Wacky Weekend Kyushu | Patreon Exclusive Trailer

Hey guys,
I've returned from my many travels to the UK and Canada. I'm once again Abroad in Japan and I'm ready to get back to work.

That's not to say the last few weeks haven't been busy - the team and I have been working on the first video of 2025, an epic, revenge-filled episode filled with cats, noodles, trains, helicopters and volcanoes. (Revenge for Connor's attempts to burst my eardrum on last year's final outing to Okinawa to do water sports on his channel).

It might be one of my favourite Wacky Weekends yet, for the sheer variety of locations we packed in, with the usual bickering you'd expect from a weekend with Connor. Albeit this time, with more genuine drama than usual.

We've got a rather big Patreon bonus episode for this one, but in the meantime, I want to share with you guys the Patreon exclusive trailer. It'll do it justice better than words ever could.

Wacky Weekend Kyushu | Patreon Sneak Peek Trailer 
🍿 Watch: https://youtu.be/6q6sMv5JUpk

I've also been working on a new book! I figured it made sense to get as much written over the quiet month of January as possible, before we begin filming again this week.

I'm immensely proud of the Abroad in Japan book and how well it seems to have done; it's been an incredible experience re-living the magic of those first three years. It's bloody awesome knowing thousands of folks around the world now know where Yamagata is! While I was meandering around the UK, it was utterly surreal spotting it in shop fronts and on bookshelves along the way.

If the first book was about the internal journey of self-discovery that came with moving to a faraway land, the next book is much more of a literal journey, covering off the beaten path locations for travellers to Japan.

With the rise in tourism to Japan (a record 36m last year), there's never been a greater need to get folks out to more rural, unconventional sights, so the whole country can benefit from overseas tourism. And of course, so tourists can have their own unique travels here, as opposed to the usual Golden Route of Tokyo & Kyoto. I hope the new book hits that problem head on and brings together 12 years of amazing experiences into an exciting read. More on that later in the year though!

Every year I set myself new targets and goals and for 2025, the aim is simple.
- To make videos that people remember.
In this day and age, videos, shorts and reels spew out day and night onto our screens. We click, we watch, we forget and move on.

I want to do everything I can to produce original, entertaining, insightful videos that people remember and that stand the test of time.

This may sound like pretty obvious stuff, but I feel over the years I've become more of an outright Japan travel content creator, rather than being my own person. When I set out to do this, I want to be nothing more than a sarcastic commentator living in Japan - then Abroad in Japan slowly morphed into an amazing travel resource, diluting some of that personality along the way. I want to get back to being the repulsive character I created when I started doing this in 2012.

Following on from the success of last year's earthquake episode, I'd also like to produce more documentary content in between as well.

We've got a clear slate for the year ahead and a lot of exciting ideas to see through, including a first shoot next week with Natsuki! It's time we finally put our beloved, under-utilised Kei car from Journey Across Japan to the test after a year of neglect. We're going to be putting it through its paces for sure!

For now though, what would you like to see on Abroad in Japan in 2025?
Let your voice be heard, as many of the best ideas we've had over the years have come from the Abroad in Japan Patreon community!

In the meantime guys, have a great weekend and enjoy the trailer for the upcoming Wacky Weekend episode, dropping next week!

Chris