They went from 0 to 5000 subscribers in just the space of a year and a half - Nick and Ryo (from NikoRyo Channel) are a jet-setting British-Japanese couple currently living in London. Ryo comes from Tochigi Prefecture but has lived in over five different countries (including Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and now the UK) while Nick, originally from Manchester, has lived all over Japan, including Tokyo, Kobe, and Toyama Prefecture, for a total of 5 years. They originally met in the most unexpected of places but, joining Ryo in the UK, Nick moved to London in 2018 where the two of them later got married in the summer of 2019. They now run their own Youtube channel introducing everything about their lives as a British-Japanese couple living in London!
Thanks for talking to us, guys! Merry Christmas! Things will likely be a little different this year but how are you spending the holidays? Any Japanese seasonal celebrations?
We were originally hoping to head to Ryo’s hometown for Christmas and New Year, but it seems things in 2020 have gone a bit pear-shaped for everyone…! However, we have decided to make the most of Christmas this year by staying in London and enjoying more of a peaceful festive period this time! We always try to inject a bit of Japanese seasonal sparkle into our end-of-year celebrations; for example, getting together with our friends to watch the Kohaku Singing Contest, followed by Ryo’s Toshikoshi Soba has become a bit of a tradition in our household in recent years! However this year, given that we will have a little more time on our hands, Nick has decided that he will attempt to make a Japanese Shortcake with decorative strawberry santas on top - Hopefully it won’t end up as an #instafail ….
This one’s maybe more for Nick but what first got you enthusiastic about Japan?
I have always had an avid interest in language and linguistics and I started studying French and Spanish during my first year of High School. After my second year, I was given the opportunity to study German or Japanese as an additional language and I thought I wanted to try something a little different, so I went and chose Japanese. During lesson time, my sensei would teach the class a new line of hiragana each week, alongside some basic phrases and the occasional cultural experience workshop; it was from there which sparked my desire to learn more about the Japanese language and culture, dreaming that someday I could eventually experience Japan for the first time by myself!
And how many times have you been to Japan and where to?
I think I have lost count how many times I have been to Japan now…! I will count the stamps in my passport to give a definite answer! I was 18 when I first headed to Tokyo for three months; by day I headed to a language school to study Japanese and then spent the evenings, struggling to apply what I had learnt at school by speaking with my homestay family. It was such an eye-opening experience that made me realise just how much there was to do and discover in Japan. Since then I have lived in Kobe for a year, Toyama Prefecture for three years, and then Tokyo for a year after that. I have been fortunate enough to do quite a bit of travelling during my time there, but there are still so many places I have yet to explore - I think Kagoshima is my next go destination!
How did you two end up meeting and marrying?
Funnily enough, we met in Haneda Airport - Ryo was living in New Zealand at the time and had just touched down in Japan for New Year. Meanwhile, Nick was just reaching Haneda Airport, getting ready to board a flight home for Christmas! We started in conversation and exchanged Facebook friend requests, but given the massive distance between us, never really imagined becoming more than casual acquaintances - Skip to four years later and now we are married and living together here in London! It is crazy (and a little bit scary!) to think just how lucky we were to meet each other when we did, as who knows what could have happened had we decided to take a different flight on a different day!
How did your Youtube channel come about?
Our Youtube channel initially came about by wanting to share a glimpse of life in the UK and British culture to a Japanese audience in Japanese! However, as we went along doing different videos together, we saw that there were very few same-sex international couple channels in Japanese, and given the huge focus on LGBTQ in recent years, we thought it would be a good opportunity to create content which makes learning about sexual minorities in fun and accesible format. Now we like to share a variety of content relating to the UK and British culture, LGBTQ topics, and everything about our life as a married couple. We also hope to use our channel to share memories from our trips to Japan and other countries too - once we are allowed to fly again..!
If you could pick from any part of Japan or Japanese culture, what is the one thing you would import into the UK?
There are two main things which we really miss from Japan that we wish we could import into the UK and that is Japanese convenience stores and kotatsu. Every time we head back to Japan, our first point of call is the convenience store located in Haneda Airport to buy ongiri rice balls and a bottle of green tea (sometimes some fried chicken too, if we are feeling naughty!). Also every wintertime, Ryo and I always sit around our coffee table and wish that it were a kotatsu - What a blessing a kotatsu would have been during this winter now that we are both working from home…!
Where do you most recommend visiting and where are you hoping to visit next?
We would really recommend visiting the Hokuriku area, especially in winter time! Though it might be a little bit chilly, the winter sceneries which you can enjoy in Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, and Fukui are truly spectacular. Furthermore, wintertime is the most delicious time for seafood with red snow crab, yellowtail, and oyster on the menu! The next place on our list is definitely Hokkaido; as we are both yet to visit there! We have heard so much about the famous powder snow and the Sapporo Snow Festival has been on our to-do list for quite some time - Ryo is a massive foodie, so is desperate to try the regional delicacies which the region has to offer. Whereas Nick is quite the beer-lover, so is quite keen to visit the beer museum in Sapporo too!
What are your favourite memories from your time in Japan?
We have shared so many amazing times in Japan together, but we would have to say that our favourite memory in Japan is probably our trip to Kanazawa. This was the first time that we had taken a trip together - which is quite a momentous occasion in any relationship! It was also Ryo’s first time to Ishikawa Prefecture, so Nick had the responsibility to show him around. The tour started at Kanazawa Castle followed by the Kenroku-en garden; Though Nick had already been many times before, he is always impressed by how the garden’s facade blossoms and blooms with the changing seasons, discovering a multifaceted beauty of the seasonal landscapes. We later headed to Higashi Chaya-Machi to admire the traditional cityscape; a place which has a similarity to Gion-District in Kyoto, just minus the crowds! Visiting in the height of summer, we decided to take rest from the heat by enjoying a regional specialty of Kanzawa; Gold leaf soft serve - A must try for anyone wishing to add a bit of luxury to their trip!
This month we’re looking at the word ‘furusato’, and how it can literally mean ‘hometown’ but also ‘spiritual home’. Where is your spiritual home in Japan?
We have both been extremely lucky to be blessed with families who have accepted us and our respective families as we are. Ryo has brought Nick back to meet his family many times and has always been welcomed with open arms. It is this sense that Tochigi Prefecture is our spiritual home in Japan, as we always have a family to welcome us back with a friendly ‘okaerinasai’ which truly makes us feel a sense of belonging.
Thanks for talking to us, guys! We hope it won't be too much longer until you can make it back to beautiful Tochigi and the beaches of Kagoshima.
If you want to find out more about Nick and Ryo's adventures in the UK, Japan and all over, make sure to check out their Youtube channel, and their Instagram page.
