[Yugawara]

Pay Japan a quick visit. If you like it you can extend it or come back again some other time, if you don't.. well at least you've gotten wiser.
I've been living here for about two years now, in the countryside far away Tokyo and all it's noise. Don't get me wrong, I love Tokyo I just would't like to live there. I do travel about three hours on local trains every day to get to school and work so I'm quite aware of how it feels as an Outside (or Gaijin if you prefer). It's really a love/hate relationship I've never seen anything alike anywere else I've been in the world, not so much racism but more a tremendous curiosity against non-asians. I've got white skin, blue eyes ect., so it isn't really easy for me to blend in a crowd either, but that's okay I've gotten to like the attention it gets me, at least some days anyway.
Well back to your question. If you have any doubt wether to go or not, get a tourist visa and check it out. As far as I know, for most peope it's a small formality that can be done onboard the plane, requireing basically only your passport information and length of your intended stay. I don't think you can find an other asian country which is as easy to navigate around in, even as a tourist without any language skills. If you respect the people here they'll respect you too, at least on the surface level.