What it’s like being a Luxembourger in Japan

Luxembourg and Japan could not be more different: from their approach to work to their communication styles, the two countries are like day and night. If it’s considered rude to sniff your nose in Grand Duchy, blowing it is considered impolite in Japan, for example.

With the World Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan starting this weekend, the Luxembourg Times talked to Luxembourg nationals who chose to call the East Asian country their home about their experiences.

There are currently 86 Luxembourg citizens – adults and children – registered with the Luxembourg embassy in Japan on a voluntary basis, the embassy confirmed in an email. That compares to around 600 Japanese nationals living in Luxembourg.

These Luxembourgers abroad are scattered across the islands, some staying in large cities like Tokyo and Osaka, while others chose more rural spaces like Saga and Hada to experience Japanese life.

Beautiful nature and big cities

With a population of 671,000, Luxembourg has less than 4.73% of the population of Japan’s capital, Tokyo (17.19 million). “Everything is so different, it’s really impressive,” said Eric Elter, 32, who has lived in Japan for two and a half years and currently resides in Kyoto.

“You can’t compare Japanese cities to anything in Luxembourg, but if you go to the countryside, it kind of feels like a small town in Luxembourg. It’s very quiet with long roads crossing wide fields,” said Corinne Kesseler, who lives in Osaka.

While Luxembourg is known for being generously covered by nature while relatively close to other major European cities, Japan truly has it all when it comes to nature, despite being an island.

Corinne Kesseler hasn’t travelled abroad except to visit family but says Japan caters to all needs of nature lovers © Photo credit: Corinne Kesseler

While Luxembourg is known for being generously covered by nature while relatively close to other major European cities, Japan truly has it all when it comes to nature, despite being an island.

“In Luxembourg, I could just travel to Paris or London for the weekend – which I can’t do in Japan. But I haven’t felt too restless because, if you travel to different Japanese prefectures, you’ll be able to find sand dunes, mountains and the ocean. Every prefecture is so different,” Kesseler, who has lived in Japan for three years, said.

Juan Tyranowski, a Luxembourg student at Saga University in rural Japan, said both countries are quite similar in regard to nature, in that “they both have a strong appreciation for it.”

However, with its vastness, Japan’s nature is home to more dangerous wildlife, said Rachel Martin: “You have to carry around bear spray and a bear bell when you go hiking and be careful if you meet monkeys because they can be quite aggressive.”

Deeply layered cultural nuance and communication

There are many unspoken rules in Japanese culture, the Luxembourgers in Japan agreed. Although these rules are not vital for tourists to understand, anyone living in Japan and wishing to befriend Japanese people should be aware of them.

“More than the language barrier, there’s this Japanese concept of ‘tatemae’ which requires you to be friendly and perfect in public,” Kesseler said.

‘Tatemae’ describes a person’s outward appearance, how they speak and behave in public compared to how they are privately. Someone dropping their façade and including you in their inner social circle can take time. While some interviewees said this was similar to Luxembourg, others said it was easier to have deep conversations quickly in the Grand Duchy.

Another term that came up in conversations with Luxembourg expats was ‘reading the air’ – the equivalent of ‘reading the room’. “In Japan, you need to read the air, read other people’s needs or intentions based off their facial expressions, for instance. If you have no background on the language or culture, it can be tricky,” Martin explained.

Tyranowski initially found the country’s non-verbal communication style “challenging” as “there are many subtleties in social exchanges” and people in Japan choose harmony over conflict, he explained.

Juan Tyranowski (right) regularly visits Japanese schools to interact with local students and teach them about Luxembourg’s culture © Photo credit: Juan Tyranowski

Tyranowski initially found the country’s non-verbal communication style “challenging” as “there are many subtleties in social exchanges” and people in Japan choose harmony over conflict, he explained.

Hierarchy is also important in Japanese culture – reflected both in interactions and the language – but this has its good sides too, Tyranowski said: “Juniors have to help out seniors and professors, but the latter also have to be present and help the people below them,” he said about his university life.

Martin, who has been living in Japan continuously for two years but had done stints in the country before, recommended doing research on the unspoken rules of the country, then taking opportunities to talk to locals when possible. The latter are friendly, but “the key is to start with a little Japanese phrase and avoid being too direct.”

Language barrier

Speaking multiple languages is almost expected or normal when living in Luxembourg, but in Japan, most people only speak Japanese – especially in rural parts.

“You need to learn the language, otherwise your options [for work] are going to be limited,” said François Blom-Peters, who lives in Hida and has been in Japan almost five years.

Language is “the most challenging part, especially in a rural place like this one,” said Tyranowski. Having picked up some of the language, he says he “can really experience authentic Japan in the countryside.”

Eric Elter fell in love with Japan during a trip, moved there for an MBA and met his partner © Photo credit: Eric Elter

For administrative matters, not speaking Japanese is also a hurdle, as there is little English support for paperwork, said Elter, whose girlfriend is from Japan and usually helps him.

Martin, who had previously earned a bachelor’s degree in Japanese studies and did a year of language learning at a Japanese university, recommended that even tourists should learn a few Japanese sentences, just to break the ice.

However, despite the language barrier, many in Japan are curious about foreign cultures, Tyranowski said, pointing out that some people never get to travel outside of the islands.  

Where modernity meets tradition

Seeing a high rise building right next to an ancient but well-kept shrine isn’t surprising in Japan. “The modern and traditional are so close to each other here. There is the super high-tech stuff and fax machines, or a massive company next to a shrine. But somehow it all works so well together,” Kesseler said.

“The hyper modernisation doesn’t lead to the disappearance of traditions,” she continued, a trait Tyranowski said it shared with Luxembourg. “Like Japan, Luxembourg is a modern country that values its traditions,” he said.  

Though mainly positive, the downside of this approach to traditions and modernity can lead to outdated systems, the interviewees explained.

The fax machine, long left in the dust in Luxembourg, remains a staple of Japanese offices, and the country’s government only managed to phase out floppy disks from all its systems last year.

The banking experience is also still old-fashioned, said biology researcher Leger who lives in Okinawa. “There are opening hours even when you just want to go to the ATM, and my bank doesn’t offer online banking,” she explained.

Despite its exceptional organisation, lauded by all interviewees, the country’s visa and flat hunting experiences are outdated and arduous too, they said.

François Blom-Peters has been able to work a variety of jobs in Japan, including working in an animal park.  © Photo credit: Mariko Tagashira

Despite its exceptional organisation, lauded by all interviewees, the country’s visa and flat hunting experiences are outdated and arduous too, they said.

Intense work culture

The work culture in Japan is also completely different from Luxembourg, the expats said.

“The work culture really shook me – even if it’s slowly changing now,” said Elter, who is currently setting up his consulting firm for start-ups in Japan. Used to eight-hour workdays in Luxembourg, or the occasional long hours as an entrepreneur, Elter was surprised by the fact that “it’s completely normal for people to work 12-14 hours a day.”

The restaurant and café culture found in Luxembourg – where people enjoy meeting for food and drinks for several hours – isn’t prevalent in Japan. “Okinawa is more relaxed than mainland Japan but Luxembourg is still a bit more informal,” said Leger.

“In Japan, you don’t go to the restaurant to hang out a long time with your friends. You go, you eat and you’re out in 30 minutes. You might then go to another place to hang out longer. That was a bit of a culture shock,” Kesseler explained.

And while Japanese cuisine and food are universally lauded as excellent, for Luxembourg expatriates a good cheese can be lacking from the options available.

Regardless of cultural differences and some hurdles, consensus is that the foreign residents could see themselves living in Japan for a few years at least.

For novices to the country, Tyranowski and Blom-Peters recommended visiting the Japanese countryside while Leger said Okinawa, which feels like a mix between Hawaii and Japan, is worth experiencing because of how different it is from mainland Japan.

“You have so many options and cultural events. You could live here your whole life and not finish exploring one district of Tokyo,” Martin said.