Benefits of Moving from Saitama to Fukuoka for My Husband’s Work During Pandemic

When my husband and I got married we had planned to move to France to be closer to our family. However, the pandemic happened and there were certain factors that we needed to consider. After discussing the pros and cons, we then decided to move from Saitama to Fukuoka.

The famous Banana Men of Mojiko, Kita-Kyushu

Why Relocate?

The company that my husband is working for had an available position in Fukuoka and he wanted to work in a new environment. Moreover, we both had been to Fukuoka and thought that it was interesting.

Benefits of Moving to Fukuoka

Even though living in Saitama was very convenient we just felt it was time to move on and start our new journey together. Here are some of the benefits of living in Fukuoka.

1. Warmer Weather

I’m Filipina, so I’m more used to a tropical climate. I’m not fond of winter, especially when it’s snowing. During this period, I feel like everything is more expensive and slower. The only thing I look forward during winter is being able to snowboard, which is one of the few sports I like.

In addition, there are many beaches around Fukuoka to go to in summer. It’s something that I really miss because I grew up near the sea.

2. More affordable cost of living

Since my husband and I are planning for our future family and we want to prepare ourselves to unexpected events (like this pandemic), we want to save as much as we can. Thus, moving to a cheaper city is a huge opportunity for us to be able to reach this goal.

Moreover, we are eating healthier because the prices of the food here are more affordable. We are also eating more fruits now compared to when we lived in Saitama -- it’s so pricey!

3. More peaceful

Even though Japan is a safe country, of course, there is still crime and most of it happens in Tokyo or near it -- Saitama, as one example.  I never experienced any kind of crime while I was living in Saitama, but I heard some stories from acquaintances and read about incidents in the news.

In Fukuoka, so far, I rarely read about, or have never heard of or seen any crime. In addition, the people here are nicer.

4. Easy access to Kyushu, Chugoku, and Shikoku

My husband and I love traveling.

Before moving to Fukuoka, I had been to 30 prefectures already and now it’s 37! It’s my dream to explore all the 47 prefectures of Japan and moving to Fukuoka has made it easier to access the remaining areas I’ve never explored in Kyushu, Chugoku, and Shikoku.

Torii at the sea of Uto, Kumamoto

5. Avoid using public transportation

My husband used to ride the train to his work when we lived in Saitama. Our apartment didn’t have a parking space and, like I said, before we had planned to move to France so we never bought a car.

But now our new apartment has a parking space and my husband doesn’t want to commute anymore so because of this, he avoids the rush hour and not being able to do social distancing. He doesn’t need to worry that much in this regard about catching the “virus” during his journey to work.

6. More spacious

Because there aren’t many people, comparatively, that live in Kyushu, based on my observation, the public places here are not as crowded compared to Kanto. This makes social distancing easier.

No crowds during our hanami (sakura watching) in Fukuoka

7. More free time

Since we have a car now, my husband doesn’t need to hurry to catch his train nor wait for it. He can just go whenever he wants. He has more time to relax and sleep now. Before moving he headed to work at 7 am and arrived home around 8 pm. Now, he goes around 8 am and comes home around 7:30 pm.

And there you go, those are some of the benefits that we got from relocating to Fukuoka. How about you? Have you moved recently or you are planning to? Share it on the comments below.

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