Japan : Reviews (Okayama)

Having a decent level of Japanese would be recommended. If you want to go out and interact with the local community, then YES, knowing some Japanese is pretty important. Also trying to navigate the train system and even shopping for groceries might be a tad bit stressful if you don't have some kanji up your sleeve. These were some of the difficulties I had during the first two months in Okayama. Thanks to these challenges it stressed the importance of reaching out to the local community and not remaining comfortable just socializing with other exchange students, and in the process I improved my Japanese language abilities and was able to see a whole lot more of Okayama City and other parts of Japan.