Firstly, welcome to my first ever blog post!
Whoever you are, I’m grateful you’re here and joining me on this journey.
So, who are you?
I absolutely love this “Winnie the Pooh with the unapproving look on his face” cushion I randomly found
I’m Joo! I was born in South Korea, but moved to Japan when I was around 2 years old. I grew up here, attended an international school, graduated from a Japanese university and now I’m in my 5th year working in Japan.
My Background – Being a Third Culture Kid
This is young Joo before being shackled to society and learning the harsh reality that is – corporate life and employment
Even though both of my parents are South Korean and I was born in Korea, I have very little memory of my time there, having come to Japan at such a young age. My father’s job brought us to Japan and I’ve been here ever since.
Honestly, I feel more comfortable living in Japan than Korea, but that’s a whole other story for another day (I’ll probably write about it sooner or later).
People often say, “You must’ve worked really hard to become trilingual!”. But honestly, I’d say I was just blessed to be raised in a multilingual environment. Korean at home, English at school, Japanese in everyday life – and a mixture of these three languages with siblings and friends.
I’m truly grateful for these experiences throughout my youthful years, especially because a large part of my identity and the skills I rely on today were shaped during that time.
Like many Third Culture Kids do, I’ve had my moments of wondering whether I belonged anywhere, how to answer the question “where are you from?” – Genuinely, what does that question even mean? (I’m sure all of my fellow third culture kids get what I’m saying)
From waiters refusing to speak to me in Japanese (even though I was literally responding in native Japanese), to feeling like a foreigner no matter where I was – I’ve had my fair share of sleepless nights.
Those thoughts don’t just disappear overnight, but for me, just giving it time and realizing that regardless of “who I am”, I have people that care about me and accept me for who I am.
That’s all that really mattered – and my marriage was a big part of this.
My Life Now – Getting Married
Let’s just say she’s the blessing and the curse of my new life – in all the good ways
I met my wife in August 2022, and we were married just two years later in August 2024. At the time of writing this, our first anniversary is just around the corner!
Marriage has taught me so much about myself – it was an opportunity for me to reflect on my relationship with my family, which has changed in a good way. There’s a lot I want to share, but I’ll save that for another post.
My wife is Japanese and her hometown is in a rural area up in the northern area of Japan. I’ll be honest – I had my concerns about how her family would react to her bringing home a Korean husband, especially considering the complex history between our countries.
But her family welcomed me with open arms. No stereotypes, no judgement – just kindness and acceptance. I’m incredibly grateful for the way they embraced me as a new member of their family, and I couldn’t ask for a better relationship with my in-laws.
What do you do on your days off?
On our days off, my wife and I love going out for an early lunch (we hate crowds and waiting in line to eat), doing a bit of shopping and heading back home in the early afternoon – again, because we hate getting caught up in crowds.
My wife’s the type to always go back to the same couple of places she already knows she loves while I like to explore more and find new food spots. As I bring her along on my food journeys, hopefully I can share some of my favorite spots with you as well! And of course, also our usual go-to spots which are a more realistic representation of our daily life here.
Why start a blog?
I’ve never been the type to talk about myself much. But I’ve always been a deep thinker and writing feels like a good way to express myself and maybe connect with others who’ve felt similar things.
This blog is also a way for me to share more about myself with my loved ones, while also documenting all of the memories that might otherwise slip by. Life moves fast, so this is my way to slow down and reflect.
What can I expect going forward?
There won’t be any particular schedules to my posts. I’ll just write when something’s on my mind or when there’s a moment worth sharing. But in general, you can expect food spots, travel stories and honest reflections about life.
I’m not trying to be a perfect or polished writer – just myself.
So if you’ve made it this far on my very first blog post, thank you.
I truly appreciate you spending your time here and just know – you were here when it all started.
And I hope you’ll come back. I have so many more stories I’d love to share.