6 ways to make vegan friends in Tokyo
Are you looking for friends to go to vegan restaurants in Tokyo? If you're dreaming of having a sustainable lifestyle with someone similar to you, try these out!
1. Make your meetup group
If you only go back and forth to work, maybe it's time to break your routine and start your own meetup group. Believe it or not, this is the easiest way to meet people near you.
I have met many vegans and vegetarians this way. I would say this is one of the most efficient ways to meet people at your preferred place and time.
Pros
You can organize events up with your schedule
You can choose your favorite places
You can meet lots of new people outside of work
Lots of meetup users speak English
Cons
Organizing events takes time and can include a fee
2. Go for volunteering
Some NGOs and NPOs often recruit volunteers. Most especially, I think joining the vegan gourmet festival as a volunteer is a nice idea because helpers and visitors are likely to have an interest in vegan food!
Pros
There are lots of like-minded people
You can use your time to cheer up vegan/sustainable scenes
You can practice speaking in Japanese
Cons
Some stalls/companies/associations are very, very busy
Some people are not good at directing volunteer staff
3. Become a regular customer at some vegan cafes
If you have any favorite restaurants and cafes, how about becoming a regular customer? To find your favorite places, check Happycow. It's like a plant-based version of Yelp.
Pros
You may able to have places where you can feel welcomed
They may invite you to their events
Cons
Lots of people can be shy so it may take time just to know staff members' names
It is not very cost-effective as you will be purchasing food and drinks often
Not every restaurant is running their business for the same reason as yours
Be brave, don't expect shop staff will start a conversation. You are just a random customer at first. If you were them, would you invite a stranger to your community? Take time, keep having small conversations, then you can build trust with them someday!
4. Rent a shared flat
As an environmentally conscious vegan, living with people who do not care about the environment can be unbelievably stressful. Some flatmates waste a ton of plastics, use shampoos that contain fossil oil, and justify themselves when seeing me eat a bit pricey organic food.
However, I have had some nice flatmates, and living with them was so easy. Sharing meals with them was so much fun!
If you think that living primarily in a shared house room may cause unnecessary stress, you can consider renting your own apartment in addition to a shared house. I used to rent two shared houses in Tokyo and in a rural town. It worked for me!
Pros
You can enjoy sharing meals and having tea time in your flat when other dwellers have time!
You don't need to spend money on travel to meet friends.
Teaching each other's favorite recipes is so much fun!
Cons
There are only a couple of vegan-friendly flats in Japan.
Not every landlord is a professional community leader.
Serious flats are sometimes too natural. Personally, I can't suffer living in a house with lots of holes and bugs.
Areas that I recommend
下北沢(Shimokitazawa)
Free-spirit hippies and musicians love this area. There are lots of good vegan restaurants and fancy cafes in this town. The transportation is convenient but this area is very crowded on the weekends.高円寺(Koenji)
Koenji is similar to Shimokitazawa but you will see lots of drunk people from early morning to midnight. Oh wait, Koenji is not a dangerous area. The reason why there are lots of drunk people is because this area is so peaceful. You'll never get bored!吉祥寺(Kichijoji)
Kichijoji has a big park and the town is mostly made of calm residential areas. There are some high-level universities in this town so you can expect to have foreign students and international professors/researchers as your future flatmates.つくば(Tsukuba)
There are lots of science researchers living in and around Tsukuba. I have met lots of scientists who are interested in sustainability so you may be able to encounter people who have the same value as you. The Tsukuba Express can be expensive, so it is better to work in Tokyo and live in Tsukuba if you want to work for commercial companies. Then, you can use a commuter pass to save money.湘南(Shonan)
Lots of surfers are living in Shonan and they often admire Hawaiian and Californian cultures. There are lots of vegan cafes in this area and it's really easy to find organic veggies there. Rent can be a bit expensive as this area is very popular with retired people and fancy business owners.
5. Make 1 friend who has lots of friends
Let me talk about my experience here. I had a language exchange partner a decade ago. He had a lot of friends who also had many friends. Thanks to him, I could meet heaps of new people through his small parties. Gradually, I also became a person who has lots of friends.
To make a good friend circle, relying on people is really a good idea. Having said that, you need to carefully choose the right person when expanding your friend circle because some of them want to use you.
There are some ways that people find new good friends:
Joining a bunch of meetup events
Check events on Eventbrite
Talk to other vegans on Happycow
Send a DM to local Instagrammers/YouTubers/Bloggers
Rent a sharehouse as a subroom
6. Join our fun events!
If you don't have much time to start something on your own, how about joining our meetup group and enjoying chatting with other members? By joining us, you'll gain access to a vibrant network of like-minded people who are as passionate about sustainability and veganism as you are.
Make a first step today, change the current situation, and obtain fun green living in Tokyo together!!
-Misa
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