Often, I explore thoughts within myself about the reasons as to why I love Japan. And I have realized that over the course of time and of different stages in my life, the reasons changed.
The first time I probed curiously into this theme of my life was in 2012. Today I’m writing an updated version of it.
If you have read my book (if you haven’t, you can totally still get it here), you already know my story with Japan. If my inexplicable obsession with Japan still puzzles you, here’s a list of posts mostly written for the purpose of my own soul-searching that may explain things better for those who are new here.
Sometimes even I feel bewildered by my own overzealous sentiment towards a country which my passport is not issued by. Yet the yearning for more of it was unstoppable. It got only greedier, wilder, fiercer, stronger, deeper.
A disclaimer should also be made up front that every word regarding Japan that comes directly from me is spoken with straight up unapologetic bias. This is real cult. If you weren’t sure if I was serious about it, you are now.
Revisiting what I have written a decade ago confirmed that I my feelings for Japan have indeed changed, a lot. Like most people, my irrevocable love affair with Japan started with pop culture. Wondrous anime characters who drag you into fantasyland. Heart-wrenching dramas. Music full of kickass attitude. And then I accidentally got pulled into the bewitching fashion scene. Beautiful people. Ostentatious get-ups. False lashes extravaganza. Endless parties and events. And then the demand for inbound tourism began to rise and before I knew it I was conquering prefectures across the archipelago. This went on until February, 2020.
The coronavirus put all of this to a rude, abrupt halt.
Before I elaborate, I have a confession to make. I didn’t own this straight up on social media because I knew judgement would come my way.
Here it is.
