That gave me food for thought
Every 10 years or so, I get into a very dark « What Am I even doing here?! » tunnel of misery, not that living in Japan is much of an issue, rather working here is...
I may enjoy Japan more from abroad in fact
When I first moved to Osaka as a 22yo eikaiwa grunt, I think the honeymoon period lasted about two weeks until I came to the realization: "What the fuck is wrong with these people???" Still, everything was new and exciting and I was learning a lot so the first year was still relatively enjoyable. Plus, being ethnically Japanese with relatives in Japan I was obviously going to be a little more forgiving toward the country and its quirks. By the third year, I was just about done with Japan and was planning to go home and get a military commission and get sent elsewhere in the world to raise hell, but then I was offered a pretty decent gig that I couldn't turn down and that led me to spending another three years in-country. By the time my sixth year in Japan was wrapping up, I was so disgusted and traumatized that when I finally resigned my post and went back stateside, I didn't think I'd ever go back to Japan again. For a couple of years I wanted absolutely nothing to do with anything Japanese. No Japanese tv shows, no Japanese food and especially no Japanese tourists. Just to be sure, I moved out to D.C. and became a scumbag political operator.
Finally, after about three years, I transitioned into another job and had a bunch of free time, plus a number of my friends who'd survived the eikaiwa rat-race had moved into universities were still in Japan and wanted to do a reunion, so I bought a ticket and flew back to Osaka/Tokyo. All I can say is it's an entirely different experience and infinitely more enjoyable to come back and be a tourist rather than a resident.
I think it probably has a lot to do with the freedom of being there temporarily. I don't have to be a part of their idiotic, bullshit culture or be a semi-tolerated permanent outsider in their stupid fucking society with its stupid fucking rules and nonsensical, stunted guidelines and expectations. Knowing that in a week I'll be jumping on a plane and going back to the real world, I can enjoy (exploit) the things that are pleasurable about Japan, while scoffing at and ridiculing the other 95% of it that's just plain retarded--blow my load, eat some good food, drink some good drinks, buy some interesting toys and then go home...and when "home" isn't in Japan, it's somewhere I can look forward to being.
These days, I visit Japan a couple of times a year and my other half is Japanese so people often ask if I'm planning to live in Japan again. I have a very clear, concise answer that never changes: FUCK OFF.