By Wonsuh Song
A viral prophecy circulating on social media claimed that a cataclysmic quake would wipe Japan off the map in early July. The rumour stemmed from the manga The Future I Saw, whose author described a dream of disaster striking on 5 July 2025. Hong Kong and Taiwanese tour groups scrapped bookings, and my messenger filled with anxious messages: “Is it safe to visit Japan now?” Prophecies are not science, and those of us who live here shoulder the same risks.
What actually happened? Between 3 and 6 July, a series of mid‑‑M5 tremors rattled the remote Tokara Islands, over 1,000 km from Tokyo. No tsunami warning was issued; damage was negligible.
Panic has done little to dent demand. Japan welcomed a record 36.9 million international visitors in 2024, with South Koreans leading at 8.8 million, followed by China, Taiwan, and the United States.
A weak yen makes the country feel like a bargain. Restaurants and hotels, cheered by lines of foreign patrons, keep raising prices. Kyoto’s Sannenzaka was recently described as “hellishly crowded,” a textbook case of overtourism straining local life.
Last weekend in Ginza’s venerable stationery store Itoya, I watched two American men snap up two ¥2,200 pencil cases. The tactile paper, ingenious pockets and unapologetically analog charm are qualities hard to replicate elsewhere—and they explain Japan’s enduring magnetism.
That South Koreans top the arrival charts undermines the tired narrative that the two neighbours “hate” each other. Our societies are already intertwined in daily, tangible ways.
The episode reminds us that rumours fade, but the appetite for authentic experience endures. May this shared curiosity—and a commitment to facts over fear—propel Korea‑Japan relations toward a brighter, mutually beneficial future.
Wonsuh Song (Ph.D.)
Full‑time Lecturer, Shumei University / NKNGO Forum Representative
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