Life in Japan

Introduction

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 00:24:44 GMT

Hi! I'm joining this community because in six months, I'll be living in Japan on a student exchange for ten months. I leave in March, 2009, and I'm hoping to pick up some tips before then.

So I hope it's okay that I'm not there yet.

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:25:47 GMT

Hey everyone, I just moved back from Japan, and something just occurred to me. I signed up for a prepaid phone with Au, it was 4000 yen for the phone and I just bought 100-yen-per-minute minutes. Was I supposed to return the phone? It didn't say it anywhere in the instruction booklet and the woman didn't tell me anything about it at the time of signing up. Has anyone else bought a prepaid phone from Au?

Why oh why, WaiWai?

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 22:35:50 GMT

I just discovered today that some sort of scandal or something happened within the last few days, and the Mainichi is pulling its WaiWai column.

Now, I haven't looked at the Mainichi in months, and to be honest, I'd forgotten what the WaiWai column was about, what kinds of things they published, and so it is hard for me to understand just what all the trouble is all about.

Does anyone know anything? Have links to good articles on the subject?

(xposted just a little)

Tons of different questions

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 01:59:42 GMT

Hi there,

it's been a while since I posted here last, I think.
Before I start my question marathon, I'd like to introduce myself again. I'm currently living and working in Japan (Yamaguchi Prefecture) as English teacher for a private family run eikaiwa. I came here in March. I'm not a native-speaker of English as I'm German.

Anyway .. the following questions concern work, travelling, credit cards, paypal, selling things to overseas etc.
So if you at least could help me with one of my questions, that would be awesome :D

Thanks a lot in advance and here we go:

1) I'll soon have a 1 week vacation (I only get 3 weeks of paid vacation anyway *sigh*) and I decided to go to Kyushu as it's pretty near anyway. I've already booked the hotels and made a basic plan, but I can still change it, so if anybody has some recos for me, let me know. My current plan is 2 nights Nagasaki (atom bomb museum, peace park, Mt. Inasa, Chinatown, Sofukuji Temple, Confucian Temple), 2 nights Kumamoto (Castle, Mt. Aso, Suizenji), 3 nights Kagoshima (Senganen, Sakurajima, Aquarium, maybe sandbathing in Ibusuki). I wanted to go to Miyazaki, too, but that will be too stressful and expensive I guess.
I also wanted to go to Beppu, but it's sooooooooooo hot, so no onsen for me please ;)

2) I'm going to buy the seishun (18) ticket which allows me to travel with normal and rapid JR trains for free for 5 whole days. I REALLY need to know if I can use that ticket for limited express, too. Help?!

3) I think it's time for a Japanese credit card. I've been living here for almost half a year now and I want one. I know about the amazon.jp one, but I have no idea how to apply for it as there is NOTHING about it on their website. Any recs or help would be highly appreciated.

4) By now stuff that I've bought and read (doujinshi, manga, artbooks, photobooks etc.) is piling up and I was thinking about selling them. Of course I can make more money if I don't bring them back to Mandarake etc., but sell them overseas, but I THINK I just don't have the time to do so. Anyway I wanted to ask some questions about it just in case:
I have a paypal account that is connected with my German bank account. I figured that the fees would be pretty high if people from America buy stuff from me. Would it be smarter to get a paypal accoutn with a Japanese account then?!??
Also I have NO idea about the different types of packages, services etc. you can use when sending stuff abroad. Any tips would be nice!
Has anybody ever had problems, because people in the mail office thought you might be doing something illegal after coming to them every day sending TONS of packages? ... *g* ...

5) As I told you before I work for a small family run eikawa right now. I really love my job, I love teaching, I even love teaching young kids which I never thought I would!!! It's great, BUT I don't like my current work conditions very much. Right now I really feel tired and stressed out. I work 5 days a week, but never have 2 consecutive days off, NEVER! Usually we don't have national holidays off and only get 3 weeks of paid vacation .... no sick leave or anything. We have to work 8 hours a day with NO lunch or dinner break. We have to stay at school even if there is NOTHING to do for us. Even if we have finished our work, prepared everything, we are not allowed to leave nor are we allowed to do anything NOT work-related which basically just means we're pretending to be busy somehow. IT SUCKS!!!! Well ... lately I have been so busy that there was no freetime at all anyway.
I'm going to talk to my boss this week that I feel treated unfairly, because the other 2 teachers have way less teaching hours than me! Not fair! :/
I'm really obsessed with studying Japanese and want to become better as soon as possible that's why I want to use every single second to study Japanese, but with this kind of job it's kind of .... impossible.
Now I've heard that there are some schools that even encourage you to study Japanese when you have some freetime at work.
I'm thinking about trying an ALT position next. Most of those offer you way more holidays, better work conditions and some of them even want you to study Japanese, right?
Basically I just wanna hear from all of you that are currently working as teachers, how is it going, how are your working conditions and is my image of being an ALT completely wrong or would that be the better choice for my main goal which is stuying Japanese?!
I don't want to quit my current job now, but complete it according to the contract. I guess it's also better once I apply for a new job, so that I can tell them I've already been working as an English teacher for 1 full year - especially because I'm not a native speaker.

6) One last question: I plan on staying here in Japan for 2-3 more years, but I'm still a little bit afraid when it comes to my work visa. Right now I'm here with a working holiday visa, so I have never gone through the whole work visa process thing. I remember that one school even told me they can't get me a visa because the immigration office told them, I could only get a visa for being a GERMAN teacher, but not for being an English teacher. I guess that was just their way of telling me that they don't want to hire me. By now I've got to know some people that have a work visa (for being an English teacher) although they're not native-speakers.
Anyway .... My working holiday visa expires in March, so my boss should apply for a real one in December, I guess. For that I need my university diploma .... and what's more an English translation of it as it's German.
Now ..... has anybody an idea what exactly they want to know? Translating the WHOLE diploma would be way to expensive. I think they want to know if it's a bachelor or master, right? But as I'm German it's not called like that.
Basically it's way more than a bachelor and it can be compared to a masters degree, although it's not a masters degree. Maybe the offical translator should mention that somewhere in English and let the actual diploma untranslated? I really have NO idea!!!!!!! Help (T____T)
Yes, I still have time, but it takes a while to get my diploma to a translator, letting it translate etc. pp.

Uff, that was a LOT! Sorry!
Hope you can help me :)

Visiting Tokyo

Sat, 26 Jul 2008 11:27:46 GMT

I was planning on stopping in Tokyo for a few days before continuing on to Seoul. I'll be meeting my friend who is teaching English in Korea. Is it hard to get around without speaking Japanese? I'm planning on learning a few phrases before I go. Also, does anyone know how to get a room at one those capsule hotels? I thought that would be wild.

Banking in Japan!

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 05:29:45 GMT

First off--thanks so much for the help in my previous post. Sorry to come at you again ~~like a spider monkey~~with another question, but I'm hoping those of you in bigger cities can help.

I'm moving to Tokyo from Shiga prefecture in a little over a week, and have yet to get a new bank account! I'm currently with Shiga Ginkou, but that won't do me much good in Tokyo, and I'd rather have an account with a megabank also so that I can do more online shopping.

So my question is: what recommendations or caveats do any of you have about The Big 3? I'm talking about Mizuho, UFJ, or Mitsui. Are any of them more receptive to foreigners opening accounts? Is it an issue at all? What about the rates for things like furikomi and such? Any horror stories to give me pause?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks!!

Japanese software on English Windows?

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 10:29:37 GMT

Anyone know how (or if it's even possible) to set Windows so that you can install Japanese-language-Windows-only software onto it?

I've installed Japanese-language software before with no problem (my scanner), but I just bought a hefty piece of equipment I'd like to use (mp3/video player), and the installation CD is telling me that it can't be installed on an English version of Windows, as does the installation handbook. This didn't happen with my scanner, and the software is definitely compatible with my OS (Vista), the only trouble is it's an English OS and not a Japanese one.

It looks like I can still drag-and-drop stuff manually and all, but if possible I'd REALLY like to use the software that came with it. I'm waiting for it to charge up so I can see how hard it's going to be without the software, but does anyone have any idea if I can set something in my regional settings or something and the software can install?

*sad panda who really should've noticed this before purchasing and is hoping it can be returned if all hope is lost*

...hi!

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 02:23:07 GMT

I don't know if you guys usually do introductory posts around here, but I am going to go for it anyway.

I'm living in Japan (yes, right now!) in Kochi, Shikoku (that was wrong for a while, what an embarassing typo). I've been here for two months and am here for two months more, on a working holiday visa. I work part time at a tiny little peace museum, also casual/part time at a couple of eikaiwas, and teach faaaar too many private English lessons for my continued sanity. Before coming to Japan, I graduated from uni with a degree in Engrish and a TESL cert. I speak one year's worth of university Japanese (not enough to get by without my best friend, the electronic dictionary!)

So far the toughest thing about living in Japan for me has been finding friends, and just today it occured to me to try LJ... so hi guys. :D (Oh wow, that sounds super pathetic.)

Anyway よろしくお願いします！

Hi Folks!

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:04:52 GMT

I am new to LJ and joined this community because uh, I am living here xD
Anyway, I was wondering if you could help me out. (Please!)

I searched here around, but I couldn't find something related to it, so I write this post. If there is already something and I was simply too blind, sorry.
I want to learn to play the tsugaru shamisen. I was google-ing around, but I could find only one internet shop. But, to be honest, I don't want to order it online....
Does anyone know a shop in Tokyo or Chiba pref.? And, does somebody know where shamisen lessons are held? (I found one "school" at the internet, and universities have some, this is what I heard)
I thank you in advance.

(Sorry for my english)

In Tokyo, looking for a bike! (among other things...)

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 14:24:38 GMT

so, i don't know to what extent people do buying/selling/trading/giving stuff away on this forum, but i have recently moved into the center of Tokyo and am in need of some thing, most notably, a bike. i don't want to pay the obscene amount most stores charge for rickety mama-charis, so i thought i'd see if there is anyone out there who needs to get rid of their bike.

i am also in the market for household goods, like a rice cooker, some plates/flatware, etc. i recently graduated from a language school in Yokohama, and many of my classmates offered me stuff for free, to save them the trouble/cost of disposing of it, but i couldn't get all of their generously offered goods up here, so i'm still lacking in many departments.

any help at all in this regard would be greatly appreciated. you can also contact me directly at the following email addresss:

allensensei AT gmail DOT com

much thanks in advance lifeinjapan community!

Musashino to Machida - How far? How troublesome for a daily commute?

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 07:31:30 GMT

This fall I will be studying at Obirin University in Machida and I have a friend (Japanese citizen) who lives in Musashino. We are toying with the idea of getting an apartment together while I'm over there but I don't want to affect the commute she currently makes to Asia University (in Musashino). So, I'm wondering how hard is it to travel from Musashino to Machida and about how long it takes so I can get a better grasp on whether this idea may or may not become a reality!

Thank you for your help!

Travel recommendations

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 06:54:19 GMT

So I am living in Shizuoka ken, and I'm looking to do a few weekend trips etc around the prefecture、and Chubu in general. So any recommendations of where I should go? I’ve been to Shimoda, and up Mt. Fuji.

Oh and does anyone know if there are any temples that allow tourist to do overnight stays etc?

Sorry for the X-posting
Sorry if this isn't allowed :)

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:24:44 GMT

Hello there, my husband is in the military. We are moving to Okinawa in Nov. I'm excited but I dont know what to expect.

We are thinking about get rid of all our furniture because we heard housing space is small. But is that true?
Is there transportation system connecting the islands?
How long would it take to go from Okinawa to Tokyo?
What are the best things to do/ see?

If you can anserw any or my questions please leave a comment & thank you.

Pleased to meet you!

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 22:58:23 GMT

Hi everyone!

My boyfriend (from America) and I (from Canada) both applied to the JET Programme back in November. Unfortunately he wasn't accepted and I was. We were completely crushed when we found this out, but we're both still determined to find him a job in Japan. I'm on my way to southern Miyagi,( yippeee!), and we've been looking for ALT or other jobs for him in the area.

He has a BSc degree in Business. We tried Interac, but they wanted to place him far away. We obviously didn't feel comfortable about being dishonest and using Interac for their visa and jumping ship to find another job in the area.

Does anyone have any good advice for job seaking in and around Sendai? He's going to try Jame's English School, but also doesn't want to limit himself to ESL jobs. If he can't find someone in and around southern Miyagi to sponsor his Visa before we leave (mid August for him) then he'll have 90 days on a tourist visa to search on foot.

Any advice?

Japanese learning schools

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 11:40:27 GMT

Konnichiwa!

Hello there. I'll try to keep this short.

I've started learning Japanese here in Portugal, but due to my schedules, I had to quit, because I didn't have much time to study.

I have a great passion for Japan, it's language and it's culture, and so I was thinking of combining all of this (when financially possible). What I mean is, I take some time off, and when on vacations (IN JAPAN), I could study the language at the same time!!! [I don't now if I'm being clear]

Anyway, the reason of this post is to ask for advice and some feedback of schools. I've found so many on the www but not really sure which one to pick.

I also would like to ask, what do you think is the minimum time to learn the basic? Like a month or so, in an intensive course?

[on the feedback please refer to all aspects you can remember, such as class schedules, course fees, other activities, if the school has a dorm, teaching methods... and so on]

Arigatou gozaimasu

xxxposted to other communities

Costs, etc for Kansai Gaidai.

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 19:44:19 GMT

Hello everyone, I'm looking for some help re: Kansai Gaidai. I know there are a lot of people who have been there, but I wasn't quite sure where exactly to ask... So I figured I'd give it a shot here first.

Just a little background -- I'm currently enrolled in an Australian university and have applied to study on exchange at Kansai Gaidai for the year of 2009. However, I have never been to Japan before, despite being a Japanese major studying Japanese for almost six years already. And due to family demands I have never lived long-term on my own either. I'm not so confident finance-wise and will be relying heavily on scholarships and loans... So yes, I feel like I'm diving straight into the deep end here. My university has given me next to no information on most things. I've been doing a lot of research myself but still have many questions which I hope can be answered ASAP, to put my mind at ease and give me enough time to plan in advance.

My main concern at the moment would have to be finances. Now, I'm quite sure that tuition fees are waived for exchange students, but how about accommodation? This page states that room and board is "waived for students with Full Exchange status from our affiliated institutions", but it doesn't specify what exactly is "full exchange status". Also, do the dormitory and homestay programs have any extra costs?

I'd ask for an estimate of personal expenditures (transport, food, phone/internet, etc) but I guess it varies for different people, so I'll try a different angle. How much hard cash should I bring along? I'm also clueless about the Japanese banking system so it'd be excellent if anyone could fill me in on that.

Lastly, something I feel is quite important -- what should I be packing for my stay? Any important necessities (and non-necessities?) I know I'll be bringing my laptop, random electronics, assorted clothes, stationery and some toiletries but is there anything else I should/shouldn't be bringing at all?

Advice would be much, much appreciated. Even if it's just general. I'm seriously worrying myself to death here. Thanks everyone!

P.S. There is a very small chance I might end up at Kobe University instead -- anyone been there?

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 18:02:28 GMT

Hi everyone!

I'm an American planning on counseling at a summer camp/doing some traveling/sightseeing this coming July and August.

I was wondering what, if any, are the ATM fees in major cities? Also, (and I apologize if I'm a little uninformed) if I just swipe my Mastercard at an ATM to withdraw money, I should be good to go, right? I don't need to do any currency exchange following the transaction?

...And speaking of money conversion, are airports a good place to do any last minute dollars-to-yen exchange? Are there high fees/rates, and are there any other places you may reccomend? I'll be in pretty much every major city from Tokyo to Kyoto.

Thank you so much!

planning for the future & 'life in Japan' blogs

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 05:55:34 GMT

hi guys :) my name is Caty, I'm 16 years old, and I have been planning on/dreaming of living in Japan as soon as I possibly can for the past three years now. Recently though I've been considering other options for my life but Japan has always been my main plan and I figure now is the time when I should be deciding what's right for me and planning ahead.

First of all, I do want to live and work/study in Japan but I'd rather not teach English. I'm not really sure what I'd like to pursue there, at this point I'm not really sure what I want to do with my life in general (except travel), but what are some other options for foreigners? I just want to be informed and know all my choices. I know this is kind of a broad and silly question, lol, but I'd appreciate any info.

Also, I'm a very social person. Friendship is very very important to me and I'm prepared for what living in another country will do to the friendships I have back here but I'm just wondering, for the rest of you who are very social, how easy/hard was it to make friends in Japan? I'm fairly outgoing and make friends pretty easily but I'm assuming it will be a totally different game in a foreign country. I know that having friends or not having friends will make all the difference in my experience in Japan so it's pretty important to me.

Lastly, are there any good English-language blogs you guys know of of foreigners living in Japan? Or do any of you guys post often about your life in Japan on your LJ? I just really like reading about other people's lives especially in this case lolllllllll. I know that sounds creepy but, hahaha... whatevz.

Anyway I know this entry is kind of asking a lot of vague questions but I just want to informmmmm myself because this next school year is when I need to start making all my major decisions.

Thanks a lot for any help! ♥

Another question regarding JET...

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 18:04:45 GMT

Is a history of taking anti-depressants a mark against you when applying for JET? I was treated for it in the past, but have had a clean (mental) bill of health for a year now, and the only other medical condition I have is hypothyroidism, which is by no means debilitating or life-threatening. That condition is well controlled and I am not overweight. How should the depression matter be approached?

Yo, JETs!

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:02:18 GMT

I'm trying to figure out whether I should apply to the JET program. Can you let me know what my chances might be? It's this or grad school right away. I'm 25, graduated from university last year with a degree in English. I taught English in South Korea during a six-week internship, which sparked an interest to do it again, though I'm aware the JET program isn't necessarily all about the teaching, but rather, a cultural exchange. I've heard of Inuyasha and Naruto, and that's about all I know about anime. I'm more into customs, religion, food, etc... I'm particularly interested in living in Japan because I want to teach world and multicultural literature when I'm finished with grad school. In order to do that, I feel like I need to experience life in another country (for more than six weeks), and as Asian literature is particularly absent in western schools, as well as Asian history, I want to be there to learn about the culture behind the literature I know is out there and hope to teach. I'm willing to sing in an interview, to be anywhere from Hokkaido to Okinawa, and tend to pick up languages quickly as I try to stick to the language of the country I'm visiting when I travel so as not to create too much confusion. When it comes to being stared at for being the only white girl in a crowd, I've been there. I'm not bothered by it.

I was also wondering if any of ya knew when the applications will be posted.

Sanrio Puroland

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 15:45:09 GMT

Has anyone ever been to Sanrio Puroland? Is it good?

Language schools

Sun, 25 May 2008 07:59:07 GMT

Hi there!

I'm currently living and working in Japan.
I always somehow regretted that I didn't study Japanese. By now I'm almost 30 and have a university degree (master) that has nothing to do with Japanese.
Anyway my urge to learn and become somewhat close to fluent in Japanese has never stopped and now that I'm finally in Japan, I've decided that I just HAVE TO LEARN that language no matter what.

I started to learn my first Japanese words over 20 years ago and in 2002 (for 2 years) I studied some Japanese at my university in a language course.
Anyhow being here in Japan I recognize that my level is still too low for almost everything.
I want to be able to read the newspaper, to understand the news on tv etc.

I've never studied for any of the JLPT tests, but I'm somewhere on level3 right now, I guess.

My plan right now is to work in Japan for another 2 years and save money and after that join one of the various language schools full-time. Most of those schools claim that they can help you to reach level2 or even 1 of the JLPT test in about 1,5 years. I don't know if that's true or not, but that's my goal anyway.
By the way do you get some kind of certificate after you've finished a long-term course at one of those language schools?

If I'd want to become a translator what kind of certificate would be most appreciated then (apart from a degree in Japanese that is)?

Anyway why I post this entry is: I want to know if there are any people out there who are currently attending one of those language schools (and not just a 4-weeks course, but a long-term one) and can tell me a little bit about it.
I'm especially interested in how you can afford to go there? Can you do it with just working part-time? If I work for another 2 years here and save a lot of money, I might be able to pay all the fees for the school, but I still would need money for my daily life (rent, food, etc.) - I can't imagine that it's possible to earn that kind of money with just a part-time job?? Any experiences???!!!

Also what does your schedule usually look like when you study at a full-time language school? How many hours a day do you have classes? How much do you have to study at home? Days off, holidays?
Can you really improve a lot in just one year? Everybody told me it's a better idea to go to a language school in Japan rather than going back to university in your own country and start to study Japanese (esp. when you already have a university degree anyway).

When looking for language schools is there anything I should pay special attention to? I know I still have a lot of time, but I want to get as much information as possible, so that I can prepare accordingly. I also need to know how much money I'll need then.

Or is it stupid of me to think that I might be able to reach level1 in only 1-1,5 years?

Thanks so much for your help and answers in advance!! m(_ _)m

Guarantor Services?

Fri, 23 May 2008 13:06:43 GMT

Hi all. A short question followed by a bunch of background info that you may or may not want/need to read.

Short question: I heard a rumor once that there are companies that will act as a guarantor for foreigners who want to rent an apartment in Japan, have the money, but don't know any Japanese people well enough for them to make as big a commitment as guarantorship. Does anyone have any information about how/where I could go about working with a company like this, and fast? Specifically in the Saitama area.

Background info:

I came here with GEOS, worked for almost a year and quit to move to a new job teaching in public schools. I did that at the end of march to start working at the beginning of April. With GEOS, they worked with Leo Palace to have apartments available for foreign teachers [like me] to live in and pay rent for. When I quit, I had to move to my own apartment. So, I went to another Leo Palace. Since my visa is only through June, they wouldn't let me pay rent in the normal fashion. Instead, I had to pay in advance for all 3 months [April, May, June], and instead of just paying rent and utilities separately, I was just charged double for the rent and I pay no utilities. So, they're unlimited, but I pay about a thousand dollars a month. [like 100,000 yen/mo.]

Today, I went with a Japanese person from my company to apply for a new one-year visa. That should arrive in a few weeks, assuming it's all approved and such, which cuts everything very close, since my visa has exactly one month left on it from today. Anyway, since I'm getting a new visa, I want to switch over to the regular monthly rent/utilities plan in order to pay a -lot- less money.

Obviously, Leo Palace requires a Japanese guarantor, and for whatever reason, my company is simply unable to work with Leo Palace. I've never gotten a clear explanation of why. Just that they tried it once for some teacher once and things didn't work out or something. It's all very mysterious, but obviously something bad enough happened that made my company just swear of Leo Palace entirely. Which works out really poorly for me.

So, my options are:

- continue with the REALLY expensive unlimited-utilities rent [not preferable, but possible, as I'll start getting a 25k/mo allowance in June which would I could use to off-set the apt cost enough to make it ALMOST a reasonable amount.]
- find a company that will act as a guarantor for me [very preferable - totally willing to pay for that service]
- move [not preferable, as it'll require looking for a new apartment in the area, finding one, having the apt people talk with my company and all that, paying to move, paying for all the stuff that won't be supplied, like a fridge, etc, having to do this all very quickly, yadda yadda yadda. Very expensive and stressful.]
- Uh. . . just give up on staying in Japan and use the money I've saved up to run back to America? I guess that's the last-ditch option, but it's definitely on the table at this point.

X-Posted a bunch

Fri, 16 May 2008 22:45:41 GMT

Hey, does anyone here live in or around Kasukabe in Saitama? Just curious.

Furnishing a tokyo apartment

Fri, 16 May 2008 02:31:02 GMT

I am running around, trying to find an apartment in Tokyo. I have decided that perhaps it is best to find a nice, unfurnished place and buy the furnishings cheap. The only problem that I have is I don't know how possible this is and where (in Tokyo) I would go.

I will hopefully be getting a place in Shinagawa, and I don't mind buying second hand, I just really don't want to spend too much money.

Is there anyone out there that could reccomend a place to go to, and how much I can expect to pay for a fridge, washing machine and a bed?

cross posted :)