When I step off of the airplane in Fukuoka, I feel at home.

An unexpected feeling considering it’s a city in Japan I only became aware of because my sister presented a paper at a tech conference here a few years ago. Her enthusiasm for the city shone through the stories of her quick trip. I chalked it up to our familial love of travel.

Enjoying a good adventure, I moved to Fukuoka when the opportunity arose not long after hearing about her trip. I figured I would only be in town for a year or two at most. Instead, I found my home in Fukuoka. I don’t mean just an apartment filled with my things from my life in America. Instead, I found real and solid anchor points that make this city feel like a part of me.

Settling into a new city (and country) is a very personal journey. The city needs to complement your personality and make you feel comfortable. That’s what always surprises me about Fukuoka. There are people here from so many different backgrounds and absolutely all of them are adamant that this city is home. I have spent a lot of time thinking about how one city could exert such a pull on people.