Comments by "Yo2" (@yo2trader539) on "Asking Japanese What Their Favorite Country Is" video.

It's not unique to Japanese tourists, but tourists only visit touristy areas. It's usually posh urban areas which is relatively safe. They often have specific goals like watching Ohtani or visiting Disney.
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Don't worry. Anybody who has received proper education in Japan respects Germany. Early Japanese doctors trained in European medicine were educated by a German doctor in Nagasaki (i.e. Siebold). It's why Japan sent many doctors, chemists, and engineers to study in Germany in late 19th century. The famous MORI Ougai was one of them. (He was a famous writer, but also was the highest ranking medical officer during his days.) Japanese Army's military organization also adopted Prussian-style system. And German cars are the only foreign car brands that sell in Japan. People vote with their money.
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I think it's a selection bias. There are no direct flights between Portugal and Japan. Which means there hasn't been much demand for travel for decades. But within Europe, generally speaking, cuisine from Portugal, Spain, and Italy tend to match Japanese preferences.
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@stanleyho9625 Taiwan is one of the most frequently visited countries by Japanese citizens. It's usually in the top 5 destinations. It's only a few hours away by plane.
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Eastern Roman Empire had diplomats in China, so it's not like Portugal was the first European country to visit Asia. And much of information on Japan came from Marco Polo during his visits to China in Mongol Yuan dynasty, or around 13th or 14th century. Actually, Japan is a corruption of the Chinese pronunciation of 日本 during 13th century, which sounded like Ziben/Zipan. It later entered Italy and Europe as Zipannge/Japangue.
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@kimckawa I highly doubt those things have any impact on how Japanese people answer their favorite foreign country. Views are based on preferences in culture, cuisine, architecture, music, people, nature, etc. And some of the countries mentioned were enemies or allies in WWI and WWII. Germany was an enemy in WWI and ally in WWII. France and UK were allies of Japan in WWI and enemies in WWII. (It's actually why Japanese military is invited to French military parades.) Japan signed alliances with the UK, Germany, and US in 20th century alone to keep Russians/Soviets from advancing further into East Asia, specifically Inner Manchuria, Korean peninsula, and Japan. Perhaps in Asia there is still resentment against European colonial history, but in Japan it has almost no relevance.
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