[steven]

Although I don't have any personal experience with it, I'd like to point out one thing. Many people who study abroad come back without really improving their Japanese. A reason for this is because they hang out with a limited amount of Japanese, who can usually speak English fluently, and mostly hang out with native English speakers. That's not to say it won't be a life experience... but it will certainly color your perspective on "Japan". If you go to a university in Japan, chances are you will go to a big city. There's more to Japan than just big cities, and denying yourself experiences of the more country areas would be a shame as they have a lot of things to offer.

CoreyLynn, I actually thought my college was decent for Japanese... but unfortunately some of the teachers that taught while I was there are now gone. I will say that going to a college in southern California would be a good idea. That's simply because there are a lot of exchange students from Japan there. There are really big networks and activities that they put together that you can be a part of. It's immersion without having to go to another country.

To be straight up honest, I don't see the point of majoring in Japanese. If you couple it with something like business, then maybe. Let's face it thoguh... the economy isn't doing too hot. Who knows though? Maybe in 5 or so years from now it will go back to normal. Even if you DO major in Japanese, chances are you won't be close to fluent by the time you're done. Most people I knew could barely hold a conversation (unless they were Japanese themselves). Studying a language isn't about going through a textbook and checking off "grammar points". It's all about real life experience.

Willgoestocollege gave you a book title... that's the type of thing that will help you the most. You need to read up on books about the cultural differences. Some of the books have things that are far fetched or out dated, but for the most part it will give you a good idea of what to expect (as some people in Japan DO do far fetched and out dated things). I can say that the book "Communicative Styles of Japanese and Americans" is a good book. Another one is something like "How to Walk and Talk like a Japanese". One more is called "How to do Business with Japanese Men: A Guide for Women". I remember thinking my teacher was crazy for telling me to read that (not being a woman, for starters... and not being interested in doing business... especially with Japanese men). However, the book turned out to be way more than the title suggested. It's all anecdotal, but it provides many real life experiences (from real people) about things that happened to them while in Japan and how they dealt with them. Go to Amazon and get some of these kinds of books. You can often find these books for less than 25 cents used.

I think you should listen to RickOShay though... if you're not having a good time where you are now chances are you're not gonna have a good time after you've displaced yourself half way around the world in a country that may be hard to relate to. So even if you travel to Japan, chances are you will have a super great time... but living here is a different story. Reality will settle in, and reality is basically whatever you make of it.