty Rioux; Dave C...
Takenori Kato, an international medical aid worker with the Japan Chernobyl Foundation (JCF), is usually stationed in Iraq. However, because of international travel restrictions due to COVID-19, he's currently working remotely from the JCF headquarters in Matsumoto. In today's Japanofiles Podcast, Kato-san talks about his experiences as a Japanese expat in the Middle East.
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For this month's Japanofiles Podcast, Tyler Lynch drops by to talk about life in Togura Kamiyamada, a hot-spring resort area about 40 miles NE of Matsumoto. Besides running a traditional Japanese inn, Tyler has also been involved in many interesting projects to help promote tourism and local businesses.
Key Words: Running a bus...
For today's Japanofiles Podcast, Dave is joined by James Van Lieu to talk about the mountains of the Matsumoto area. James has set himself the very ambitious goal of getting to the top of all the mountains in Matsumoto, and he has been documenting his activities online on YAMAP.
Key Words: The Japan Alps; Matsumoto; Nagano Prefecture...
The Japanofiles Podcast is back! Today's show features Charles Ward, a prize-winning board game designer who lives in Matsumoto. Charlie explains how he got into board game design, as well as what it takes to get a game produced. He also details the development of one of his recent creations, ROKUMON -- a two-person strategy game based on the true story of Sanada ...
For Episode 71 of The Japanofiles Podcast, Chris Koch, owner of The Storyhouse Cafe in Matsumoto, stops by to talk about his experience of starting a business in Japan.
Key Words: podcast about Japan; interview; discussion about starting a business in Japan; life in Japan; career choices; Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture; Japan-related conversation; The Storyhouse Cafe;...
In Episode 70 of The Japanofiles Podcast, the conversation focuses on Japanese weddings. Today's guest is Martin Gillis, a longtime resident of Japan who performs weddings.
Key Words: podcast about Japan; interview; discussion about weddings; marriage; life in Japan; career choices; Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture; Japan-related c...
On March 11th, 2011, Kevin Kato and his family were living in Fukushima, Japan. Today they live in Matsumoto. For Episode 69, Kevin visits the Japanofiles Podcast and talks with Dave about his family's experiences of the past several years.
Key Words: Fukushima nuclear disaster; e...
Until recently, David Gray was in the interesting position of having dual careers -- one in Japan and another in North America. For today's Japanofiles Podcast, David shares his thoughts on the various challenges he faced, and he talks about some recent decisions he has had to make.
Key Words: podcast about Japan; North America...
For Japanofiles 67, Dave talks with Judd Goff. Judd has lived in Japan on three separate occasions, and he has done three very different types of work in Japan. In his present position, he is in charge of a facility where almost all of the employees are Japanese.
Key Words: Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture; Japan-related podcasts; ...
Have you ever wished you could take a half year off from what you're doing and move to another country? Today's guest, Michael, did just that. Michael and his wife took a break from their work, moved to Japan, rented a house in Matsumoto, and spent six months doing various things in Japan. On today's Japanofiles Podcast, Michael talks about his half-year stay in Ja...
Crime in Japan and the yakuza are the two main topics of discussion on today's Japanofiles Podcast. Journalist Paul Murphy returns to the podcast to talk about the research for his forthcoming book on crime in Japan.
Key Words: crime in Japan; yakuza; Japan related podcasts; organized crime; Japanese criminals; chikan; podcasts...
For Episode 64 of The Japanofiles Podcast, Dave talks with Paul Murphy, a journalist from Ireland who was living in Matsumoto until this past September.
Key Words: Matsumoto Sarin Incident; Aum Shinrikyo; Fukushima nuclear disaster; genpatsu rikon; Matsumoto; Nagano Prefecture; interview; podcast about Japan; Japan-related disc...
In today's Japanofiles Podcast, Nate Shelton, a student at Shinshu University in Matsumoto, talks about his experiences living and studying in Japan.
Key Words: Shinshu University; international studies; Salt Lake Sister City; Matsumoto; Read more
Nick Harling visits the Japanofiles from Washington, DC, via Skype. Nick shares many interesting experiences from his time in Japan, and he also explains how he has been able to remain connected to Japan since returning to the US. Nick is also the host of the popular Let's Talk Japan
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