Following are some readers' responses to Paul de Vries' May 26 Zeit Gist article "Expat life in Japan: the good, the bad and the meaningful":
I think you hit the nail on the head with your analysis. As a 45-year-old Caucasian who has visited my wife's family in Japan annually for 18 years (and lived there for eight months in 2005), I've often been puzzled by the complaints so often leveled by gaijin about their treatment in Japan.
My own experience has been remarkably similar to yours, in that I've benefited tremendously from being a perpetual guest in a land of hospitality. It has been wonderful for the most part, exasperating and lonely on occasion, but the tradeoffs have been tilted most definitely toward the positive. No complaints here!