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I don't know how it happened, but it's happened! We broke the $2,000 goal on Patreon in the first 12 days! 


Seriously, a huge spectacular thanks to everyone for their support - this awesome budget will make all the difference going forward. From here on in, we can genuinely exceed the sky of time.

Having smashed the first two goals, the wheels are in motion; the first goal ($500) was to film an Ask Abroad Natsuki Edition, which will be filmed next week and released in late August.

The second target ($1,200) of making a dedicated series of videos on Tokyo is now underway - the first of which will be out next week!

 

AND NOW it's time to choose where you want Natsuki and I to visit and film for our trip! 

Maybe you want us to journey to a city like Tokyo or Osaka, or perhaps you want us to undertake some kind of challenge, or review a specific location - whatever it is, we're willing to set aside 2-3 days to make it happen.  It's over to you guys from here and anyone supporting through Patreon can give their suggestions.

We want you to write your ideas / suggestions in the comments section below  over the next few days and next week when I meet Natsuki, together we'll look through the suggestions and compile our 10 favourite ideas into a poll, for you all to vote for and decide the best location.


There's two key factors we'll be looking for in your suggestions:- Entertainment value: how fun would it be to watch?- Educational value: can we learn something (anything!) along the way?

- Originality: is it something truly bold or fresh that we'd never have thought up?


So it's over to you all from here, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with! Get writing your ideas below!


Many thanks again to every single one of you for giving the Abroad in Japan channel an exciting future. I'm really looking forward to taking you all along on the journey! Chris

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Comments

Anonymous

Are there any beaches in Japan or any good places for swimming? If so, that would be interesting to see. :) Glad to see we're one step closer to Natsuki: The Movie!!!

Anonymous

Maybe you can show some Anime/Manga Studios? Would that be possible for you? :)

Anonymous

Okinawa would be awesome. A chance to see where many Japanese go to vacation and learn about the unique island. and a Japanese brewery tour. From north to south, sampling, and resampling​, the finest craft beers Japan has to offer.

Anonymous

Takeshima Fantasy Museum in Gamagōri-shi would be cool! Or even since your favourite season in Japan is Autumn, visiting Kochia Hill in Hitachinaka later on in the year. 😊

Anonymous

Also congrats on reaching 2k! Maybe it can help cover costs to get a 'still cheap but not that cheap' pair of sunglasses!

Anonymous

Naoshima. Even if you don't make a video, you have to go there. Gunkanjima is pretty crazy too, and it might suit Natsuki's James Bond image. Yakushima is stunning, and great fun if you rent scooters. ...just to name three islands.

Anonymous

Go on a maritime adventure along the coast of Japan, just you and Natsuki, on a boat, fighting for survival!

Anonymous

All I know is that is that Gangsta Natsuki must rise once again. Exploring Roppongi after dark, for example? Like showing what's out there and its appeal, while maybe pointing out certain signs or places that... probably should be avoided. Prospective travellers and the world need Natsuki's guiding wisdom.

Anonymous

Romantic date?

Laura Beaumont

Osaka! You could visit Nara Dreamland! \(^^)/ Imagine all the creepy stuff you and Natsuki could find there.

Anonymous

You should go to the reenactment at Sekigahara, maybe try to get involved (the festival is on the 10th and 11th if October) either that or Tokyo Disney

Anonymous

Create a dance move and dance at iconic locations you and Natsuki visit, plus congrats on reaching 2K I can only imagine what the future of Abroad in Japan holds.

Anonymous

Chris, congrats with reaching 2k goal! I'll make sure to grab some beer and celebrate it:D Very happy for you! How about to visit Tokushima city, soon there will be Awa Odori festival ^_^

Anonymous

Go to a Japanese whisky distillery, they probably have a hamster cafe in a side building or something. Its a huge export for them And growing worldwide....

Leo

Some kind of school-for-a-day in an aspect of traditional Japanese culture? Where you actually learn about and do some token participation in something like, say, sumo, or sake brewing, or calligraphy, or bonsai, or whatever you can think of? It'd be an interesting exploration of the culture, probably hilarious watching you two attempt it, and there might even be some rather interesting distinctions about how such a place would instruct/treat you, a non-Japanese, versus how they would instruct/treat Natsuki.

Barbara Smith

Hmm....I think someone else mentioned going to Tokyo Disney which would be pretty entertaining.

Anonymous

I really like that Okinawa idea, so I support that, but to have an original one written, maybe Tottori? I only recently found out Japan has a "desert" haha...

Anonymous

Two septuagenarian ladies who catch sea snakes with their bare hands:<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5q25Ftf0bTqFwHqBZjLmyWf/the-sea-snake-hunters-of-kudaka" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5q25Ftf0bTqFwHqBZjLmyWf/the-sea-snake-hunters-of-kudaka</a>

Anonymous

Also: <a href="http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20141204-fishing-for-deadly-sea-snakes" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20141204-fishing-for-deadly-sea-snakes</a>

Anonymous

I'd quite like to see some of Hiroshima! I'm sure pretty much anyone who didn't sleep through history in school knows it as the place the Americans dropped the atomic bomb but it's not a bunch of ruins anymore. I'd like to see just how well it managed to recover after being hit by the most powerful weapon in human history and from the images I've seen managed to become a very pretty place in the space of just 70ish years! Educational and potentially entertaining when you discover that secret sushi bar behind the bike store that sells live hamsters in tacos or something.

Anonymous

Go somewhere neither of you have ever been, but would like to. Then do something neither of you have ever done, but would like to. Dive for pearls? Go to kabuki camp? Join the circus?

Anonymous

I'd really like to see a video somewhere from Hokkaidō, but that's not very original. Visiting a 焼酎 distillery would be really interesting, and it's both educational and entertaining. Also, it would make more people aware of the existence and deliciousness of Shōchū :D Oh and please don't go fishing for sea snakes, snakes are amazing animals and shouldn't be killed!

Anonymous

Visit a Japanese magician so we can see what a magic is like

Anonymous

you guys should visit a master sword smith in japan

Anonymous

Congrats on reaching 2,000 goal! Hey maybe you and Natsuki could have a sumo showdown!

Anonymous

I don't really know much about places in Japan, but it would be cool to see you guys do some sort of challenge. Like getting from point A to point B in some sort of Amazing Race-esque style, maybe trying out local dishes or activities along the way, or discover cool off-the-beaten-path places to show us. Also congrats on hitting so many targets and I am so so excited to see what you guys come up with!

Crisu

Congrats, Chris! My suggestion is visiting Shirakawa-go (白川郷) and Gokayama (五箇山) to spend a night or two in the old villages and get intimate with the Japanese countryside. It's a UNESCO world heritage site, and I've wanted to go there myself someday. Maybe you can give it a nice preview for all of us!

Anonymous

Go to a crazy matsuri or hitori zumo.

Anonymous

I would really like to see you two go to Edo Wonderland. Its a cutural theme park where you can dress up as a person from that time period and take part in work shops and explore a town set in Edo Japan. It would be educational and entertaining (and has a history geek I'd love to see this place). :D

Anonymous

Off the top of my head... The gas mask island, the ghost island, a cuddle cafe, sushi training, a Japanese mall to see the difference between it and the malls in the US.

Anonymous

A pilgrimage to Kōyasan would be good. Wearing pilgrim's gear, natch. Stay overnight in a temple. <a href="http://www.gettyimages.nl/detail/foto/pilgrim-at-okunoin-holy-cemetery-atop-sacred-koyasan-stockfotos/522291890" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.gettyimages.nl/detail/foto/pilgrim-at-okunoin-holy-cemetery-atop-sacred-koyasan-stockfotos/522291890</a>

Anonymous

I'd like to see you go to Okinawa and/or Hokkaido. There aren't that many videos from there, so it would be great.

Anonymous

I would love to see a video in Kitakyushu 北九州市!

Anonymous

I would like to see Okinawa or Osaka. :)

Anonymous

Okinawa would be interesting.

Anonymous

I think a trip to Tanegashima, specifically focusing on the Tanegashima Space Center (amongst the island's other sites) , would be cool and cover all 3 aspects you're looking for. Educational? Of course; space is fascinating to everyone across the world. Also not many westerners (including myself) know much about JAXA (well, other than it's NASA but with a J and X instead of an N and S). Original? I can't think of any J-Vloggers that have been to Tanegashima (yet, that is....You must beat Sharla, Rachel&amp;Jun, and others to get there first!). And Entertainment Value? It's space; i.e. Niel deGrasse Tyson-level cool. Also, if you happened to coordinate your trip with a space launch? Well, let's just say you could stuff your mattress with all the Youtube money that will roll in.....maybe? I think it's worth yours' and Natsuki's consideration. Good luck in your decision; Cheers! <a href="http://global.jaxa.jp/about/centers/tnsc/index.html" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://global.jaxa.jp/about/centers/tnsc/index.html</a>

Anonymous

I'm a big history nerd so I'd love to see Okinawa, Osaka, Fukui, or Ishikawa, but for a more modern pick, I'd like to see Sapporo!

Anonymous

Like many others, Okinawa would be amazing to see. Has so much history and is so different to mainland Japan. Quite a few people still don't know much about it and certainly the amount of YouTube videos on it are abysmal. Having its own unique culture would be entertaining and you'd have a mixture of superb beach and scenery, as well as a bustling city like Naha. It's up to you guys, but definitely consider Okinawa!

Mike Rees

Ooh, how about Yoro Park? The Site of Reversible Destiny!

Anonymous

congrats!! the hidden gem of keihoku outside of kyoto! it's absolutely beautiful. we stayed with some young families up there (most of them used to live in tokyo and ditched the big city for the country), who are trying to make it a better known place to visit. the somewhat scary (entertainingly so) bus ride winding through the mountains to the area was an adventure in itself! we also visited an amazing sake distillery, lots of little artist studios (one woman is obsessed with aliens and makes these strange alien ceramic statues and a mean butter cake), a local dude who loves to make pizza in an oven he built himself and somehow gets real cheese out in the middle of nowhere. one of our hosts was a (secret, shh) hemp activist and disappeared to help out on hidden farms. keihoku might be too out of the way. but whatever you do will be awesome!

Anonymous

Honestly I'm happy with anything but would like to see some drunken karaoke if possible.

Anonymous

Go to the nerdiest, weirdest corners of Akihabara and make sarcastic commentary

Anonymous

Go to the weirdest parts of japan in general and film it as if it's an informative documentary about legitimate Japanese culture.

Anonymous

Kanazawa? Can check out the samurai district and the ninja dera which will give an insight to the history of japan whilst allowing you to mess about in a hosue of tricks. I have not seen any videos on youtube around Kanazawa either. Plus you can visit the kenrokuen garden.

Luke Beaman

Akihabara is a good shout. Everyone just shows a couple of arcades, super potato, robot and maid cafes etc. If you can find something else - or just encapsulate all the usuals in your typical style (plus a bit of Natsuki?!)

Anonymous

Enoshima please! By far my favourite place in Japan. Would love you to bits if I could hear what you say about the place.

Anonymous

Hiroshima/Nagasaki?

Anonymous

Fudo-Ji temple (<a href="https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Fud%C5%8D-ji+Temple/@36.1863888,138.7011696,16.75z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x19595d06f957087f!8m2!3d36.186388!4d138.7011695)" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Fud%C5%8D-ji+Temple/@36.1863888,138.7011696,16.75z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x19595d06f957087f!8m2!3d36.186388!4d138.7011695)</a> . Rather out of the way but defiantly worth the visit for the views

DDMD

I would love to see clips of unique and often-comedic Japanese local tours like the Hozugawa River Boat ride in Kyoto. Or perhaps you visiting your worst nightmare in the form of Akihabara! #3cute5u

Anonymous

Chris you should go to the Alcatraz E.R. restaurant in Shibuya. It looks... interesting. ^^

Anonymous

You and Natsuki in Hokkaido, somewhere remote and outdoorsy. Dueling Banjos, that sort of thing. No seriously, I'd love to see more countryside on AIJ, with your reactions.

Anonymous

It's a long way off, but I'd love to see a video on the Sapporo Snow Festival!

Anonymous

I agree with everyone who mentioned Hokkaido/Sapporo. I live here now, and you could go from being in Susukino to out in bear country in just a few hours. A lot to see and do.

Anonymous

On second thought, maybe you should take the new Hokkaido Shinkansen? Stop in Hakodate, then to Sapporo, then up to Wakkanai (the northern most place in Japan). I love northern Hokkaido. If you decide to do a Hokkaido video I can help you out finding good locations!

Anonymous

Go to Shimoda, Kamogawa, or Okinawa and try surfing, snorkeling, or other beachside activities!

Anonymous

I would like to see you doing fresh sushi from the fish

Anonymous

Kanamara Matsuri. I'm willing to wait until next year to see you guys at that. =3