The Reality of Living in Japan as a Nikkeijin
By: Sheenah
Living the In-Between
When I first came to Japan, I carried with me a mixture of excitement and uncertainty. I thought that being a Nikkei-jin—a person of Japanese descent born and raised outside of Japan-would make life here a little easier. I assumed my heritage might help me blend in. But the truth is, living and working here as a Nikkei isn’t as simple as it sounds. It comes with its own set of unique challenges and small victories that outsiders rarely notice. Life here is a constant mix of privilege, struggle, and discovery.
Daily life quickly became a balance of quiet struggles and little triumphs. Something as simple as filling out a form at the city hall could take me an hour, as I tried to translate and guess what was written. Grocery shopping often felt overwhelming when I couldn’t read the labels. Even building friendships was harder than I expected-conversations required so much courage, and I constantly worried about saying the wrong thing or being misunderstood.
Yet, despite the struggles, every small achievement felt like a milestone. The first time I ordered food at a restaurant on my own. The first time I rode a train, bus, or taxi without asking for help. The first time I shopped independently. And the first time I made friends who didn’t mind my broken sentences. These little wins became my fuel to keep going. They taught me patience, resilience, and the importance of observation. Each misunderstanding forced me to reflect, adapt, and try again. Every successful conversation, no matter how short, felt like a personal victory.
Being a Nikkei-jin is complicated. I am constantly balancing between two worlds-the heritage I inherited from my family and the culture I am still learning to live in. Some days, it feels like I don’t fully belong to either. But maybe that’s okay. My identity doesn’t have to mean choosing one side or the other; it’s about creating a space where both can exist. Japan has become a part of me, and I am slowly learning to become a part of it-not perfectly, not completely, but genuinely.