She Lives in a $46/Day Micro Apartment in Japan

While I was in Tokyo a few months ago, I met a 21-year-old girl named Karin who currently lives inside an internet cafe in Tokyo. Her room is 3 feet (1 meter) wide by 6 feet (2 meters) long, and she doesn't even have enough space to sleep horizontally. Believe it or not, more than 5,400 others in Tokyo are living in internet cafes because it's a much cheaper alternative than paying rent for an apartment in this expensive city.

Karin's situation is a sad one -- she was kicked out of her house a year ago, and physically abused by her father before becoming homeless on the streets. With little money in her bank account, she found a safe place to live at this internet cafe, and now she makes $1,300 a month by working at a hostess bar.

But she's still struggling to get by.

This story highlights the extreme pressure of Japanese society, as well as the social isolation that comes along with it. I'd love to hear your thoughts about Karin's situation, and the overall oddities of Japanese culture in the comments down below.

#japan #tokyo #girl

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👨🏻‍🦰 WHO AM I?
I'm Drew Binsky and I have been to EVERY country in the world (197/197). I make documentaries about interesting people and cultures in faraway places. My ultimate goal is to inspire you to travel because I think it's the best education that you can get. And our planet is beautiful!

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[drewbinsky]

This concept of living in Internet cafes in Japan has intrigued me for the last 10 years - and I’m glad to finally have told this story. What do you think about Japan’s cut-throat society? And extreme social isolation? Do you think it’s a good or bad thing? Would love to hear from you in the comments here so we can discuss some of these issues 🇯🇵🇯🇵🇯🇵

[thetruth]

Tokyo seems like social media in real life: super shiny on the outside but depressing on the inside

[kinarey]

She is a very brave woman to leave the situation of family abuse. I wish her all the best ❤️🙏🏽

[worldsboss]

That poor lady 😔 She has my sympathy. I hope she’s able to pull herself back out of this situation.

[lauriyna]

$46 a day is still $1, 399 per month, that’s devastating 😔

[richkroberts]

That story had to be very difficult for her to share. I hope she finds a way to a better life. Thanks for the insightful story Drew.

[riqui]

It truly makes you thankful for what we have.Thank you for your channel❤

[tlotlosenai]

This young woman is so beautiful. May things get better for her

[bierbjorn]

That sucks!
There are prison cells that are more humane than this "room".
Of cors you get depression.
Thank you Drew for sharing the world with us. You are a good one!

[endingxtheme]

She spends 7000 yen/night at a net cafe ????
My Tokyo apartment is 60, 000 yen/month so she's paying a lot more for worse living conditions.
She could stay at a sharehouse with a real room until she saves up for her own place.

[Whatupdoc]

Drew, I am so happy to see that you and your crew were able to make her feel comfortable, open up and share her life and most of all, her smile.

[tomburns]

I stayed in a capsule hotel in Akasaka for 2500 yen/night. I think I got a discount on top of that because I was staying monthly. But it was really brutal on my wellbeing. The worst part is you have no private space, or even what private space you have you can still hear things. A lot of nightlife workers lived there, and I would often go to McDonald's or similar until they closed to eat and have a desk/chair to sit on and watch videos or do work. Tokyo is a brutal city to be alone, and culturally most Japanese people don't make friends with strangers easily or quickly, so those that I met were either on the fringes or immigrants.

[garychiang]

I thought the video was about someone attempting a challenge, but as soon as I realized this was someone living there out of necessity, this took a really sad turn for me. These locations are really terrible not because they are small, but because they allow the marginalized to be forgotten in a vicious circle of poverty. It is just enough to help you get by but expensive enough to make it difficult to save up enough money to get ahead. This is indicative of a society where people have been forgotten and the availability of a societal safety net is gone. She is essentially a homeless youth fleeing abuse. She is literally one paycheck/downturn from making some very poor choices in a her life. I pray for her safety and that she makes it out of this situation okay.

[maddogkilla]

$46 a day? I highly doubt that. I live 25 minutes from Kabukicho by train and I live in a 57 sqm aparthment with two big bedrooms, livingroom and decent kitchen for 137, 000 Yen a month. If she is paying $46 USD a day, that would mean she is paying about 220, 345 Yen per month for that small internet cafe. She can sleep at a capsule hotel for cheaper. She can sleep in a guest house in Shinjuku for like 80, 000 yen per month and have a lot bigger place, a better life, and a lot more money. How can she even afford that as she said she makes 200, 000 Yen per month working at a hostess club. The math does not add up. They have 11 sqm apartments in Tokyo with no guarantor or landlord fees for 35, 000 yen per month. I just watched a video on it yesterday. So she is wasting her money. I have lived here for 7 years, I know the prices here.

[Morse]

Something aint right, she makes $1, 318.495 a month but the Internet cafe is $1, 380.00 a month then how does she feed, clothe and pay for transportation or personal expenses? I hope they meant that’s what she makes a week because the MATH ain’t

[giannishen]

Looking at Japan now, you may think it is a very strange country!
But with the outbreak of the Ukraine-Russia war, prices in various countries have increased exaggeratedly.
Perhaps Japan's current situation is a reflection of all countries in the world in the future!
Hope someone can help reunite that girl with her mother! Thank you Drew for sharing this cautionary video! May God bless the world! 👍😍🙏

[dwendel]

She seems very intelligent and she will definitely succeed in time sad knowing the living conditions in relation to home but i have hope

[GabrielEvergreen-lxdf]

7, 000*30 days = 210, 000 and she earns 200, 000 per month. I don't get it. Why stick around that cafe? I think she can find a sharehouse at Kita Shinjuku for around 50, 000 yen a month. Not sure if that's still the same price now. But at least she gets better accommodation than that expensive tiny room.

[mikkodagar]

Her life story is really sad
😢 Thanks for sharing this

[ChuDontKnow]

You're one of the only good travel people out there.

We appreciate you man. Be safe!