Moving to Japan This Summer? 31 Posts to Help You Prepare

Summer is almost here and if you're part of the JET Program, you're likely preparing and trying to figure out what to bring and what to expect when you arrive. While there are a lot advice-givers out there (forums in particular), I'd strongly suggest that you take what is said with a grain of salt. Usually the advice you hear is limited to that person's particular experience.

Prior to arriving in Japan, I heard a lot about what Japan didn't have, only to later find out most of that wasn't true. It may have been true for the person who told me, but that depends on where they were/are living, what their situation is, how much Japanese they know/speak/read, what they do in their free time, who they associate with, etc.

Japan also changes quickly in different ways and so you might be surprised that there are more options of whatever than your predecessor or someone else might have known about.

Some people are more knowledgeable in certain areas, especially if they've gone through certain experiences themselves. Stay as open-minded as possible. And I strongly encourage you to seek out truth for yourself. Someone might state something as fact, but they may not know otherwise--it's a fact to them, but not necessarily to Japan.

Not just expats, but plenty of Japanese people might not even know, depending on the topic. For example, I tried for months to find a farmer's market in my first city, and no one (expats, Japanese) seemed to know about any or how to go about finding them. Some of my coworkers insisted that there weren't any around. But I happened upon one while out exploring on my bike a few months later, and then learned, on my own, how to find them.

So, keep an open mind and explore Japan for yourself. Ask questions, always. Be gracious when advice is offered--and please don't hesitate to ask for it!--but keep in mind that you might find it to be different down the road.


With that said, here are some posts to help with your preparations (regardless of how or why you're moving to Japan):

What to Pack for Japan -- A comprehensive list, which includes many of the links below in each relevant section. Please read this before packing or deciding what to bring or leave behind. You can find more posts in the "how-tos" link above.

Personal Care

• HOW TO: Find (good) deodorant in Japan
• Japanese Deodorant: What's in it, What best, and What you think
• HOW TO: Find the haircare you need
• Help for Curly Hair in Japan
• HOW TO: Find a hair salon in Japan
• HOW TO: Find ibuprofen in Japan
• HOW TO: Find Tylenol in Japan

• Contraception in Japan: Getting an IUD
• A guide to birth control pills in Japan
• Contraception in Japan: Condoms, IUDs and Calendar-based methods

• A guide to sanitary napkins in Japan
• A guide to tampons in Japan
• how to find skincare in Japan
• A Guide to Toothpaste in Japan

• HOW TO: Deal with allergies (rhinitis) in Japan
• A Guide to Sunscreen in Japan

Food

• Where to find vitamins & supplements
• HOW TO: Find Allergy-Friendly Food in Japan
• The Ultimate Guide to Reading Food Labels in Japan

Clothes/Gear

• Where to Find Tall and Plus Size Clothing in Japan
• HOW TO: Find outdoor gear in Japan 

Transportation

• how to look up train times (in English)
• HOW TO: Survive without a car in Japan
• About Cycling and Biking in Japan

Home

• A Guide to Laundry Detergent in Japan
• A Survival Guide to Mosquito Repellent in Japan
• HOW TO: Find anti-itch, insect bite medicine in Japan
• HOW TO: Use an Air Conditioner in Japan

Computer

• HOW TO: Find a laptop with an English keyboard
• More Resources to Find a Laptop with an English Keyboard

For more how-tos and information about living in Japan, see the "how-tos" page above.

HOW TO: Arrange a home delivery

During my first few months in Japan, I realized I needed a new futon. Mine was flat, old, and had strange orange spots. No matter how often I hung it outside in the sun and beat the crap out of it, it was just, done. As I didn’t own a car, I walked 45 minutes to a home store, bought a futon, and carried it back. In my arms. Passerby, both vehicular and pedestrian, stared in a most indiscreet way. What was this odd foreigner doing walking along the road with a giant futon in her arms? It was only when I needed a futon pad later on that I realized I could ask for a home delivery (as that particular store offered it).

HOW TO: Find (good) deodorant in Japan

If you're coming to Japan, you will probably hear someone lamenting about the inability to find any "real" deodorant here. When I heard this before coming, I promptly bought a 4-pack of my favorite kind (which I still haven't used up, two years later). Yet, for those trying to save luggage space, unless you are REALLY attached to your deodorant, let me reassure you, it IS possible to get deodorant in Japan. And no, I'm not even talking about typical Japanese stuff, although chemically, it isn't really different from the stuff you're likely already using.

HOW TO: Return an Item (to a Store)

Ever wonder what to do with something you ordered or bought here in Japan, but realized soon after that it doesn't fit, or work, or something else undesirable?

I had this problem during my first years here, when I accidentally bought something that didn't fit or realized I actually didn't want what I had bought after a couple days. Every time I asked someone how I could go about doing a return, yes even those who speak Japanese, they didn't know what to do. They had never done it before, they said. Maybe it's just me, but I'm a buy it and try it kind of gal. And call me strange, but I'm also far too lazy to try on clothes at the store, and do my best to guess the size (which explains my inclination to shop online). Usually, these tactics are successful. But on the rare occasion that something just doesn't fit, (or you later decide you hate it, or maybe shouldn't have spent that much money on it), what to do?

HOW TO: Do a furikomi (bank transfer)

I’m going to assume you already have a bank account in Japan. And perhaps you signed up with GoLloyds to transfer money to your bank accounts in your home country, or you made some online purchases, or even have a bill that needs to be paid by furikomi (bank transfer). So now you are at the bank, panicking in realization that the stupid ATM doesn’t have a “transfer” button in English (usually only withdrawal, balance inquiry and deposit). I’ve been there, too.

HOW TO: Find haicare products in Japan

One of the 101 questions I asked folks while preparing for Japan was about shampoo and conditioner. Before you consider me vain, I asked at least 100 other more important questions first. I'd never been to Japan before - what were shampoo and conditioner like there and how did they differ from those in the U.S.? Considering different hair care products exist for a vast array of hair types, my assumption was that most of the hair products in Japan might be primarily formulated for certain kinds of hair (much like skin cosmetics). And my hair, being blond and fine, is particular when it comes to hair products.

Most people didn't have any answers for me. They listed off the common brands and said they are all basically the same. So I, being a bit OCD about preparedness, shipped giant bottles of shampoo and conditioner to my address in Japan. If only I'd known how unnecessary THAT was. So, for the curious, and for those wondering, "what will I use???" here's your guide.

Surviving the Rainy Season in Japan: 40 tips

Now that the rainy season has arrived, what perfect timing to discuss how to survive this time of heat, moisture and sweat. And now, 40 ways to survive the rainy season in Japan:

1. Buy an air conditioner. Although, you may find buying a car is a better investment.

2. Try an electric fan (or two, three… or ten). Fans are a great alternative if you wish to avoid using an air conditioner, because of its harmful effects on the environment. *Tip: put a bowl of ice in front of the fan for cooler air.

how much money to give at a Japanese wedding?

The recent wedding etiquette post “how to not make a fool of yourself at a Japanese wedding” brought about a lot of thoughts and experiences from fellow foreigners in Japan. Due to the slightly varying ideas regarding gift money, I decided to do a quick poll of Japanese folks on twitter to ask what they consider the norm. Interestingly enough, these responses also varied, but I pulled the consistencies from all the responses, both from Japanese and non-Japanese. One thing to keep in mind is that the gift money also covers the “meal fee” and gifts for the guests. Here are the results:

HOW TO: Find hydrogen peroxide in Japan

I don't know about you, but I hate mold. No, hate. Normally, I try not to use such strong, definitive words, but sometimes it seems that mold's mission in life is to torment me. It grows everywhere without abandon, laughing, when I take a shower in the morning. It takes over my newly bought produce, causing me to mourn in anguish as I fill our garbage bag with whole fruit and veggies. It even goes so far as to mount attacks against my body, causing my sinuses to produce much more liquid than what seems humanly possible, sometimes rendering me incapable of walking in a straight line.

I counteract it with what I can - antihistamines, nasal sprays, dehumidifiers, fans, vinegar, lemons, hydrogen peroxide, husband labor, machetes, grenades...

Mold and I are at full-out war.

how to find a laptop with an English keyboard

Japan is known for its electronics. The name brands familiar around the world: Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic, etc. So finding a computer in Japan should seem like no problem. And really, it's not. At least not if you are OK with using a Japanese keyboard. Are Japanese and English keyboards really that different? Actually yes, they are. If you've ever tried using a Japanese keyboard for writing (typing), you'll soon realize just how impractical it is. The enter/return key is usually shaped like an "L" on a Japanese keyboard, with an extra button in between, making that conditioned reach over with the right pinky futile. Or the fact that the semi-colon and apostrophe requires extra button pushing, instead of the gentle one-finger tap. Even just writing e-mails can be a pain, and whenever I use Japanese computers, sometimes I grow lazy and just keep typing the keys that substitute those on the English keyboard, ending up with something that is sometimes undecipherable.

So what to do? In my hunting the last few days, here's what I've discovered.

how to check the (accurate) weather in Japanese

When I need to check the weather, there's a few things I can do... but I've found that some are less helpful than others. Of course, upon arriving in Japan, I still regularly checked MSN and weather.com for weather updates and temperatures. Although, I soon found these to be wrong more often than right, and thought about how else I could find more accurate weather reports.

Of course, I could just turn on the TV, but since I rarely watch TV and acquire most of my news via RSS, that wouldn't work too well. Especially if I needed a report right away. Up to this point, I often heard students and teachers around me throwing around "Yahoo."

Japanese words to know when ordering online

It's been almost a month since I last posted, leaving me to wonder why I let all that time get away...

Dinner tonight was curry, as in カレーライス, or "kare raisu (curry rice)." Japanese curry is a somewhat stew-like curry, brown with orange carrot blobs and/or yellow potato blobs and/or beef/chicken/pork chunks, etc. The spiciness ranges from mild to "hot," although hot wouldn't necessarily be as spicy as Thai curry. I find curry to be incredibly addicting, and though I ate it in the States before coming to Japan, my way of cooking it has become much more "Japanese," as I attempt to emulate the various delicious curries found all over the country.

Since today was a dreary, wet, cold March day, I thought curry sounded perfect for dinner. Around 5 p.m. I started the process of chopping onions and sauteing them, whilst I minced garlic and ginger and gathered the rest of my ingredients from around the kitchen. The onions began caramelizing, so I threw in the ginger and garlic, followed with water, stock, a bay leaf and star anise. That all simmered nicely as the flavors amalgamated. About an hour later I put the still-somewhat-frozen chicken in the pot as my husband returned home, soaking wet. Since the chicken was so cold, I turned the stove up and put the lid back on to get everything heated quickly without allowing bacteria or anything to form. Well, as I got caught up in talking with my husband per the usual end-of-the-day conversations, I completely forgot I had left the burner on high, and sat down to read some food blogs while I "waited" for the chicken to "slowly" cook.

what do I eat!?

As a native Washingtonian, I grew up surrounded by great food - the fresh seafood, ripe, juicy apples, and a plethora of tart, sweet berries. After high school, when I moved to Seattle for college, my new found food independence couldn't have established itself in a better city. Farmer's markets, organic food stores, a wide ethnic variety of restaurants and one of my absolute favorites - Uwajimaya, the Asian food market in the International District. My taste for quality food developed, along with my chopstick usage skill. When restaurants were too expensive (especially at the end of a paycheck cycle), I found it easy to pick up a pre-prepared meal from Whole Foods or PCC on the way home from work. This, along with my time-consumed schedule of work and school, kept me from pursuing cooking and baking as much as I would have liked.
That changed when I came to Japan.

how to get something redelivered (online) from Japan Post

There it was again. That red and white notice in my mailbox letting me know I had missed a package. I'd gotten them a few times before, along with notices from other delivery companies (such as Yamato and Sagawa). Everytime they'd come before, I'd shove the notice in my backpack and pull it out at work to show the coworker next to me. She'd offer to call for me and arrange a redelivery time. After three or four times bringing her my notices, she said, "did you know you can do this online?"

That may have been her subtle way of letting me know I didn't need to keep bugging her about it. Though, when we looked online, I had to sign up for an account, and I felt I shouldn't have to do that... (This is before I realized you need to sign up for accounts to do almost anything online in Japan).

Later on at home, I pulled up the site for Japan's postal system. (There is also an english version of the website, but it is more limited as to what you can do from it). Of course, you can also bring the notice into the post office and give it to the clerk, but I was never able to make it to the post office before it closed due to work.

The Japanese site overwhelmed me - as kanji swam everywhere on the page, looking like nothing intelligible to me. My first thought was to find a way to translate the Japanese, so I could find the "redelivery" link. Now, there is a simple way to do this, especially if you use the Firefox browser. In Firefox, you can install widgets to the browser, and one particular one I use is called "FoxLingo". Now I can click "AutoTrans" (auto translation) whenever I come across a site too complex for me to decipher. (Alternatively, you can use Google Translate in the Chrome toolbar, or any preferred translation service).

ようこそ and welcome

Expat Women Blog Directory

ようこそ！ (yokoso) Welcome! to my version of a Japan survival guide. Rather than a travel guide, this blog is for anyone moving to Japan to live for any length of time, or folks currently residing here.

So, if not for travel, you ask, what is the purpose of this blog? Why this particular blog?

Hundreds of blogs written by foreigners living in Japan already exist. Dozens of people have written books about living in Japan as well. An internet search would give anyone new to Japan plenty of information about living in this great and unique country, also known as nihon in Japanese. Yet, after living here for a year and a half, I realized there were many things about living in Japan that I had not come across in the many books I read, or the various blogs and internet research I had done. It was easy to find how-to's for introductions, bowing etiquette, and table manners. Books and lectures on culture and the latter said items were incessantly reiterated by those attempting to prepare me and hundreds of other new language teachers for the big transition. I even spent nine months learning basic Japanese and given explanations from my Japanese teachers about the Japan facts, such as: Japanese people sleep on futon (different than a futon in the western world) and use ofuro (a bath, deeper and less wide than a typical western bathtub, but the etiquette also differs from how westerners would usually take a bath).

So, I arrived in Japan, feeling quite prepared. I know the basics; I can order food and say thank you and introduce myself; I know how to use the onsen (public bath). The bustling and neon lights of Shinjuku mesmerized me, as every new and different thing I came across in those first few days left me in a state of awe and constant exclamation: "Japan is AMAZING!" Ah, yes, that first meeting with Tokyo could leave anyone in a state of exhilaration.