Viviendo Yu-Gi-Oh! en Japón rural: Mi camino de la ciudad al campo en Iwate

Viviendo Yu-Gi-Oh! en Japón rural: Mi camino de la ciudad al campo en Iwate

Hi, welcome to another episode! My name is Luan and I live in Ichinohe, a town in the north of Japan, in Iwate Prefecture. In this episode, I want to talk about the world of anime and manga, specifically about Yu-Gi-Oh. Here where I live, there are still a few shops—some of them are even leftovers from when they used to sell more. Many people think that in a rural area, it’s harder to continue with hobbies, but that’s exactly the invitation: to see the Japanese countryside in a different light, to realize that everything is more connected than one might think, and that you can enjoy any hobby anywhere in Japan. I know this is kind of specific—some people might not be interested at all, but this is a section I wanted to make, and a part of my life I’d like to share. For those who don’t know, I’m a bit of an “otaku”—I like Yu-Gi-Oh! And two years ago, I moved to this prefecture, to a city called Morioka. In that city, for better or worse, there are several little shops where you can play competitively, and there is clearly a community of people who are constantly playing, and always updating the meta, right? In Iwate specifically, there’s a group of people—shoutout to Takukun! 🙂 They’re the ones who are always organizing events where 70–80 people can gather for big, fun tournaments. And I actually won one of those events. Here’s proof, haha! First place!! So yeah, I’m a foreigner and my Japanese isn’t perfect. And at first, while it was hard to learn the language, to read it and speak it, it really helped me a lot. It was a good experience. I feel like if you come here with a hobby, it can take you really far. I even managed to play in the World Championship Qualifier from here, which was held in Tokyo last year. I didn’t make it to Day 2, but it was a really fun challenge. To qualify for Tokyo, I had to win a few events here. Honestly, most people go to the bigger shops. People travel a lot, so it’s not that hard or complicated. Everything is really well connected. Public transport is amazing. It always works perfectly. You can even take your bike on the train, so it’s all super connected. And well, there’s also something called the Internet, right? Thanks to the Internet, you can get the cards you want, whenever you want them. Cards are much more accessible now. This deck right here is obviously a GOAT format deck. Here, they call it 2004. Some of the cards are different from the GOAT we play in the West, so it’s a little different—but learning the Japanese 2004 format was super cool. Which brings me to an important point—if you’re an anime or manga fan, if you love otaku culture, it’s great to visit other cities too! Everything is truly connected. Anime and manga culture is inspired by these places, inspired by the culture behind them. For example, this new artwork that came out in Punk. It’s about learning how art is based on what people experience, what the artists go through when they create the cards—everything is based here. So yes, go to Akihabara, please! It’s awesome! But also visit rural areas— it’s amazing to reflect on how people here get inspired every day by nature, spirituality, culture, and daily life in Japan. And also, if you speak Japanese, you can get cards, collect them—they’re cheaper! And if you want to live here, you can keep working and enjoy your hobbies without any issues. So that’s it for today! Thank you for watching this video. Please like, comment, and let me know if you want me to keep talking about Yugi, or about the current meta—I’ll keep at it. So yeah, see you next time!

Hola, soy Luan y vivo en un pueblo japonés!
En este video te comparto una parte muy especial de mi vida en Japón: mi historia con el Yu-Gi-Oh! desde que me mudé a Morioka, en la prefectura de Iwate.

Te cuento cómo empecé a jugar en torneos, cómo me fue ganando mi lugar en la comunidad de duelistas y cómo incluso desde lo más rural de Ichinohe, sigo conectado con este mundo del anime, el manga y los juegos de cartas.

¿Sabías que explorar la ruralidad japonesa también puede darte una mirada mucho más auténtica sobre cómo el anime y el manga están presentes en la vida diaria?
Acompáñame en este recorrido personal, nostálgico y lleno de cartas, estrategia y conexión cultural.

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/luaninjapan/
🌳 Blog en inglés, español y japonés: https://www.luaninjapan.com/
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