Hokkaido, the frontier island to the north, is strikingly similar to the U.S. Pacific Northwest in geography and climate, with cool summers, snowy winters, open spaces, and largely unspoiled nature.
...People in Hokkaido often say that the island's open space creates communities less bound to tradition, with more open attitudes. Based on my experience growing up in eastern Hokkaido, I would say this is true. You're allowed to be an individual and move off the beaten track. If you have an idea for a business related to food, agriculture, nature, or outdoor sports, Hokkaido might have room for you. If you enjoy cosmopolitan city life, Sapporo (the island's main city) has 1.5 million people and scores of foreign entrepreneurs, teachers, and house-builders. By airplane, you can be in Tokyo in an hour; by train, it's a scenic 10- or 12- hour journey to the capital; and by ferry, a leisurely 20 hours on the waves. That is, if you need to go south at all, once you've made your home in Hokkaido.
(excerpt from p. 202)