Episode
What City Hall in Japan Is Really Like (From Someone Who Worked There) | Ep 142
- Podcast
- Buying a House in Japan
- Published
- Jul 29, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2970
- Processing state
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Summary
Sam Hanada, half Japanese and half Kiwi, moved to Japan through the JET Program and spent three years working inside a Japanese city hall before a short, eye-opening stint at a "black kigyo" (exploitative company) sent him looking for something better. Now working with the team on consultations and leading the new Mocha Moko Ambassador affiliate program, Sam shares what daily life in a small Chiba town is really like, how he built deep community ties through a 300-year-old local festival, and practical advice for anyone navigating Japanese bureaucracy or job hunting from scratch. Key Takeaways The JET Program has three distinct tracks (ALT, SEA, CIR) with very different Japanese-language requirements and levels of support "Black kigyo" red flags include vague job descriptions, personal bank accounts used for company funds, and "we're a family" language during interviews Making an effort to integrate is reciprocated in rural Japan — the "unwelcoming countryside" stereotype didn't match Sam's real experience City hall work in Japan deliberately rotates employees between departments every few years to keep them generalists rather than specialists Joining a local matsuri (festival) turned out to be one of the most effective ways to build genuine community connections and even led to freelance work In This Episode Sam's path to Japan: growing up half Japanese in New Zealand, learning the language later in life, and choosing the CIR (Coordinator for International Relations) track of JET What it's actually like working inside a small-town city hall, including the daily "chorei" morning meeting and generational mix of coworkers The population decline reshaping small Japanese towns, and how municipalities merge to preserve city status The full story of the "black kigyo" company…