Gearing up for Japan – Airport Security
Yesterday I told you how I was feeling as if I was in a holding pattern waiting for my Japan adventure to start. and how my home consisted of loosely labeled piles sort of ready for packing.
Well, I’ve realized that the carry-on/technology pile is going to make me really popular in the the security line at the airport – you know those people that you end up behind who have to unpack everything and put them in separate bins and then if they manage to get through without some sort or alarm going off they take forever to pack everything up on the other side. Well that’s going to be me – and I hate me already!
With a lap top, a D-SLR camera, a DVD player and a hard drive amongst my carry-on belongings I have decided to apologize in advance to the people behind me so they don’t hate me as much when I have to take everything out of my carry-on.
I sure hope they understand….
Gearing up for Japan – Holding Pattern
I leave for Japan in a little less than a week but feel as though I am in a holding pattern. My husband has been in Japan for almost a month and I have been holding down the fort at home and preparing for the trip.
I can’t wait to get to Japan and get this adventure started but am stuck looking at half filled suitcases and boxes, none of which I am quite ready to commit to closing. My to do list is getting shorter but a lot of things need to wait until the last minute or so it seems.
Our home looks like a tornado has blown through it with all of the different piles that I have started. There is the definitely take pile, the maybe pile, the mailing pile, and the carry-on/technology pile. Oh, and my hubby told me last night that there was something that he wanted me to bring and that it was important but he couldn’t remember what it was – how helpful??? I told him that he’d better write it down when he thought of it again otherwise he would be out of luck as the time for packing, purchasing, etc is slipping away.
I have reviewed my post on what to pack and think that I have covered most everything except the shoe part. Knowing that I wont’ be able to get shoes in Japan and that I will be doing a lot more walking has made me pay more attention to how comfortable my shoes are. Most of them aren’t suited for long stretches on my feet and even though they look comfortable I’m not so sure that I won’t be sorry later. Some solace came in a post from Thomas on how to get shoes in Japan but I’m not so sure his tip will work for women’s shoes. I’ll keep my fingers crossed on that one as I may need to buy some shoes while in Japan.
Oh, and I’ve also decided that I don’t really like most of my clothes and that they are all really boring! Just great!!!!
Gearing up for Japan – Our Apartment
The countdown to Japan continues in our world and it’s all starting to come together! Yesterday I showed you the satellite image of our location and today I can share some photos of the actual apartment.
Here is the building:
The living room is kind of small and I am wondering if my husband will be able to stretch out comfortably on the loveseat?
There is a wide balcony around most of the living area – here is the view (you can see a bit of the Pacific Ocean in the background):
This is the kitchen (no oven which I assumed but I was hoping to have one anyway…):
We have a total of three bedrooms and even a den that has been set up with a desk for my surfing and blogging! This apartment is much larger than the norm in Japan for which I am very thankful!
It’s getting more real to me everyday and now I’m envious that my husband gets to go a month before me. My only consolation is that he will be freezing his butt off while I am home in balmy Hawaii…
Gearing up for Japan – Countdown
Well my hubbies departure is finally set for Sunday afternoon and I am working hard to help him get ready to go. A week ago we didn’t even have the date settled and I wondered if we would ever get to Japan. The contact is almost done – just a few minor wording issues and it will all be official once it is signed in Japan.
We got our visas form the Japan Consulate as promised and there were no significant problems. However, they did assume that I was American (my husband is American) when they applied for the certificate of eligibility even though I provided a copy of my Canadian passport. So now I have a visa with a note in Japanese explaining the error and was told by the consulate that there should be no problems when I try to enter Japan – we’ll see?
The date of the first meeting was finalized after many emails and phone calls and the luggage issue is also resolved. It turns out that someone will be driving to Kamogawa and will take the luggage with him. So my hubby saved a few days sitting in a basically empty apartment in chilly Chiba before hitting the road for a month.
We finally go our address in Japan – I searched this address on diddlefinger and you can see a map of our location in Chiba here. The satellite image is much more interesting so make sure to click that tab in the upper left hand corner.
I’ve ordered some Yen from the bank, a stock of medicine for hubby and purchased all of the omiyage (gifts) so he’s almost ready to go. Now I have a month to take care of everything else before I head off….
Gearing up for Japan – Packing
I have traveled and lived in different places for periods of time before but moving to a foreign country is a whole different ball of wax! The last time I moved to Japan was back in 1994 and I have forgotten all of the little things that I missed from home.
What do I need to take with me? What comforts of home will I miss most? My experience has taught me that these are questions that can’t be easily answered and that the answers don’t become apparent until you’ve been living somewhere for a while. I am very fortunate in that my husbands’ company will be providing a fully furnished apartment for us so I don’t need to worry about furniture, house wares, etc.
So I’m off to Japan for most of next two years and here are a few things that I know. As an average size Caucasian woman with size 81/2 feet I will have a hard time finding clothes and shoes in Japan, books are expensive (I love to read!) and if the foods that my husband and I crave from home are even available I will likely have to travel some distance, and pay a lot of Yen, to get them.
Also, most of the places where I have lived have had very moderate climates. I have very few winter clothes and Japan has cold weather! The first snow this year was yesterday in Chiba….
Here is my short list of must haves (definitely not in order of importance):
Computer for Internet surfing & chatting, email, blogging and just general sanity…
My new D-SLR digital camera to capture all of the wonderful sights I will get to see…
Some photos of people who are dear to me…
Clothes – I’ve been shopping and scored some pretty good deals on winter clothes and splurged on a beautiful leather coat that I can’t wait to wear!
Comfortable, yet stylish shoes – is that even possible? I will also need to cover both warm and cold weather, dressy and casual situations and a lot of walking.
A small stash of comfort foods from home?
Toiletries that I can’t live without that I’m not sure I can get in Japan…
Japanese travel guide, language books & dictionary…
Electricity/plug converters for hi-tech devices. Other devices, like my blow dryer, will work fine with Japanese electricity…
Books – as many as will fit in my suitcase without putting me over the airline weight limits! I will also have to check out Amazon in Japan.
Playing cards/cribbage board/board games – maybe?
Now I just have to control myself and not over pack! I’ve done that before only to have to bring something home without having used it at all. This is my conundrum given that I won’t be able to buy clothes it Japan. I guess there is always mail order to friends and family in the states….
Am I missing anything important? What would you bring?
Getting to Japan?
Well today was just another day closer to our departure to Japan. My husband will leave in two weeks and I will leave at the end of February to meet up with him in Chiba (our home base for the next two years, at least). It has been an interesting road so far that started with a phone call in October, followed very shortly by a trip to Japan to negotiate a contract and sign a letter of intent. You’d think that we would be home free right….not! The contract still hasn’t been finalized but it’s supposed to be here by the end of the week….
We have been asking about visas almost since day one and we finally got the paperwork from Japan today (via a travel agent in Los Angeles). We sent our passport photos to Japan and the paperwork says we need more so off we went to get photos. The first place’s camera was broken so we had to go somewhere else and then the photos make us look as if we have been drinking and had no sleep for a week! Oh well, we will be off to the Japanese Consulate in Honolulu tomorrow, praying that we have the paperwork in it’s correct form as it will take them four business days to review before we can pick them back up. I don’t want to think about what will happen if there is any delay…
Next, what day should my husband leave? We were told that there was a meeting on the 30th that he needed to attend so we proposed a departure date of the 28th which would put him in Tokyo on the afternoon of the 29th. With a good night of sleep he would hopefully be awake enough for the meeting on the 30th. He would then head off to Kamogawa for a week on the 31st followed by three weeks in Kagoshima before coming back to Tokyo and meeting up with me. It all seems reasonable until he is told that he needs to be in Japan on the 28th to drop off his luggage so it can be transported to Kamogaya but that the meeting on the 30th has been canceled. So this would mean leaving on the 26th to get there on the 27th so that he can drop his bags off on the 28th. With no meeting planned this is basically a waste of 3 1/2 days until he leaves on he 31st. His interpreter is currently trying to find out if he can ship his luggage an alternate way so that he doesn’t have to arrive early simply to drop off the luggage. We are awaiting the results of his inquiries.
Where will we be living? I have asked for our address a few times to arrange for shipping some stuff over and forwarding our mail but am told that the apartment will be ready on the 22nd but that they don’t know the address yet…what??? If you know it’s going to be ready wouldn’t you know where it is? Furniture needs to be delivered, etc…
Countless emails, the New Years break, two different interpreters and levels of bureaucracy that we can’t begin to fathom are making me wonder if we will be picking up visas on the way to the airport and dragging luggage through a train station or two. This should be fun – stay tuned!
Top Ten Reasons I am excited to go back to Japan
I’ve been pondering a lot lately on all of the reasons that I am looking forward to my return to Japan. I’ve been having a hard time nailing down my thoughts so I created a top ten list….
The ability to continue the journey that I started in 1994 and revisit my favorite places. I have already told you about the beautiful iris garden at Meiji Jingu Shrine. I am also looking forward to having fresh warm sembe in Asakusa again (pictured below from Gaijinphoto Magazine) and I want to see the cherry blossoms, feed the birds in Ueno Park, buy cooking gadgets and check gout the plastic food replicas in Kapabashi and so much more!
Japan is an amazing country that somehow manages to be very modern while still honoring it’s ancient past and traditions. This time I want to explore more of the country, it’s culture and history. I want to visit an onsen and climb Mount Fuji, go to Hiroshima, see more matsuri (festivals), visit more gardens and shrines and take a ton of photos.
The 100 Yen store – this is an awesome store and I can hardly wait to go shopping. It puts the US Dollar stores to shame!
See a Sumo tournament or basho in person.
Watch a lot of Japanese Professional Baseball in person and on TV, enjoy the fanatic cheering sections and their version of the 7th inning stretch where balloons are released instead of singing “Take me out to the Ballpark” . Click the photo from Japan Ball to see more Japanese baseball photos.
Japanese television – the food shows make you hungry and the variety shows are hilarious even if you can’t understand the language!
The food – Contrary to popular belief you can get really good food at reasonable prices in Japan. The bakeries offer very tasty treats (probably because most Japanese homes don’t have ovens) and the Japanese konbini or convenience stores have a lot of great food and offer far better quality that their US counterparts (I would bring home zaru soba or sushi in the summer that would rival some good Japanese restaurants at home!). Here is a link to a blog on konbini life which will show you some of the products offered. We also enjoyed sampling from the various food courts in departments stores where there was always a variety of delicious offerings from various world cuisines.
Enjoy and learn more about the arts & crafts of Japan. I love the fabric, the dolls, ikebana, kimono and the pottery just to name a few.
Finding items that the Japanese use in daily life at the local stores. I picked up some items last time that I am still using.
Not driving – I love the walking, taking the train and this time I am getting a bike!
Gearing up for Japan – not too American Please!
I’ve noticed something lately that’s beginning to trouble me. When I tell someone that I am moving to Japan they immediately tell me how lucky I am and that they wish they could do it too. Often, if they have been to Japan, they tell me about how great their visit was and all about the highlights of their trip. This is great as I love to get advice about what to do and see!
But, here’s the kicker, the next part of the conversation inevitably moves to all of the things that I will miss at home and all of the American stores and restaurants that are in Japan.
Now don’t get me wrong I know that I am going to want to go to an American restaurant while I’m over there and that there will be a number of things that I will miss about home but I don’t want to spend all of my time before I leave planning on how to “Americanize” my stay.
This article from Japundit confirms what I already knew…if it’s American the Japanese love it, right down to the toilet paper.
Here are some tips that I have already received about foreign amenities in Mihama-ku:
Outback Steakhouse has a restaurant by the train station.
Tony Roma’s Ribs & Seafood is in the neighborhood.
So is Subway.
Kentucky Fried Chicken is there.
So is McDonalds, but where aren’t they?
The same can be said for Starbucks with seven stores in Mihama!
If I want ice-cream there is always Baskin Robbins
For shopping I could go to Costco or Ikea.
Now what is it that I will miss when I am in Japan? I know – Jamba Juice and my family!
Gearing up for Japan – Technology
Technology sure has changed since 1998 (our last time living in Japan). Here are some of the technology decisions that I will need to make, hopefully with some guidance from my husband’s employer:
Long Distance Calling – Should we use a callback service as described at dial-abroad.org or a VOIP (voice over IP) such as Skype which I am currently testing with my family in Canada? Computer to computer calls to other Skype users are free, as is the software, and I have found the instant message feature very handy for sharing quick links, files, photos and notes. There are also some paid options, one of which will allow you to get a local number, almost anywhere, that your friends and family can use to call you without incurring international charges. I’m still researching this….
Cell phones - There is a company that called YouMail that I found by searching Ask MetaFilter. It allows you to listen to voicemail over the web without using your minutes– how cool! I also have to decide if I will get a cell phone in Japan and whether or not I will need to get a land line as well.
Internet – There are so many choices and apparently, depending on where you live you may need to get internet installed or some apartment buildings offer a wireless connection that can be utilized. I’m a little confused by all of the terminology and what I will actually need but here is a comparison of the different options by Asahi-net.
Television – Did you know that you can purchase a Slingbox and watch your local TV on your PC anywhere in where you have internet access? This sounds very cool and there is no monthly fee, only the purchase of the equipment. Do I want to get Japanese cable too? I remember how much we enjoyed watching Sumo Wrestling and Japanese Baseball last time even though we couldn’t understand the commentary. We just made up our own which could be quite entertaining!
I’m sure that there are more things that I haven’t thought of yet and some that I will forget completely….
Gearing up for Japan – Things To Do At Home
There are a ton of things that I need to do before I head off to the land of the rising sun…but what are they? Here are some links that have helped me make my list.
JapanNewbie.com has a great article on how to drop everything and move abroad. Here is a summary of his tips:
Get up to speed with the expatriate community. Research clubs and lurk in forums
Get excited about the move – not a problem for me!
Start to learn the language
Blog it Japan has a more comprehensive list that includes the following items:
Pack vs. shipping – ship stuff you may not need immediately
Learn the language – must be good advice!
Save your money – Japan is expensive
Banking – make sure you can access you money and pay your bills back home
Make sure all of your documents are up-to-date, passport, driver’s license, etc…
Eat a lot of your favorite foods before you go – it might be a while before you can have them again!
Both of theses articles offer a little humor and great advice in more detail that I have listed here so check them out.
Here are some things that I will add:
Get a complete physical exam, have your eyes and teeth examined. Confirm that any medications that you take will be available in Japan and ensure that you have enough to cover you until you can figure out how to get more in Japan.
Review your medical coverage and ensure that you have proper coverage for Japan. There are many different options; here is my Google search for international medical coverage. Make sure you read all of the fine print on these policies as they are not the same as the policies that you may have been covered under in the past.
Decide what to do with your mail. Make sure you change your address where applicable and forward your mail to someone you trust to ensure that you haven’t missed any important items. Keep in mind that you can only forward your mail for six months. Here is a link to the US Postal Service where you change your address, forward or hold your mail.
Decide how you will communicate to your family and friends back home (Email, Instant Messaging, Blogging, VOIP, traditional long distance). If you will be using your computer for these things make sure that any software is loaded and working well before you leave. I need to upgrade the RAM on my computer because I added Skype (VOIP program) and a webcam to my system which seems to have slowed it down quite a bit.
If you will be using your credit card check to see if they charge international transaction fees in addition to the foreign exchange rate. This could get quite expensive if you use your card a lot.
If you have a car that you will be keeping check to see if you can reduce the premiums on your car insurance. If it is in storage (not being driven) the savings can be significant.
All of this is a bit overwhelming but I am tackling it piece but piece…
