Houses

Houses like this one are the norm in the suburbs of Japan (or at least the ones in my area). As you can see there is no front yard to speak of and, as you can't see, no back yard either. It is basically a box with windows.

Houses in Japan also tend to have very basic exteriors. There is no fancy aluminum siding or anything like that, and you pretty much have a front door that opens directly into the street.

Think of the suburbs of Japan as being like the suburbs of New York City. When you go into Queens, you don't see sprawling front lawns and hugh backyards because real estate is at a premium. Well, guess what? Being an island, all real estate is at a premium in Japan. Sure if you go out into the country, like Hokkaido, you may see American-style houses on acres of land, but not where I'm at.

I asked my wife why houses around here are so bland and boxy. She told me that is because of the typhoons and earthquakes that occur in Japan very frequently. Boxes are stronger in earthquakes and if you don't have a lot of fancy doo-dads hanging off your houses, they are also safer in typhoons. It makes sense.

It also explains why everything is so low inside the house, too. In case of earthquakes, you don't have to worry about those tall bookcases or wall unit falling over and crushing you! But if you gotta have them, it is advised that you bolt them to the wall or at the very least, brace it against the ceiling.

This explains why my wife thought my sister's family lived in a mansion.