""I can't believe they pay you to do this!" I was making good money. In addition to a salary of a few bucks over minimum wage, we'd average 10 snowmobiles per tour, and $20 tips per snowmobile. That was split between the lead and tail guide, with the tail guide - me - getting 20% or about $120 a day."
"I discovered the US was not as technologically advanced as I thought. In Japan, I had a camera on my phone years before my stateside friends. I could pay for things using my phone a couple of decades before it became commonplace in the US. For example, when I lived there over 20 years ago, before everyone had easy access to GPS, I could strike up a conversation by pulling out a map on a street corner. Within minutes, someone would offer to help."
After college, lived as a ski bum in Vail, Colorado, earning substantial tips and guide pay from snowmobile tours. Moved to Japan in 2001 and taught English, working first in Fukushima and later in Kyoto. Experienced advanced mobile technology and convenient cashless payment years before they became common in the US. Built many friendships, received wedding and house invites, and earned supplemental income teaching a family's children for about $100 per session. Visited a home that doubled as a public izakaya and sampled many dishes. Felt welcomed but learned that cultural rules and norms had to be understood through observation rather than explicit instruction.
Read at Business Insider
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