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Meet the Locals

Even if you have studied all the tourist information available, language and cultural barriers can get in the way of planning a truly deep international travel experience. Enrich your Japan trip itinerary with the local knowledge provided by these foreign residents of Chiba.

Scotto

England

I was born in Newark, England and raised on the South Coast near the historic city of Portsmouth. I was a stage performer and martial arts instructor as a young man, and later became a software engineer. That work took me away from the UK in the late 1990’s, first to Germany then New Zealand where I started Zen practice and also met my Japanese wife. We moved to Japan in 2015, and I now work as a performer again which has included large Japanese companies and some famous rock bands. I’m always interested in temples and shrines, and enjoy cycling, golf and skateboarding too – just more slowly than before!

Andy Kaesermann

America・Wisconsin

I was born and raised in Wisconsin. I visited Kamogawa as a high school student and had such a wonderful experience that led me to study Japanese in college. After graduating in 2016, I joined the JET Program and was excitedly sent back to Kamogawa, as a resident this time! Since 2018, I have been the Coordinator for International Relations at Kamogawa City Hall.

I love the vibrancy of life near the coast and am always excited to discover different aspects of cultural history of Southern Chiba!

Gina Rivera

Phillipines

Gina was born and raised in the Philippines. A BSBA graduate majored in Business Management, she has been living in Japan for more than 20 years. Chiba became her home since day-one in Japan. She considers being an aspiration and assisting fellow foreigners living here one of her great privileges. She finds interest in people, and how culture and values affect society. For her, traveling and discovering new places through the eyes of the locals are vital to every journey. She also loves arts and crafts, and is always amazed at how simple things turn into masterpieces.

Corrine Yamamoto

Oregon, USA

Born and raised in Oregon, I fell in love with Japanese culture through several Japanese exchange students my family hosted when I was a child. I grew up wanting to live in Japan. My dream was finally realized when I moved to Japan in 2003. Moving to Chiba after a brief stay in Tokyo, I fell in love once again with the beauty of the mountains and coastline and have lived in the area ever since.

Martin Park

New Zealand

Martin was born in South Korea and then raised in New Zealand from the age of 2. He came to Japan in 2018 as a Coordinator of International Relations on the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme. After being involved in the organization of Rugby World Cup 2019 matches in Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture, he moved to Nagareyama City in 2020, and is now working to promote tourism in Nagareyama to both Japanese and foreign audiences. Native in English and fluent in Japanese and Korean, he likes languages. Nowadays, he studies Spanish and plays the guitar in his spare time.

Cara Erodias

Philippines

Hi I’m Cara from the Philippines! I’ve been living in Japan for almost 8 years. I studied Japanese for 1 year and 6 months in Tokyo City. Now I’m residing in Kamogawa, in the Chiba Prefecture.

I left my career in Tokyo 3 years ago to live a slow life in the countryside, and then I found out the beauty of these places and its people.

There are many things I like to do, to see, and to experience, especially Japanese culture! Thanks to my former job in the City Hall as part of the Community reactivating cooperator squad 地域おこし協力隊 they give me plenty of opportunities to see the beauty of the region!

Christopher Soto

CA, USA

Born in California, USA, in 1992. As of July 2021, he is a resident of Ichinomiya-machi and employed at Ichinomiya-machi’s Town Hall since August, 2017.

Nancy Rose

CA, USA

Nancy was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her fascination for Japanese language and culture motivated her to study abroad at ICU and Osaka University for almost two years. This experience deepened her love for Japan even further, leading her back in 2019 to work as a Coordinator for International Relations at Katori City Hall. She is passionate about traditional Asian performing arts and has practiced Chinese violin, Vietnamese lion, dragon, and hat dancing, and Japanese archery and koto, among other things. She also loves animals, music, and urban dancing.

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