Should I work while living in Japan?

My husband and I are living in the U.S...My husband has an opportunity to take an international assignment in Japan for a year. We've decided to jump at the opportunity and we will be leaving as soon as 3 months from now.

I have just started my career less than a year ago, and I have the chance to keep my job and telecommute from Japan. I am torn about keeping my job or not working while in Japan and pursuing my artistic interests (writing, painting, photography, etc) as well as getting to really experience the culture--maybe even teaching English part time. Will working full time from home in Japan take away from that experience? I realize it is up to me how much I want to ''get'' from the experience of living in Japan--I just don't know whether the stress of being in another country and working full time will be more than I'd like to handle. If you had the choice, what would you do?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Laurie, welcome to Japan. I am sure this would be quite an experience.
I guess I don't understand much of your concern about "the stress of being in another country and working full time" being more than you can handle. Isn't that exactly what your husband is doing? And there are many, many people who come and work here without having another family member for support. So the question here is where you put more priorities in. If you are very much interested in Japanese culture and history you could take some time off to explore the country, but if you are only interested in it as much as the next person, then it seems a shame to put a stop in you career (if you care that much about it). You could always explore the country during the week-ends or holidays. Then there is also the factor of pursuing your artistic interests. Don't know how long you are going to be in Japan but taking only some of that time off could be an option as well? For example, take the last year off?
Good luck making a decision.

Thanks for your reply Shimaki.

I have decided to work full time in Japan with my current job. If that arrangement doesn't work out, I can decide to quit, ask for shorter hours if possible or even the possibility of taking a year leave from my job.

We'll see how things go :)