I have lived in Japan for nearly 20 years, originally from Australia. Most of that time was in Tokyo in a pretty comfortable job with lots of vacation time to travel extensively in South East Asia, India etc. But that was a unique situation. Without that vacation time to escape Tokyo, I would have gone crazy. But, during covid, I couldn't travel abroad, and I felt so trapped the first few months. So, I jumped on my bicylce and started cycling around parts of Japan outside Tokyo: mountains, coastal areas, remote forests, smaller cities and towns, Hokkaido in the far north, and Yakushima/Okinawa/ etc in the far south. I never expected to see such natural beauty and to meet so many crazy and eclectic fellow travelers like myself. It was an amazing 2.5 years! I realized that there is Tokyo (which I was tired of) and there is all this other part of the country that is pretty amazing. But, again, I'm coming from a fairly luxurious angle of having free time, working online during covid, so I could cycle and earn. Also, I love Japan and Japanese people, but I would never want to live and work like a Japanese person in Japan. As a western foreigner in Japan I get a pretty comfortable ride.