House Sharing Will Bring You Socializing Opportunities

A house is much more than just a roof over your head which protects you from the sun or rain. Instead, it is also a sanctuary, a comforting, silent, and safe space and at times also an investment. A house is a place where you stay protected from all the physical, intellectual, and emotional troubles and where you grow independently from the outer world. The facilities that your home offers determine your living standards and your quality of life. Hence, maybe now, you can get an idea regarding how housing decisions are significant and why such decisions should be made with utmost care.

But finding a house in a new space is a tricky process. When you move or shift to a new city or country, housing becomes a bit of a problem. It is so because now you have on your hand, the task of finding a living space, that fits your budget, is situated in a nice locality and which has all the essential facilities and services available. And you have to accomplish this task in a place that is completely foreign to you. So, now you can probably see why some people think of seeking a house in a new country as a daunting task.

However, the good news is that now, with the people and techs changing at a rapid pace, housing issues are getting resolved. Plus, the concepts of renting today have also modified. Unlike earlier, when a tenant was required to rent a whole space for him, today one can rent and share a house with others. Thus, by practicing house sharing one can reduce his expenses while at the same time score some exciting socializing opportunities. So, now if you are interested in knowing more about the share housing system and you want to learn about its socializing and other benefits, then come let’s begin the discussion. Here it goes!

What are share houses?


Share houses are an excellent option to find a living space when you have moved into a foreign country. These houses are especially the right option for people who are in abroad for educational purposes and can’t afford to spend much on housing or for people who have come to the foreign landscape on business and won’t be staying there for too long. For both these people, share houses turn out to be a welcome option as some of them are foreigner-friendly renting spaces that both help in saving money and in meeting new and interesting people.

To facilitate easier understanding, one can think of share houses as homes where a group of people live together under the same roof. Now while living in a share house means you cannot decide who you share the space with, still the choice to decide your room is your own. You can opt from a variety of options like a single room, a double room, a room with three or more tenants, or even an apartment styled room where you have an attached toilet and shower. There are tons of available options!

How does share housing offers socializing benefits?


When you move into a new country or a new city one problem that you face is socializing. Even though the world is now a very global space still at some places you may find residents reluctant to bond with the foreigners at least initially. Add to this the issue of a language barrier in case you don’t speak the local language fluently and you can pretty much imagine yourself living in isolation for the first few months. When you are away from your friends and family who act as your support system, this might feel depressing.

But with share houses, this problem gets resolved naturally. This is so because in share houses you can find dozens of people who are in a similar condition as yours. They are there in a foreign land trying to work or study while fighting the feelings of isolation and loneliness. They miss their families and they are eager to make new friends. Now since you are living with them and spending a lot of time together you will discover that befriending such people is actually quite easy! All it takes is to find a common ground and socializing is no more a problem.

However, if you are still not convinced and have some doubts about the socializing benefits of a share house then in our next part all your doubts will fade!

How does share housing help in socializing?


Staying in share housing can make it easier to make friends because …

It houses a large number of people

When you are living in share houses there are so many people around who belong from different cultures and different traditions. Now at the first glance, you may find it as a con, but if you are one of those social people who love to interact with new buddies and who like to learn about different cultures then living at a share house will mean having the time of your life!
This is so because now you will have so many people to learn from about different cuisines, different languages, different traditions and what not! Hence, if you are a social butterfly and you love to gather and hang around then this big space will be a perfect home for you. Plus, if you ever get bored here then all you have to do is to literally just walk out of your room and you will be surrounded by people!

You find mutual hobby friends

Because share houses are big spaces with a bunch of different people living together, hence it is always a possibility that you will come across someone who will share mutual interests with you. You can never imagine who that person might be, which just makes this process of making ‘new’ friends all the more fun!
Also, once you will have your mutual hobby friends at your side, then you will never be alone. This is so because now you will be able to always seek them out to spend some time together in order to chat non-stop about your common interests or to discuss new developments. On the off days, you will even get a chance to practice your hobbies and interests together and to enjoy some relaxing downtime!

Opportunity for international exchange

At some share houses, they offer residence to both the local and international people. This is a great opportunity for the international people as now they get a chance to mingle with the local folk and to learn from them about their language, food, and culture. Can there be anything better than that? I mean you can practically think of this as a ‘culture tuition’ class minus the expensive fee.
Hence, at share houses, you get a chance to enjoy the taste of the local life without any fears. You can now hang around the new places with your brand-new local buddy without being anxious all the time about doing something inadequate or stupid. This experience is just having your own guide-cum-close friend.

Living in student only properties

If you are a student and you are in a foreign landscape to learn then you have the choice to seek the share housing spaces that only offer residence to foreign residents. This will be great for you because living with fellow students will save you from being distracted and from losing sight of your goal. Plus, if you ever need any help with the studies then you would just need to knock on the next door and you will have help. Hence, student share housing properties are a cool way of both studying and living!

Animal lovers and pet-friendly properties

Well, if you love animals but have never gotten around to getting your own pet, maybe because you cannot afford it or because you are afraid of taking over the big responsibility, then living at a pet-friendly share housing property is your chance! Yes, imagine living around all those cute fluffy animals! Aren’t you already tempted?
Plus, living under the same roof with the friendly pet owners is in your favor too, because now you will get to learn about taking care of the pet animals from the experienced people without even paying! It is like getting access to the theoretical and practical lessons of pet caring until you feel ready and confident to get your pet.

Music lovers and properties with music studios


Now if you love music and enjoy humming or singing songs then while searching for share houses you can look for the ones that have music studios of their own. This way you will be able to practice and enhance your music skills. Plus, with all the other music lovers you will always have a chance to learn something new from someone. How awesome is that?!

Conclusion

Thus, from the above discussion, we can conclude that share housing is a great accommodation option if the very idea of living with strangers doesn’t scare you off. Living there you will help you in socializing with new people and in making fast friends. Plus, on the off-side, you will be able to learn so much!

 

 

 

 

【Tenant’s Story】Greater Connections with Housemates during COVID19

My name is Ashleigh and I have been living in Borderless House for about 2 years. Since I moved to Japan, I have been actively involved in the Borderless Community. From the Link-Up events and Borderless Diners to volunteering as MC at the Borderless Olympics. You may remember me as the ‘kawaii Santa’ MC from last year’s Christmas Party. I enjoy parties and connecting with like-minded people. Being in a sharehouse during this situation has changed everyday living. I was upset that I couldn’t hang out with friends freely and host events, but it opened up new opportunities to lift the attitude in the house. However, I have not tried to view it negatively and not concern myself with uncertainty. Instead, I have used this time to slow down and spend time with those who decided to remain in the house during this period.

I have really appreciated staying in a sharehouse at this time. I think I would go crazy if I wasn’t able to hang out with friends at all and a handful of them suddenly had to go back to their home countries anyway. I already considered myself lucky to be coexisting with a group of amazing people, but I believe this time together has given us a stronger connection. It’s led to us hanging out every weekend, watching movies or playing games. Housemates that I hadn’t connected with before, I have gotten to know better.

Cherry Blossom at the Share House

Many events that we were looking forward to couldn’t go ahead as planned. We knew that the yearly Hanami at a park was not possible this Cherry Blossom Season, so we decided to hold an event at our place. I bought about 3000yen worth of pink decorations and picnic essentials from Daiso to create more of a “Hanami” vibe from the comfort of our own home. From the materials, we used our creative skills to put together something in our living room. It was the perfect weather to eat outside, so we made hand-rolled sushi and yakisoba and took it to the rooftop, along with our own little Sakura tree. For a moment, everyone seemed to forget that there was a global pandemic that was becoming more apparent in Japan.

Everlasting Friendship 

In response to the announcement of the State of Emergency, my company asked me to work at home a couple of days a week. At this point, most housemates were working at home, so we were able to time our lunch breaks to eat together, giving us a chance to step away from work and properly take our breaks, which helped us re-energise before getting back to work. It was great to catch up with them in the middle of the day on a weekday, which was something I had never imagined before.

Connections with ex-housemate 

We have not let this situation halt our friendships, as we are still connected to a former tenant who, unfortunately, decided to move back home for a few months to be with his family. Luckily, we live in an age where we can still be connected through technology and he is still a member of our group chat, checking in with us regularly. Although we miss his presence, we were able to have a party with his spirit because he was kind enough to buy us food through a delivery service. It was lovely to be brought together due to his kindness during this unfavourable situation and we can’t wait for him to return to Japan and hopefully move back in again to repay him.

Smiling faces during COVID-19 period

After Golden Week, I was asked to go back to work due to the increased number of students returning to school. My workplace is in Chofu, which takes about an hour and two trains and as I work in a kindergarten, I have to be considerate towards the health of the children, my workmates and my housemates during this time. At both work and home, we pay more attention to hygiene, cleaning the things we touch, such as door handles and light switches with alcohol spray. After we say “tadaima” (I’m back), the first thing we do is wash our hands thoroughly with soap. It has been great to see everyone following the advice given by the government and it gives everyone peace of mind. What also puts me at ease is to come home and still see the same smiling faces every day. My housemates do not judge me for still having to go to work, even when I am concerned about getting onto a train during rush hour because of the increased risk to contract the virus.

Greater cultural exchange in the busy kitchen

Honestly, the biggest challenge we have faced is that everyone is cooking at home in order to reduce the amount they leave the house. Walking into the kitchen, it always smells great. However, with a busy kitchen most nights, it has made us gain a greater consideration of others and become more flexible in the limited space we have. It has also resulted in less space in the fridge. How do we combat that? Although our spaces are marked separately, we have been sharing with one another, not just the fridge space but also ingredients. I love how we have become so close that I can rely on my housemates to use something of theirs, and I will gladly replace or give them something else in exchange. Staying at home has caused us to be more creative with meals and has promoted greater cultural exchange. I introduced them to the flavors of lemon oregano chicken, while they showed me how to make shoga yaki (Japanese Ginger Pork).

With such wonderful food, comes much more waste, so we have also become more stringent with taking out the trash. I have never seen so many bags of rubbish from one weekend before! Also, remember the time when toilet paper and masks were hard to find? Everyone has been pitching in to help buy these essential items, including soap, alcohol spray, wipes, tissues and pretty much anything with a one per person limit. Even small gestures like this really help to continue the orderly conduct of the house. I couldn’t imagine what we would do if we ever ran out of toilet paper!

Birthday Party, Clubbing, Movie Theater, Izakaya at a share house!?

In our house, it’s an amazing coincidence that two of our members are born a day apart, so we did not hesitate to buy gifts and celebrate their birthdays. Who says you can’t enjoy your birthday during corona? Since we cannot go out clubbing as we planned a few months ago for a housemate’s twentieth, we have decided to turn our house into a club instead. We have this mindset of “if we can’t go out, then we will bring it to us!” For example, want to go to the movies? Let’s watch something in the living room on Netflix. Craving a certain meal? Let’s make it! The options are limitless when we put our minds together. I’ve been wanting to go to an izakaya for the longest time, so I pitched the idea to use our common fee money to buy an electric hotplate. Everyone was instantly on board, thinking of all the food we can make, such as okonomiyaki, yaki-niku and even pancakes. A housemate mentioned, “if we’re going to eat yaki-niku, we will need beer and shochu,” really replicating the feel of being at an izakaya. I love the way that my housemates think and that they are so proactive.

We are in this together

With multiple nationalities under the same roof, we have access to information on a global scale. We like to compare the situations between our countries and see how it is similar or different to Japan. With our knowledge, we can put together and start guessing what Japan’s next step will be. This makes for interesting conversation and sparks up a debate, all in good nature. It’s so helpful living with Japanese people because they can tell us the information before it is translated on news sites. We enjoy watching press conferences by Prime Minister Abe or Tokyo Governor Koike. However, my language skills are not native yet, so it is nice to be next to someone who can directly translate what they are saying. It’s better than any kind of subtitles.

This whole situation that we are faced with doesn’t have to be a negative experience. Many of my housemates have adopted new hobbies that they have been interested in, but never found the time to do, such as working out on the rooftop or growing their own vegetables. From just one person, we have learned and become interested in new activities, which is really what living in a Borderless house is about. We have deepened our cross-cultural exchange in a way that might not have been possible without the push to ‘stay in.’ Although I miss the community and meeting friends from other houses, I’m glad that I’ve been able to focus on my own house and I believe my housemates feel the same. I think our experience goes to show that you can still enjoy sharehouse life without fear, as long as you follow the guidelines and stay vigilant in practicing good hygiene. It comes down to each individual doing their own part, but essentially, we are in this together.

Check Ashleigh’s Share House

 

 

 

 

來自社長的一封信:建立橋樑,而非隔閡

大家好,我是BORDERLESS HOUSE的社長Lee。

因為新冠肺炎疫情的發生,全世界的人們都受到了影響,至今仍看不到平息的跡象。而疫情的發生也導致許多產業受到衝擊,大家都在尋求解決問題的方法,希望能減緩衝擊的力道。

如同各位所知道的,BORDERLESS HOUSE是一個來自日本,擁有許多外國房客的事業。每年的四、五月正是我們的房客,展開新學期、新生活,最忙碌的時期,也是我們迎接最多新房客的時候。

但在疫情的影響下,我們有許多不得不取消入住,無法來到台灣的房客,又或是臨時需要回國的外國房客。

但是,我們沒有因此忘記我們的事業理念:「創造沒有歧視與偏見的世界」。針對此時世界上所發生的事情,我們希望透過撰寫這篇部落格,和大家分享我們此刻要做的,以及想要傳達的理念。

【疫情下產生的差異與分裂】

新冠肺炎常常被認定是「亞洲的問題」,導致在各國都出現了針對華人及亞裔住民嚴重的歧視,或是針對特定人權團體的騷擾及暴力行為,再次將對於亞洲人的歧視問題帶上檯面。

但這絕對不是只在國外才會發生的事情,同樣的,隨著疫情蔓延,即便在亞洲,也可能發生本地人用偏見的眼光看待外國人的情形。

我們為了抵禦病毒而設下了入境限制,這樣子的鎖國政策,使得人與人之間產生了一道「物理之牆」,而這種不安定且充滿壓力的狀態持續下去,將衍生成為「心中之牆」。面對未知敵人的不安,使得我們將這些仇恨及歧視,轉向特定的族群或是特定人種,而這樣的歧視和偏見,將讓我們彼此之間漸行漸遠,更加疏離。我擔心即便疫情結束,各國雖然解除了限制,但這樣對於外國人的歧視仍舊會持續的發生。

【建立橋樑,而非隔閡】

現在,該是我們團結起來的時候,建立橋樑,而非隔閡。

透過不同領域的結盟,交換彼此的知識與資源,世界可以一同面對這個共同的敵人。我們也竭盡所能地為我們的房客、合作夥伴及各位工作人員和他們的家人,提供最合適的配套措施。

因此,在這樣的情況下,我們也需要思考,BORDERLESS HOUSE可以做些什麼?我們該探討的是什麼?

我們深信我們的角色是創造連結,而不是分歧,因此我們將這個觀點濃縮為一句話──建立橋樑,而非隔閡。

因為新冠肺炎疫情的影響,BORDERLESS HOUSE的事業在各方面都受到了衝擊。不過,更讓我們擔心的是那些迫切地期待著,能與世界各地的人交流的房客們。

他們期待來到台灣,完成他們的夢想,卻不得不因為入境的限制而取消他們一生可能只有一次的工作、留學機會,或是已經抵達台灣的房客們,被迫回到故鄉,導致學習中斷,失去了和室友們一起創造美好回憶的機會。

BORDERLESS HOUSE致力於消除歧視、偏見與分歧,這是我們的品牌任務和目標。我們希望協助這些想要挑戰的年輕人,脫離他們的舒適圈,透過直接和外國室友相處、生活在多元文化的環境,從中得到學習、理解的機會,也幫助社會走往更正向的地方。

不過,把這些想法觀點說出來、寫下來固然很重要,但更加重要的是,我們該如何去執行它,於是我們將發起一個新的活動。

【BORDERLESS Mate 神秘線上筆友】

這次的「BORDERLESS Mate 神秘線上筆友」是一個很簡單的概念。

因為新冠肺炎疫情的影響,我們有許多房客都失去了認識新朋友、學習語言的機會,所以我們希望透過這次的活動,在照顧到大家的健康及安全下,盡可能提供給大家更多的交流機會。

而這個「BORDERLESS Mate 神秘線上筆友」將從台灣開始做起,連結起不同物件的房客,透過語言、興趣、喜好等,替大家做配對,並且以Email的方式,建立起線上的友誼。

透過這個計畫,我們希望大家即便在疫情的影響下,仍舊能持續的與外國朋友交流,不管是學習語言,文化分享,甚至是聊聊對於疫情的看法,給予彼此一些鼓勵,一起期待疫情過去的日子。

而這個計畫,之後也會逐步拓展到我們在日本、韓國的事業部,甚至是非房客的朋友們,讓我們的理想,可以為社會帶來更長遠、更正向的影響!敬請期待吧!

最新消息,歡迎追蹤我們的 FB粉絲專頁


新冠肺炎疫情,儼然是一場國際性的長期抗爭

站在政府與政治家的立場,為了保護人民,需要築起高牆來抵禦病毒的威脅,但我認為我們都應該在心中搭起一座橋梁,共同克服這些阻礙。

而BORDERLESS HOUSE則將成為搭建這些橋樑的工程師之一,即便我們並非完美,我們仍會以笑容迎接挑戰,為我們的努力而驕傲!

BORDERLESS HOUSE在日本的總部也曾遭遇過類似,非預期的重大災難,但我們仍舊堅持著,努力克服種種挑戰和難關。

有鑒於此次疫情的情況危急,我們必定會將每位房客的健康與安全視為第一順位,接下來我們還會在許多方面遭遇困難,但BORDERLESS HOUSE還是會努力面對各種挑戰,盡我們一切所能,期許著更美好的未來。

No Language Experience? No Problem!

Hey guys! This is Claire from BORDERLESS HOUSE back with another blog. This blog is going to be a personal story of how I got interested in Japan and my own journey of learning Japanese. Hopefully, there will be many things you all can relate to, but I also hope that I can share some new information and shed new light on your thoughts about going abroad. 

The Beginnings

The first time that I came to Japan was in June of 2013 at the age of 15. I spent 28 days living with a host family in Yokohama through completely self-organized means. So, why Japan? The true answer to this question really is, “I don’t know.” What I do know is that at the age of 15, I wanted more than anything to have the opportunity to travel abroad, but this was difficult for me to do as I was a nationally-ranked competitive swimmer. Any time away from the pool could jeopardize my training, so going abroad was never an option for me. For many sports, such as soccer or basketball, there are pre-arranged international exchange programs which have reputable teams and carefully selected host families. Swimming is not one of those sports. Being the young 15-year old that I was, I was not going to let this massive barrier stop me and I began asking around my local swimming community to find connections to and contacts for international teams. My first breakthrough came quickly from my head coach in California who had the contact information of a coach from Yokohama in Japan. From that moment on, I decided I was going to try and make my way to Japan!

Now that I had located a reputable team abroad, my next challenge was that I spoke no Japanese, and knew nothing regarding the culture. By some miracle, my math teacher in high school spoke Japanese and with her help I was able to draft an email to this coach in Yokohama. Less than 24 hours later I had a positive response, and was told that I’d be assigned to a host family- all I had to do now was buy my flights. And that’s how I ended up in Japan for 1 month at the age of 15 with complete strangers. Coincidentally, during that month I also fell in love with all of the people that I met, and with the culture. I felt that I got to see a new side to swimming, and really to all of the aspects of life that I considered to be mundane back in the U.S. Things as simple as taking a ride in a car or going grocery shopping were all new and exciting. I finally felt like after 15 years of mindless patterns, I was filled with life and excitement.

Despite this now being my fourth time in Japan and, admittedly, I no longer have a host family to cook my meals, drive me around, or do my laundry, there is still a sense of wonder and awe that I feel when I am here. I feel alive and at home. If you need more convincing of the benefits of going abroad feel free to watch a short talk I gave to my peers at Harvard, and I hope that you will be filled with the same passion that I was.

Make It Work & Don’t Ever Settle

The moral of this whole story is that if you want to go to Japan, or go abroad in general, it is possible if you have the passion and the drive. Especially if you do not find any programs that fit your interests, don’t give up or settle for doing something you really don’t want to do. I have seen many people who have a passion for Japan and take any job that comes their way just to remain in Japan. Unfortunately, if you end up doing something that you are not excited about, it might bias your experience in a place that you once thought you loved. By all means, try and do what you love, in a place that you also love!

In cases where you are unable to find any programs that match your interests, networking will be your best friend. Find something that you want to do, whether it is studying, volunteering, or working, and start asking around. In my experience, if you send emails out of the blue to someone in Japan telling them that you are really interested in working with them, or learning from them, you will end up with one of three answers: 1) positive response, 2) referral to a similar colleague or opportunity or 3) no response, which really in the grand scheme of things isn’t so bad. When things are silent, it just means you have a few more people you’ll need to reach out to! Don’t get discouraged and keep trying.

Learning Japanese

After I returned from my first visit to Japan, I was still in a situation where I did not have any opportunity to take Japanese language courses at school. I additionally did not have the time to enroll in any language courses in my free time because I was constantly at swim practice. I simply picked up a copy of Genki, which I highly recommend for self-learning Japanese, and began to memorize and write hiragana and katakana. I self-studied on and off for about 2 years, but truly I had no serious hours set for studying and I only managed to teach myself the rudimentary writing, speaking and grammar basics. Another downside to self-learning Japanese is that you don’t have the opportunity to practice speaking naturally. There are two parts to learning a language: 1) memorizing vocabulary, grammar, etc, and 2) learning how to seamlessly put this knowledge into use. No matter how much studying you do, if you are unable to put your skills into everyday practice, all your hard work may not be reflected properly. This all being said, self-taught Japanese is an incredible feat and can be successfully done- I just recommend using more than just text materials to practice with. Going abroad or joining language exchange communities are excellent options!

One other opportunity that is missed by self-taught Japanese without going abroad is that you may miss out on a lot of cultural opportunities. Part of immersing yourself in another culture is not just learning the language, but also experiencing daily life and customs. I have been very lucky to have many amazing cultural experiences with my host families and housemates which have deepened my understanding of Japanese history and have made me feel welcomed into a country which is nothing like my hometown.

The next step of my learning journey occurred after my second visit to Japan in 2015. When I realized that Japan was becoming more than just a hobby and would be an interest that carried much further into my academic and working future, I decided it was time to take learning Japanese seriously. My university required all students to take a year of language courses, or to test out of this requirement. Rather than use my Spanish ability to test out of the requirement, I opted to take my first Japanese course.

From my previous two visits to Japan I had picked up some phrases and was familiar with basic grammatical patterns. This was massively helpful to my language learning journey as there were times during class when I was able to recognize my errors before having actually learned the correct grammar rule. Just as children pick up a language from infancy and are able to apply grammatical rules through pure imitation, I realized that my two previous visits to Japan had done the same for my own language learning. Because of this, I would highly recommend going abroad to Japan as early as possible in your language learning journey. The sooner you get native exposure, the sooner you will be able to recognize and apply both grammar and vocabulary. Many people feel that they cannot travel abroad before they are proficient in a language, but I would argue that the opposite is true. Go abroad in order to become proficient. An amazing way to get this native exposure, and one of the main ways that I maintained my Japanese after quitting language courses, was by immersing myself in the BORDERLESS HOUSE community. Being surrounded by people who want to share their cultures and languages fosters a community where you are encouraged to learn and practice. Living in such a supportive community will give you the resources and courage to reach levels of language ability that you never thought possible. You’ll also learn many things, such as the new and upcoming slang, that would otherwise not be taught in a classroom. After all, it goes without saying that textbook language and colloquial language can be quite different.

Personal Regrets

After my first year of Japanese, I, unfortunately, had to stop taking language classes as my schedule became too busy. To be honest, I never imagined that I would be living and working in Japan, which means that at the time, quitting Japanese seemed like the right choice. However, my biggest regret is having quit my language learning after only a year. Although I don’t have any issues communicating or living here now, I now find myself with terribly mismatched speaking and reading/writing ability levels which make Japanese class level placement next to impossible. I have also graduated from college now, so any language course that I pursue would generally take me away from time at my job.

I also never took the JLPT test, which is something that is highly regarded when searching for a job here. When I began my job search, I quickly realized that although I would have no issues with doing an interview in Japanese, I would never be invited for an interview if I did not have some proof of my Japanese language ability. Having some standardized proof of your language ability will be imperative for any foreigner trying to start their career in Japan, with the exception of course of becoming an English teacher!

In summary, my advice to you is that you take advantage of any opportunities you have to continue on with your language learning. Even if I had not ended up living and working in Japan, fluency in foreign languages is such an incredible skill to have. It shows passion, dedication, and can help connect you to international, or domestic, opportunities that you may have never considered. I have a long road ahead of me to get to full fluency, but I’m willing to do what it takes so that I can take this feeling of regret and make it an amazing success story.

Can I Get By Without Any Japanese? The answer is: Yes, absolutely!!

As I mentioned, when I first landed in Japan back in 2013, I had no language experience and no cultural exposure. My high school did not offer Japanese as a language, and the only foreign language experience I had was 10 years of Spanish, which certainly wasn’t going to be put to heavy use during my time in Japan. I had an “Oh, crap” moment on the plane to Japan when the reality of my situation finally settled in. With Google Maps, smartphone translators and the internet in general many of your language barrier issues will be resolved. This being said, despite there being no necessity for Japanese language ability to live here, some understanding of the Japanese language and culture comes in handy if you plan to stay or live here. Great news is that living in a BORDERLESS HOUSE, surrounded by both Japanese and foreign housemates is a quick and easy way to have a support group and language study-buddies when coming to Japan with limited language ability!

The best news is that Japan is extremely accommodating and if you are in the presence of an individual who can speak some English, chances are that this person will be more than happy to seek you out and start up a conversation. Many signs are translated into English, and restaurants sometimes even have English menus. So, even if you are not familiar with the language, you’ll be okay. However, I would again like to point out that you’ll have a much richer experience here in Japan if you are somewhat familiar with the language and culture. For example, the English menus at restaurants don’t always list the same options that are on the Japanese menu, so you just might miss out on the opportunity to try a mint chocolate chip iced latte.

Now if you plan on working here in Japan, this is a different story. As I previously touched upon in the prior section, I cannot stress the importance of having passed the JLPT Level 1 or 2 enough. Many jobs, with the exclusion of English teaching jobs, will require you to have some proof of your Japanese proficiency. Even if you are confident in your Japanese fluency, without some sort of standardized proof, you will likely not be considered for a job interview. So make sure you have done your language prep and passed some sort of standardized proof of your language ability.

Be Fearless and Take the Leap

In conclusion, I’d like to encourage all of you, no matter where you are in your language learning journey, to consider stepping out of your comfort zone and making your dreams of going abroad come true. There are so many opportunities waiting for you and so many friends, especially here at BORDERLESS HOUSE, who are waiting to meet you. I hope that my story has convinced you that there is no greater experience than going abroad and that it will help you grow in ways that you could never imagine.

「Build bridges not walls!」〜線上語言交換活動擴大展開!

BORDERLESS HOUSE在4月分展開了一項房客專屬的
線上交流服務“〜Build bridges not walls!〜語言交換

這項服務開始的初衷是希望連結起
當初預計到日本來生活,但因肺炎關係不得不取消的外國房客,
以及期待著外國室友入住的日本房客們,
提供給他們一個不受時空地點限制,依然能夠互相交流的管道。

我們目前已經成功配對了20組的語言交換夥伴!
參與的國內外房客都向我們表示獲益良多,特別是在這個艱難的時刻可以交到新的朋友,
以及接收到關於不同國家的消息,甚至還有夥伴們已經相約在未來回到正常後要相約在日本觀光,
使BORDERLESS HOUSE也感到非常的窩心。

因此,BORDERLESS HOUSE決定讓更多的人可以參與和體驗這廣受好評的服務,
我們將於限定期間5/11~5/30開放給非房客的人也能夠參與報名!

配對的基本規則
一名外國人搭配一名日本人,
及一名BORDERLESS HOUSE房客搭配一名非BORDERLESS HOUSE房客。

-配對流程-

STEP1
登錄!
請從下方表格申請。
<現在就填寫申請表!>

STEP2
BORDERLESS HOUSE將根據您所填寫的表格回答進行配對。
接著我們將建立Skype群組,安排第一次活動的時間和程序說明。

STEP3
交流開始!
首先,自我介紹。依據您們自訂的主題,享受語言交流的樂趣!(第一回為40分鐘)

STEP4
結束後,填寫問卷。並自行約定下一次語言交換的時間!

-活動特色-

Point1
程序簡單,僅需填寫申請表後,
BORDERLESS HOUSE的工作人員就會為您配對語言交換的夥伴。

Point2
能認識到不同國家的新朋友,與國際社會接軌,
享受聊天的過程中同時也能提高語言能力。

Point3
沒錯!這是一項免費的服務!


我們希望在這段時間出入境其他國家受到嚴格限制的時期,建立起各國之間的連繫橋梁!
BORDERLESS HOUSE衷心期盼更多人的加入參與!

【5月30日 BORDERLESS HOUSE線上說明會】什麼是國際交流Share House??

嗨!我是BORDERLESS HOUSE的Ting,這邊要向大家宣布,我們在5月30日(六)日本時間上午11點,將舉辦BORDERLESS HOUSE中英文線上說明會!

最近,我們收到許多來自對Share House感興趣的客人們的訊息:
-決定入住Share House之前,想知道更多關於Share House的真實生活情形!
-想了解BORDERLESS HOUSE是什麼樣的公司,和其他Share House公司有什麼不同之處!
-想看看國際交流Share House究竟是什麼樣型態的Share House!
-我到日本後一定想入住看看Share House,想知道各式各樣的消息!

為了回應這些疑問,我們決定舉辦線上說明會,讓大家能更認識BORDERLESS HOUSE,並有機會了解國際交流Share House的真實樣貌,及房客們的實際生活情況。

【關於BORDERLESS HOUSE】


BORDERLESS HOUSE所經營的國際交流Share House,目的是讓來自世界各地的年輕人能夠在同一個屋簷下,一起分享彼此的生活,以及不同國家的文化。在BORDERLESS HOUSE提供的國際環境下,不但能提升語言能力,更能從多元的生活環境得到難以忘懷的經驗,開拓你的視野和世界觀。

對於在日本和多國籍的室友們一起生活是什麼樣子感到好奇嗎?

當來自不同文化的大家生活在一起,關於煮飯、打掃這些日常生活會有不一樣嗎?
即使我不會日文,也能夠與日本室友們互動交流嗎?
當問題發生時,大家又是如何解決的呢?

在5月30日(六),BORDERLESS HOUSE的房客們以及我們的員工,將根據自身經驗一一解決大家的疑惑。

此外,我們將提供特別的禮物給參加說明會的大家!詳情請確認下方資訊!

對於搬到日本生活,對於生活環境和住處,你會面臨許多的選擇。
何不妨讓自己有這麼一次機會,選擇可以體驗文化交流的國際Share House呢?
在說明會上,我們也會以視訊方式帶你參觀我們的Share House,並且提供具體細節介紹,所以請帶著放鬆的心情來參加!

※在報名之前,請注意我們的年齡限制為:18至35歲。

我們衷心期待在說明會上見到你!

關於BORDERLESS HOUSE線上說明會:國際交流Share House是什麼

▸日期:5月30日(六)
▸時間:日本時間上午11:00~12:30
※請注意時間為日本時間,所以請務必確認自己的所在地時間,也歡迎使用時差轉換器
▸地點:ZOOM(線上)
免費下載ZOOM應用程式
※參與ZOOM的過程中,你的名字將被顯示出來,如果擔心使用全名,可以只使用姓氏或是名字,但請避免使用綽號。

▸參加資格:不限
▸費用:免費
▸語言:中文、英文 (說明會時中文和英文會分開進行)

內容:
① BORDERLESS HOUSE公司介紹
② Share House介紹
③ 現正入住房客與BORDERLESS HOUSE員工Q&A
④ 個人諮詢

★特別禮物★

參與說明會並在2020年12月31日以前入住BORDERLESS HOUSE,將可於入住時獲得5000日幣的亞馬遜AMAZON禮券

報名申請表

請透過下方連結進行報名手續。
◎Registration Form報名表

聯絡資訊

若有任何問題或疑慮,歡迎聯繫我們。
關東地區: info@borderless-house.com
關西地區: info-osaka@borderless-house.com

關於更多的Share House資訊,歡迎至下方官網查詢。

關東的 share houses
關西的 share houses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Guide for Living in Tokyo

Tokyo is one of the most populated cities in Japan. It is the hub for technology, food, business, and innovation. Natives from other cities in Japan as well as foreigners migrate to the city to live there. With so many local and multinational companies operating from the city, there is no dearth of jobs in Tokyo.

When moving to Tokyo, it is best to first get a little information about the lifestyle, culture, and cost of living, in the city. To ensure that you have an idea of what you’re getting into, we have compiled some information about Tokyo. This guide will help you prepare yourself for your move.

What People Like About Tokyomajor



The numerous job opportunities in Tokyo, the rich culture of Japan, and ease of living are three of the major attractions of Tokyo. When living in Tokyo, one experiences the most marvelous combination of corporate life, fashion, food, and fun. During the day the residents of Tokyo are busy hustling and working, while at night the city lights up and offers great nightlife.

From great food to entertainment, Tokyo has it all. There are many restaurants, bars, cinemas and game centers in the city, there’s no possibility that one could get bored of the Tokyo city life. While the city is pretty hi-tech and always lit up with lights and hustle-bustle, the government has maintained parks in various areas, to ensure greenery in the city.

The city caters to everyone’s needs, whether they are Japanese or ex-pats. The food served in the city is multicuisine, whereas there are many shopping stores in the city that offer different types of fashion products for varying tastes. Tokyo doesn’t sleep, shopping centers like Don Quijote and Seijo Ishii are open 24/7 for the customers.

The city offers rich art, culture, and music to the people. The local restaurants and bars are called izakaya are serve the local Japanese food with plenty choice of drink. Tokyo is famous for its upbeat pop music and many restaurants play the same. They offer great cocktails and frequent discounts to keep the place crowded.

Many areas in Tokyo are famous for the artistry. There are plenty of museums, art galleries, and exhibitions in the city. However, you come across the biggest art pieces when you walk around the city. The architecture of the city is beautiful and reliable. The architecture helps maintain a vibe of advancement and hi-tech. Moreover, robots working at various information desks and cafes, leave the people surprised at the development in the city.

The Weather In Tokyo



When moving to a new country, it is essential to ensure that you can bear the climate conditions there. Every 2 to 3 months, the climate and temperature in Tokyo changes. There are six seasons that one witness when living in Tokyo:

1. Spring: March to May

The spring season in Japan is the time of Hanami. Hanami refers to cherry blossom viewing events that can be seen from the end of March to the first half of April. The temperature frequently changes during spring, sometimes it’s hot and sometimes it’s cold.

2. Monsoon: May to the first half of July

The rainy season in Japan is called Tsuyu and it rains almost every day in Tokyo during this time. The atmosphere during this season is very humid. The season starts in the Southern region and moves towards the north. After the monsoons are over, one can feel the heat of summers in full swing.

3. Summer: June to August

The highest temperature during the summers in Japan is 30° Celsius. However, due to the humidity, the summers can often feel unbearably hot. Tom must wear light clothes during summers and keep hydrated to avoid getting heatstroke.
Events like Natsu Matsuri, the summer festival, and Hanabi, the fireworks are joyfully celebrated by the people. The jolliness in the air is evident and the city of Tokyo is sparkling during these events.

4. Typhoon: End of August to September

During the typhoon, some areas in Japan including using Tokyo experience extreme rainfall and strong winds. The weather gets so bad that even umbrellas are unable to bear the brunt of the rain. It is best to check the weather forecast before stepping out of the house during the typhoon season.

5. Autumn: September to November

The autumn season in Tokyo is cool and windy. During the day the night, the temperature drops enough for people to bring out their thin pullovers and enjoy the breeze. The trees of many leaves turn from red to yellow during November, walks around the city are especially blissful during these days.

6. Winter: December To February

The lowest temperature in Tokyo during winters is 0° Celsius. The atmosphere is chilly and you will need to wear gloves during the early morning and evenings. Some years, it snows in Tokyo during the winter. The Omisoka, the day before New year, is celebrated by eating traditional Japanese dishes like soba noodles and Osechi. People also celebrate the new year by drinking alcohol and partying.

Tokyo Attractions: Places To Visit


There are many attractive sightseeing places in the city. The view from these places is utterly mesmerizing, whether it’s day or night. Going to visit attractions will definitely bring fun and unforgettable experience into your living in Tokyo. Most of them are extremely crowded during weekends. Some of the famous places to visit in Tokyo are:

1. Sky Tree
2. Shibuya
3. Tokyo Tower
4. National Art Center
5. Sensoji Temple in Asakusa
6. Miraikan and Edo-Tokyo Museums
7. The Imperial Palace
8. The Meiji Shrine
9. Yoyogi Park

Best Experiences In Tokyo

When living in Tokyo there are some experiences that you simply cannot miss out on. While you can spend some days visiting various sightseeing places, many other activities offer the real Tokyo life experience.

1. Try out the authentic and fresh sushi at the local places in Tokyo.
2. Visit markets like Harajuku and Asakusa for some window shopping.
3. Spend an evening at the Ueno Park
4. Collect games and anime films from Akihabara and spend your weekend bingeing.
5. Go to Piss Alley for food and drinks and Shibuya for parties.
6. View the traditional Japanese theater art or try out sumo wrestling for fun.
7. Watch a baseball game at the Tokyo Dome.
8. Hike to Mount Mitake or cycle around the city on a breezy day.
9. Go sing karaoke with your friends.

Tokyo has been given the tag of the best overall experience at Tripadvisor. There are many more things to do in Tokyo, and as you spend more time there and experience new things, you will fall in love with the lifestyle.

Facilities That The City Offers

Healthcare

Tokyo offers exceptional and affordable health care services to its residents. The screening of some diseases has been made free of cost. The cost of treatment and prenatal care are borne 30% by the individual and 70% by the government. The motto of the government is that everyone in the country receives medical services. Both private and public healthcare institutions are available in the city.

Insurance

Healthcare is so great that the country has observed the high life expectancy rate in the world. Everyone living in Tokyo is covered by public health insurance.
Clinics, dentists, and hospitals do not accept insurance other than Japan-based insurance. However, they never refuse to treat patients that do not have insurance. The payment has to be made in full and you can apply for reimbursement in your country.

Some healthcare businesses that cater to the expat community, may provide services if you have insurance from the global insurance companies that they partner with.

Clinics

There is a primary clinic available in almost every neighborhood in Tokyo. They provide treatment for problems like rashes, fever, gastric problems, infection, body pain, etc. Some private clinics in Tokyo have English speaking staff for the convenience of expats. However, it is recommended that you take a Japanese speaking friend along, in case they don’t. Going to such healthcare clinics for expats costlier than going to any other clinic.

Pharmacies

There are pharmacies located in every neighborhood, mostly nearby stations. Some of these pharmacies are open 24/7.
The medicine provided at these are produced in Japan and might be of a lower dosage, than what’s available in your country. If you need a high dosage of medicine, you need to show a doctor’s prescription.

Convenient Transportation

The city offers trains and the metro to its residents, making traveling around the city conveniently. They offer wide connectivity throughout the city. These public transportation services are reasonably priced and are preferred over private transport like cars. This is why the commute is overcrowded most of the time.

What’s more, the public transport is very punctual, to ensure that the passengers reach their destination on time. The delay of even a minute is very rare and unwelcome. When living in Tokyo, you are usually supposed not to make any delay for appointments. Buses take to places, where the metro network has not yet reached. If you need help while traveling, you can collect brochures, maps, and information from offices at the station.

Shopping

While the rich prefer shopping from malls and branded stores, there are many hyaku-en stores available in the city, where you can buy many household items for cheaper prices. The rates start at 100 Yen. You can also shop for clothes at second-hand shops.
There are many lanes in Tokyo that are famous for the products available at them. Some of these markets are Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku, Ginza, Nihonbashi, and Ikebukuro.
Brands like Louis Vuitton offer an art gallery, there are a cafe and pastry shop at Dior and a spa and beauty salon at Chanel. These additional places offer a luxury experience and can even be visited by people that are shopping at the store.

Safety

The crime rate in Japan is low and it is considered one of the safest places to live. Drink spiking and credit card theft are some of the major crimes in the city, usually occurring in crowded localities. For any help, the police are ready to help and can be contacted at 110. The city offers digital security, infrastructure security, and personal security.

The Cost of Living in Tokyo


It is common knowledge that Tokyo is one of the world’s most expensive cities for expats. The accommodation, food, everything for living is high-class and expensive.

Accommodation

Finding a place to live in Tokyo is quite challenging and expensive. The rent of your apartment is likely to be the biggest expenditure from your income. Apartments in close proximity to the stations are generally more expensive to rent. You can get an apartment within walking distance to the center for around 180000 Yen, whereas if you are living a little farther, the rent will be around 80000 Yen as well. The amenities offered and the area of the property will influence the rent amount.

You could also stay at a share house or an Airbnb hostel in the city, and enjoy their multicultural environment. While you receive less privacy, it is easier to make friends when staying at such places. Such as BORDERLESS HOUSE.

Food

It would be a shame if the delicious food offered by Tokyo isn’t listed as the first thing that people like and attracts them to Tokyo. The roads and lanes of Tokyo are occupied by restaurants. By living in Tokyo, you are always exposure to great offering from restaurants where you are allowed to enjoy authentic Japanese food and multi-cuisine food for people who miss home. It is popularly known as the food capital of the world.
The Edo-style sushi that has made the world its fan, was first made in Tokyo. It was first sold at small street stalls and today it is a famous delicacy served everywhere by Japanese restaurants. While Tokyo is considered an expensive place, a few weeks in the city can help you find restaurants that serve lunch at cheaper prices i.e. less than 1000 Yen.

Transportation

The cost of traveling anywhere in Tokyo by public transport is around 200 Yen. You can buy a Suica pass for transportation around Tokyo. This pass is rechargeable. By showing your foreign passport, you can receive discounts on tickets.
The train arrives at the station every ten minutes.

Tax

The Japanese tax for consumption, on income, and security, is way less when compared to the tax payable when living in Europe.

The Challenges Expats Face during living in Japan


1. Work visa: The biggest challenge faces by expats is getting a work visa in the country. While the process is fast, you must apply at least two months in advance. Before getting a work visa, you can stay in the city for 90 days to secure a job, by first getting a tourist visa.

2. Language: When living in Japan, learning basic Japanese can make your life smooth hassle-free. If you do not know how to speak in Japanese, you might have difficulty navigating in Tokyo.

3. Expensive: Tokyo is expensive. It is best if you move to the city, only if you have a job that will cover your expenses, otherwise, you will be draining your savings.

Relations Between Japanese Locals And Foreigners 


Like most countries, the experience with the locals in Japan is no different. They treat foreigners like foreigners, not the same way they would treat fellow Japanese people. Japanese expect that foreigners cannot be made allies with and it is an innate belief that you will not understand their social conditions.

However, if you know how to speak in Japanese it’ll be undoubtedly easier for you to make friends. You will also come to know that running daily errands is much more convenient if you can speak Japanese.

Etiquette to consider when living in Tokyo
You can improve your relations and interaction with the locals, by respecting the social etiquette and the cultural norms of Tokyo. The people of Japan believe in politeness, bowing to elders, being punctual, and respecting culture. If you follow these etiquettes you can avoid stepping on their bad foot. Moreover, disturbing others on the train by talking on the phone too loudly, eating while you’re walking, and being unhygienic are some actions that are frowned upon.

How to make friends in Tokyo?
Making friends in Japan can be challenging, especially if you are an introvert. The first friends that you make are most probably going to be your colleagues, you’ll also get to know other expats in the city. If you wish to broaden your local friend circle, you could try attending events and gatherings where you might meet Japanese people.

Change In Perception Of Expats After Living In Tokyo
Once you get used to the rush of the city and the overcrowded restaurants and streets, it’ll be easier for you to navigate. You will enjoy the various festivals in the city, and learn about the culture.

Tokyo Expat Community
From students to IT professionals from Europe, Tokyo is home to over 2 million expats. The expat community in Japan is huge and people often meet other English speaking expats via the Meetup app. You can also join an international nomikai that organizes parties and other events, where you can meet other foreigners and locals.

Your fellow expats must have experienced the same things when they moved to Tokyo. Expat forums are platforms that enable you to get in touch with other expats. You can communicate with them and ask queries through forums like Expat Exchange and InterNations.

 

【Build bridges not walls】~What We Can Do Now~

Hi all, this is Lee from Borderless House.

Currently, the impact of the new Coronavirus can be seen and felt all over the world. Various individuals and industries have been hit very hard by this pandemic and its effects.

As you may know, Borderless House is a company which heavily relies on the support of tenants from overseas. In particular, March and April are commonly two of the busiest months for Borderless House as many students begin their new semester, and post-graduates begin a new chapter of life.
The impact of the Coronavirus has by no means been small, and we have been disheartened to see many long-awaited individuals forced to cancel their trips to Japan, and current tenants need to unexpectedly return home. It is a time of uncertainty for many.

However:
Even during these times, we will persist in our mission to create a multi-cultural society void of discrimination.
In light of the current worldwide pandemic, I’d like to introduce some things that I feel we can and should do to support this mission.

Discrimination and Division as a Result of the Coronavirus

The novel Coronavirus has been labeled as an “Asian problem,” and has lead to severe discrimination against Asian residents, particularly Chinese individuals. Human rights organizations in various countries have reported shocking cases of harassment and assault. Awareness of discrimination against Asians has been once again brought to light. However, this discrimination is by no means a foreign affair unrelated to Japan. We cannot claim with certainty that Coronavirus-related discrimination against foreigners will not be born in Japan.

The rampant virus has been kept under control by immigration restrictions as well as self-isolation and restraint measures. As a result, immigration measures have built “physical walls” and the unending stress and uncertainty has built “emotional walls.”Anxiety surrounding the invisible enemy which we are now all fighting has been misplaced as hatred and discrimination towards a specific race. Specific groups of people are now experiencing prejudice and isolation, as others intentionally make efforts to avoid these individuals. My fear is that this prejudice and discrimination against foreigners will continue to visibly increase in Japan even after travel restrictions are lifted in the future.

Now is a critical time for us to come together. Let us build bridges, not walls.
Not all recent events have been negative. The entire world has united to take action during this crisis by cooperating across various fields, exchanging knowledge and resources, as if confronting a common enemy. Here at Borderless House, we have been doing our best to decide on and implement the necessary measures which will prioritize the highest level of safety and health for our tenants, partner companies, and for our staff and their families.

Click here for more information regarding the Borderless House Coronavirus measures

With this all being said, and given the current state of the world, we are faced with a few questions.
What can we at Borderless House do?
What should be our approach and response?
I am convinced that our current role is to promote connections rather than divisions. Our staff has summarized this sentiment with an encouraging and impactfull phrase:“Build bridges, not walls.”

Due to the Coronavirus, business at Borderless House has been heavily impacted in various ways. However, what overshadows our business worries are our tenants, a community of individuals who had been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to foster connections and make memories with people from all over the world. Our hearts ache hearing the stories of tenants who have lost their dreams of coming to Japan, individuals whose once-in-a-lifetime work and study opportunities abroad have been cancelled, foreigners who have been forced to return home due to travel restrictions, and those who have been robbed of the ability to make long-lasting memories with their housemates, never given the time needed to have felt fully at home in Japan.
Even if they are not in Japan, will these individuals be able to build up excitement for the next opportunity to come to Japan, to learn something about Japanese culture or language, or to build international friendships? Are these things that we at Borderless House are still able to provide?

We should aim to eliminate discrimination, prejudice, and division! We should strive to take our society in the opposite direction!
It is important to say these things and to put them in writing, however, arguably more important is taking direct action to support these claims. Borderless House exists to support this type of action by challenging individuals to leave their comfort zone, directly confront their own preconceptions of foreign societies and individuals, and join a multicultural environment. This is the mission, brand, and purpose of Borderless House.

 

We have taken action and started an online “Language Exchange” matching program.

This new program is based upon a simple idea.
We will be matching foreigners who no longer are able to come to Japan with current tenants of Borderless House to create a free online language exchange program! Therefore, housemates who were supposed to meet will have to opportunity to do so virtually and can still form lasting friendships which transcend borders!

By speaking with Borderless House tenants, we can use this program to provide a look into life in a multicultural environment in Japan, and reignite some of the excitement that may have been extinguished by the ongoing pandemic. We hope that these language partners will ultimately have the opportunity to meet face-to-face in the future.

Please check out the program page for more details regarding this new program!

Ultimately, we would like to extend this program not only to those who were unable to come to Japan, but also those who were unexpectedly forced to post-pone or cancel their reservations with us.

As self-isolation measures persist around the world, I, as well as all the staff at Borderless House, hope that these small and impactful actions will help restore any lost anticipation and excitement, and help redirect our focus from the dark present to a bright future.

Additionally, for tenants who made reservations with Borderless House but were forced to cancel, we have prepared personalized video messages from the staff members who coordinated their reservation details.

With the combined efforts of all members of Borderless House, we will continue to move forward with passion and heart!


 

The worldwide fight against the Coronavirus is expected to be a long battle.
If the role of the government and politicians is to build walls in order to keep the world safe, I think the response of all global citizens should be to build bridges between our hearts to overcome these barriers.
And we as Borderless House aim to be one of the engineers crafting these bridges. Although not always perfectly made, we will continue to build bridges with a smile, and take pride in our efforts!

 

Borderless House has previously experienced a similar unexpected and tragic event in the past, and was able to persevere and overcome the resulting challenges.
During the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011, fears of the earthquake and radioactivity lead to the evacuation of both Japanese and foreign tenants from Tokyo, resulting in many cancellations.
Despite this, we continued to maintain the ratio of our tenants at 1:1, foreigner:Japanese, and did not abandon our mission. We held out hope that people would return to Japan again, and by standing firm, Borderless House survived this hardship, our brand grew, and we emerged stronger than ever before.

In light of the current virus situation, we will of course work to prioritize each individual’s health and safety.
We may continue to face difficulties in all aspects of our life, both in the personal and economic spheres. However, Borderless House will continue to face these challenges head-on, doing whatever we can do to help and keeping our eyes fixed on the hope of a bright and exciting future!

Share House是什麼?

也許亞洲的其他國家對於Share House還是不是那麼熟悉,不過,在日本Share House已經是盛行了一段時間的租屋方式,這邊文章就讓我們來告訴你「什麼是Share House」。

Share House是一個讓一群人聚在一起生活的出租空間,除了個人房間之外,其他的空間均為共用。這共用空間包含了讓大家互相交流的交誼聽、能夠一起下廚準備各種美食的廚房以及淋浴間和洗衣間、曬衣場等。

Share House主要聚集了年齡相仿的本地人或移居至日本的外國人。因為多樣化的環境,以及能體驗到不同的生活樂趣,而吸引了這群房客來到Share House居住。

1990年後,由於日本的外國人口增加,因此推出了一個稱為“外國人住宅”的新型租房型態,而Share House從之而衍生的租屋方式。不過現在這些Share House,已成為了提供當地人和外國人互相交流的空間,多元文化的環境的代表。

Share House的普及


隨著人們越來越關注於Share House題材的電視劇,結合了不同世代想認識不同的人,以及探索新事物的好奇心,讓Share House的租房形態在東亞流行與普及起來。

Share House 文化

根據2015年的一項研究,移民人口佔了日本人口的1.75%,這當中有些是移居至日本工作、接受教育或旅行的外國人,而隨著都市人口的增長,在日本租房變得越來越困難且價格高,因此Share House為當地人和外國人提供了一個設備齊全的空間,也為他們提供了一個既划算又能夠體驗多元文化的選擇。
不同的公司提供了不同形式的Share House,希望能將興趣相近的人聚集在一起。有些以運動愛好者為主題,而有些則是提供給予女性或單親媽媽的專用Share House。
在日本的Share House生活時,由於能有機會和日本人同住,您可以了解到當地的文化及生活習慣,品嚐到道地的本土美食,並交到來自不同國家的朋友。

由於BORDERLESS HOUSE提供以「多元文化」為主題的Share House,因為這樣的獨特性,成為了日本、韓國和台灣地區當中的有名氣的公司之一。

生活在同一個屋簷下,或是同一間房間的房客們,經過一段時間相處之後,都能漸漸與世界各地的人們有了連結並建立起深厚的友誼。

 

Share House vs Room Share: 更好的租屋型態

當搬家到另一個國家生活的時,大多數的人會選擇傳統的租房方式,也就是普通的出租公寓或合租公寓。但即使與合租者一起平均分擔租金,光是管理費用和初期費用就是一筆很大的開銷。
傳統的租房型態,除了必須自行購買家具家電以外,每個月還必須另外支付電費、瓦斯費、網路費及水費,甚至維修費用在必要時也是要自行負擔。

相比之下,Share House的房客每個月支付的房租和水電費雜費等維護管理費用都包含在一起,所以不需要每個月自行去繳費,就算遇到需要維修的情況時,Share House公司也會全部為您處理好。

出租公寓或房間通常是跟朋友或原先就決定好要一起生活的同伴們一起租的空間,與您熟識的人一起生活可能聽起來很棒,但相對地,能夠學習的空間不多。如果您和您的室友同樣都是外國人,那麼您可能需要花更多時間融入當地的生活。

Share House適合什麼樣的人呢?

1.一顆開放的心
Share House提供了許多共用空間,這意味著您將與來自世界各地的室友們一起共享這間公共空間。由於每個人來自各自不同的背景、擁有不同的個性和經歷,因此,開放的心態對於考慮入住Share House的人相當重要。

2.喜歡結交新朋友
交流是BORDERLESS HOUSE的主要理念之一。 我們大多數的房客都樂於與他人交流和互動,所以,不要再躲在您的房間裡了!趕快與您的室友一起享受生活,讓它成為您難忘的回憶吧!

3.和室友一起維護房屋與環境的整潔
乾淨舒適的環境需要所有室友的共同努力。在BORDERLESS HOUSE,家事或倒垃圾等工作是必須由所有房客們一起輪流完成的。

BORDERLESS HOUSE

BORDERLESS HOUSE是一家在日本、韓國和台灣擁有122間Share House、1285間房間可供出租的國際Share House營運公司。每個月提供大量的租房需求給來自超過50個不同的國家的房客,所有的人帶著各自的文化知識來到Share House裡與其他室友們互相學習分享。

當地人與外國人的房客比例取決於每間公司,而BORDERLESS HOUSE則是採取5比5各一半的比例。這能夠保證外國人有更多機會與當地人互動,並能學習更多不同的語言及認識彼此的文化。

BORDERLESS HOUSE的Share House的宗旨是在於創造一個多元文化的空間,不分國界,來自世界各地的人們在這裡一起生活並分享彼此的經驗。房客們互相教與學,成為一輩子的朋友。

住在BORDERLESS HOUSE的好處

●當搬到另一個國家時,您會遇到許多新奇又意想不到的事物。食物、生活方式、語言、文化和人們的想法在一開始都是很新鮮的,雖然有些人會發現適應新的環境並不難,但有些人可能並不擅長於交流與結交朋友。而BORDERLESS HOUSE的Share House提供了最即時的交流環境及良好的交談環境。

●當長期生活在一起之後,室友可以學習彼此的文化和生活方式。與來自不同文化背景的人進行交流可以幫助您拓展視野並學習新事物。
與當地人一起生活可以幫助您學習該國的文化與民俗,您甚至可以與當地人一起慶祝當地節慶,例如不同國家的過年方式。

●如果您長期移居日本、韓國或台灣,那麼對當地語言的了解肯定會派上用場,在當地室友的幫助下,您可以透過學習當地語言來讓生活更輕鬆,使您在融入當地的生活上更加容易,並朝著被接納為新居民的方向邁向一步。

●住在Share House時,您可以從當地室友的建議和知識中學習到很多事情。成為朋友後,可以一起去當地受歡迎的餐館或酒吧,如果您需要購買東西,他們可以推薦當地最好的商店,甚至陪您一起去。基本上,如果您入住BORDERLESS HOUSE的Share House,即使在異國他鄉也不會感到孤單。

●雖然住在Share House有很多社會層面上的好處,但對於單身生活的人來說,經濟上也有好處。一般而言,Share House每個月房租要比私人公寓便宜。除了租金和維護費用之外,住戶不希望負擔網路、水、瓦斯等額外的設施費用,在某些情況下,可以與其他住戶分擔烹飪費用來節省花費,並結交朋友。

●考慮到多人一起居住的環境下,BORDERLESS HOUSE提供了良好及高智能的家用電器。有些Share House甚至有家庭影院和健身室。

●為了使Share House中的房客感到輕鬆安全,有專門的管理Share House的人員來負責維護Share House的大小事。從損壞的設備到漏水的管道,每項大大小小的維護工作都由公司員工處理,因此房客們不必擔心。

BORDERLESS HOUSE於許多不同的城市設有據點,包括日本東京和大阪京都、韓國首爾和台灣台北等。這些房屋均位在距離車站和超市等步程不超過15分鐘的距離,以確保住戶們在生活上的便利。

BORDERLESS HOUSE是以客戶為主要考量,並為房客提供許多免費特殊企劃活動的Share House公司

House Exchange Program: 當BORDERLESS HOUSE的房客前往另一個同樣擁有BORDERLESS HOUSE所在的國家城市時,房客們可以入住當地Share House並且無需支付任何額外費用。最短可以入住一周,最長則可入住一個月!房客可以在抵達一個新的國家時、立刻認識到當地的人,從當地的室友身上得到最新最道地的推薦,也許還能和當地室友一起觀光,去旅遊書上沒介紹的秘密景點!

Language Exchange Program: 語言交換計畫提供外國房客和現正入住BORDERLESS HOUSE中的房客互相學習彼此語言的平台。

BORDERLESS Diners: 每隔一段時間,我們的房客都會有一次國際美食聚會。這是個房客們能相互認識並一起享用美味佳餚的機會。

BORDERLESS events:

這些活動是為了所有BORDERLESS HOUSE房客所籌劃而成。透過這個活動,房客們能擁有一個更廣泛的交友網絡平台,並且可以結識新的本地和外國房客,一起度過愉快的時光!

BORDERLESS HOUSE所提供的所有計畫和活動,都是以理解並認識其他的國家文化為目的。我們希望為來自各個國家的獨立生活者,創造豐富的多元文化空間。

如果您有興趣入住日本、韓國或台灣的Share House,歡迎到BORDERLESS HOUSE與我們聯繫!

.

【現在的BH能做的事】線上配對交流活動“〜Build bridges not walls!〜語言交換

每天看見COVID-19迅速傳播的消息,有許多國家邊界已經關閉,因為出入境受到限制的關係,我們已經無法隨心所欲到世界各地旅行。

對我們來說,春天是非常重要的季節。因為春天是日本的學校或工作的新開始,許多外國房客都會在這時期至日本留學或實習。而這些人也選擇share house的租房形式,並期待著新的相遇。在過去每一年的春天,有許多來自世界各地的人入住BORDERLESS HOUSE。

但是,由於COVID-19的影響以及該病毒的威脅,目前有許多外國人不得不放棄來到日本。而這些來自國外的房客們,紛紛取消入住BORDERLESS HOUSE的計畫,甚至打消入住的念頭,對BORDERLESS HOUSE而言是巨大的經濟損失。

想到那些決定在日本度過寶貴時間,且期待著在BORDERLESS HOUSE和日本生活的外國房客們、等待新外國室友到來的現有房客們,還有期盼出國留學卻無法離開自己國家的人們,就覺得令人心疼。

這時候的我們有什麼能做的呢?

對於想來日本的外國人,我們想分享關於日本的事物給他們。
對於那些期待新的相遇的人,我們希望能讓他們有身在國外的感覺。
因為這些想法與感受,我們將開始“Build bridges not walls!線上語言交換”的服務。

什麼是線上交流服務“〜Build bridges not walls!〜語言交換”

這是一項免費的線上交流服務!
對象為因為COVID-19而不得不取消BORDERLESS HOUSE預定居住的房客,以及由於沒辦法按照預定計畫來日本的外國人,以及期盼與外國新房客互動的BORDERLESS HOUSE日本房客們,進行一對一的配對。

我們將提供一個未來也許將成為室友的兩人,一個互動交談的機會,讓這些因COVID-19而無法碰面的房客們能夠進行交流。

可以透過這項服務,學習彼此的語言並與世界各地的人聯繫!
您也想交到來自世界各地的朋友嗎?

-配對流程-

STEP1
登錄!
請從下方表格申請。

登記表格

STEP2
BORDERLESS HOUSE將根據您所填寫的表格回答進行配對。
接著我們將建立Skype群組,安排第一次活動的時間和程序說明。

STEP3
交流開始!
首先,自我介紹。依據您們自訂的主題,享受語言交流的樂趣!(第一回為40分鐘)

STEP4
結束後,填寫問卷。並自行約定下一次語言交換的時間!
參加次數達到三次之後,我們將交流機會留給其他參加者。

BORDERLESS HOUSE能做的

Point1
計劃搬入BORDERLESS HOUSE的外國房客,和正住在BORDERLESS HOUSE的日本房客擁有被配對的機會,進行配對的則是BORDERLESS HOUSE的工作人員!

Point2
您可以與充滿活力且喜歡BORDERLESS HOUSE理念的人互動交流,享受彼此交談同時也能提高語言能力的樂趣。

Point3
沒錯!這是一項免費的交流服務!

現在就填寫 申請表格!加入我們:)

由於這段時間許多國家都關起門來,出入境其他國家受到嚴格限制,所以我們希望能夠建立起各國之間的連繫橋梁!

我們衷心期盼你們的參與!

看東京的所有share house

關於BORDERLESS HOUSE