Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Japan and resolved

Insurance options for the recently unemployed in Tokyo?

princeoftheair — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 18:32:04 -0800

I'm an American living in working in Tokyo, but am planning on moving to the states in a few months. I will leave my current job in a month that is providing insurance and take a month or two off to get my affairs in order. What are my options for insurance after I resign? As far as I can tell, there is government insurance that I can buy into for being uninsured, but if I report that I have no job I will be switched over from my working visa to a 90-day tourist visa. I'm happy to switch over as I am planning on leaving anyway, but can I still register for insurance to cover my last couple months? Would it be possible to register for the insurance and NOT mention I am unemployed? Are there other options to alleviate my medical emergency anxiety?

I would just go without, but I have gotten pretty sick a couple of times in the last few months that required a hospital visit. I would gladly pay for some peace of mind that this point. I appreciate any information on this as my google searches have been rather unhelpful.

Origin of Hotta-San hunting knife at Best Made?

BlackLeotardFront — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 14:19:24 -0800

I've been looking at this knife at Best Made for a while, and I can't seem to find its provenance. Many other products at Best Made are rebranded or what have you versions from known suppliers, but I cannot for the life of me find a knife that resembles the Hotta-san — after looking at hundreds online. Everything I find refers back to Best Made's info. Can anyone unravel this mystery? I am looking to buy a nice wood-handled outdoorsy knife, and I have plenty of suggestions and leads. This one is just right up my alley, but I'm wary of the Best Made premium - $250 buys a lot of knife and I'm not sure this is comparable to others.

What's a trustworthy online store where I can import goods from Japan?

Lazer — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 08:59:28 -0800

I live in Europe and I would like to import some Japanese products as a Birthday gift for someone. What I'm looking for is traditional food/spices and things like pillows or bedding (two very different categories). What is a trustworthy online store I can use? I've started looking around, but most online stores I've found either sell "Japanese-style" products or consist of many tiny retailers that ship from Japan, but charge separately for each shipment (so if I want to get a couple of different kinds of products they would more than likely be shipped and charged separately and not arrive at the same time). Others claim they are selling Japanese products, but seem to mostly sell those cute plastic toys. I'm not looking for anime or manga style gifts - more for items that someone who has visited and loved the country for its nature, food, and history would enjoy.

Can anyone recommend an online store that might sell these kinds of items (and import directly from Japan)? Does such a thing even exist, where I can buy two categories in one shipment, or is my only option buying from one of those big online marketplaces that are fragemented? What I'm mostly worried about is having things come in tiny batches as well as ordering some sort of knockoff.

What is the title of this old Japanese Superman record?

MegoSteve — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 10:18:18 -0800

I collect Superman memorabilia and recently bought a Japanese Superman children's story record, but I can't actually read Japanese beyond vague recognition of the characters that make up the name Superman. What is the title of this record?

Sonic sculpture (ice, pebbles on bamboo and metal) Any other examples?

surplus — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 16:58:22 -0800

The ice melts, releasing the pebbles onto the sculpture. YOUTUBE Anyone know more about this genre of what I call sonic sculpture? Source and more info: http://koplindelrio.com/content/mineko-grimmer

And now, a question. She didn't think of this. As a child I saw a functionally similar sonic sculpture in San Francisco in the 1970's, maybe at the Japanese Tea Garden at Golden Gate? It had no metal in it and it had a much more hollow bamboo sound, and it was much larger and more graceful in a larger more resonant room and it made a pretty good mess.

Can anyone can help me find more about this style?

The name of this type sculpture or art?

Other examples?

Can anyone point me to longer .mp3 recordings?

Significance of Pearl Harbor in U.S. entry to WWII

mousepad — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 08:54:52 -0800

What if Japan had not attacked Pearl Harbor? I realize any answer would be purely conjecture, but can't help thinking that historical scholars have already come up with well thought-out theories on the question...and that's what I need help with. How would the Second World War have [most likely] played out if Japan had not attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor? General thoughts are welcome but, again, I'm looking for credible sources where this scenario has been vetted against the geo-politics of mid-20th Century.

It's the kind of J-pop you could really sumo wrestle to.

markkraft — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 08:20:49 -0800

Which Japanese band / song is used in this video? They're very New Order'y, and I know the missus would like them a lot. Extra credit: Is there a pattern / design / instructions out there for making and playing with paper doll sumo wrestlers like this? Because, frankly, this has Rock'em Sock'em Robots beat all to hell.

Can I come to the USA on a tourist visa?

YukoInNature — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 18:49:25 -0800

Would I be able to come visit the USA in the future? I'm a Japanese citizen. I've lived in the USA since March 2011 on a CR1 visa as a conditional permanent resident. The residency expires in March 2013.

I'm planning on returning to Japan to live there in January 2013.

Would there be any problem getting a tourist visa for visiting the US in the future? I don't know when but I might want to come visit some friends or places for a short time.

Thank you for your answers in advance.

Japanese translation help in guitar search

Put the kettle on — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 18:24:34 -0800

I've been looking for a certain guitar (a Yamaha SG 3000) and have lately been looking on Japanese web sites to see if I can have one shipped from there. I've found one I like the look of, but Google Translate isn't being particularly helpful. Could anyone translate the description for me? Here it is:
シリアルSIJ0041 からはじまります。オリジナルハードケース付属。こちらの商品は珍しく白濁がほぼありません。フレットの減りも少なく、ロッドを含め機能良好です。弦交換、クリーニングずみ。プロによるメンテナンスずみの商品になりますのでご安心して検討ください。古いものですので多少使用感はございますので神経質な方は入札をお控えください。送料一律2000円。北海道、沖縄、中継地点がある地域は4000円。落札後12時間いないに連絡お願い致します。落札後24時間いないに振り込み確認できるかたのみ入札をお願い致します。新規のかたとの取引はいたしません。ご理解お願い致します。今回一回限りの出品ですので是非ご検討ください。

I'm especially interested in what it has to say about clouding/fogging on the guitar, which affects how the finish looks over time. If there's any mentions of damage or imperfections to the guitar, I'd really like to know about those, too.

You can view the guitar here if that would be helpful.

If you need any more information that could help with the translation, please ask and I'll do my best to help.

Thanks for your help!

Summer in Japan. How can I make this happen?

Marinara — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 12:23:10 -0800

Traveling to Japan this summer with my sister. Help me make this the best trip ever and not lose my mind. My younger sister is graduating from high school this coming year and, to celebrate, we want to take a long vacation to Japan before she leaves for college. As it stands right now, we plan on leaving mid-June and staying 30-40 days. My sister is proficient in Japanese while I have a basic grasp of numbers and simple phrases. I'm working on learning more but it's slow going.

The thing is, I've been pouring over tourism books and internet travel guides way too late into the night. There is just SO much to do. We've also been debating flying into Cambodia/Laos and spending some time there before taking a ferry over from China. Or should we just spend the entire time in Japan? Food is a big focus of the trip for me. My sister is very interested in more traditional aspects of Japanese life. We love hiking/camping. This question helped some but I'm still looking for more ideas.

We would like to travel on as tight of a budget as possible. We're interesting in WWOOFing for a week or two so if anyone has any location specific farms that would be appreciated. Where should we stay? Is the railroad pass worth it? What airline is the best/cheapest to fly with? We'll be coming from Seattle if that changes things. What should we budget? We were thinking $2-3000 but that seems like it won't be enough the more I read about Japan. I just need some suggestions and a place to get started from. Thanks for saving my sanity in advance.

Paperwork Galore

23 — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 02:33:55 -0800

JapanVisaFilter - My visa period is almost up, and my contract is extended but not for a whole year. What's up? I'm in Japan on a one-year engineering visa. My company has extended my contract, but only for six months (all the paperwork for that is done). I'm going in to renew my visa tomorrow, but it expires at the end of this week (I got careless and forgot about the renewal date).

1. Can I get my visa extended?

2. Is my visa automatically extended while they process my application? If not, what can I do?

This is my first visa renewal in Japan and I'm an American citizen, if that makes a difference.

Bento newbie seeks sensei

digitalprimate — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 04:47:55 -0800

Help me find the perfect bento box. I'm looking for bento boxes for my two children (ages 7 & 9) to cut down on the weight and volume of all the separate containers they carry now and to pack more diverse meals for them.

There are several great askmes about what to put in a bento box or where to buy them, but I haven't found any links that help one choose a bento box.

Usage details: These boxes will go into these knapsacks that will also contain books/notebooks and extra clothes. I'll make the boxes in the morning. My kids eat just about anything, so imagine I'll be putting just about anything into them. There is no refrigeration or a way to reheat things at the school; it'll all be room temperature for about four hours.

Questions: How many compartments? Leakproof? Microwavable? What to use for internal dividers? Elastic band or side clasps to close it? Cooling element or insulated bag? Rectangular or oval? Plastic, metal or wood? Where do (reusable) drink containers go? The "unknown unknowns" of how children will use/abuse the boxes?

Help?

CLAIR in Japan

sconbie — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 18:22:12 -0800

Have you been hosted by CLAIR on a visit to Japan? Looking for stories and anecdotes. I may have an opportunity to attend the Local Government Exchange and Cooperation Seminar and am looking for anecdotes and stories about the experience. I have travelled to Japan many times before and am a confident speaker. Interested in what the program involves.
Arigatoo Gozaimasu!

30th birthday present for an older brother living in Japan. Home comforts need not apply.

fakelvis — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 02:28:20 -0800

In two weeks it is my sibling's 30th birthday. He lives in Japan. I live in Western Europe. What can I get him? Inspire me! My older brother turns thirty in two weeks. He lives in Tokyo, I live in Amsterdam. We are both British. I can't think of anything suitable to get him. Inspire me, mefites.

He likes: art (ranging from Rembrandt to Dali, not Hirst), socialising (food, drink), and film (Kubrick, Kawasawa). I'm equally as happy buying an experience as an object. My budget is around €100 ($125, ¥10000), but can easily be stretched for the correct present (doubled, etc.).

Original thoughts include: meal voucher(s) for him and his girlfriend at a nice restaurant, an annual/quarterly museum or gallery pass, an iPad for better communication with me and family back home.

Where to go? What to do?

kjs4 — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 22:43:19 -0800

My planned holiday to Europe in Sept/Oct has been postponed, and now I have three weeks to go..... somewhere. I'm female, early thirties and will be flying out of Sydney. I enjoy my own company and love to travel. Please suggest places to go and things to do that I will enjoy by myself. Preferences after the jump. - The original trip was London/France/Barcelona, so not those. Not Germany, Austria, Switzerland, UK, Poland, New York, San Francisco Western Canada or Malaysia as I've done those.
- I'm not a massive fan of "14 countries in 14 days" tours. Would maybe consider a week long tour that goes to places I couldn't get to easily on public transport, but not for the whole time. Also, they seem like they'd be a bit weird to do by myself, as I find small talk exhausting.
- I have no interest in sitting on a beach doing nothing. Terribly dull and I sunburn easily.
- I enjoy urban centres, civilisation, museums, history, architecture and novelty. I like swing dancing, crafts and exploring by bike, on foot and by public transport.
- I'd prefer to keep the flights to less than 30hrs. I was considering Southern Spain/Morocco, but the flight lengths are terrible.
- I'd strongly prefer places I can explore by myself safely. I'm happy to wander the streets of Manhattan or Sydney at 2am, to give a comfort level approximation.
- If at all possible, I'd like to keep the amount of planning I have to do to a minimum. So, not too many moves. (I find chosing accomodation incredibly stressful. I also don't have much time and have found in the past that my month long jaunts through Europe have resulted in me achieving little other than planning in the weeks leading up to it.) This means that I probably need some sort of activity to do, as there aren't that many places that can keep a solo traveller happy for more than a few days.
- I don't mind a language gap, and will probably spend the time until leaving learning at least the basics if there is one. I speak German and was learning basic Spanish in preparation for Barcelona.

Places I have considered:

- Southern Spain/Morocco. It was getting very complicated (7 separate cities with train trips in between), and flights didn't work. I might do a similar trip with my parents in a few years.
- South America, maybe Colombia or Guatamala. I am considering doing a couple of weeks learning Spanish somewhere, and then a week doing something else. Bogota looked cool because of its cycling culture and (apparently) pleasant accent, but the safety aspect makes me hesitant. Also, I couldn't find anything I particularly wanted to do for the third week.
- Japan. Kyoto plus something? I've also got a friend who might be in South Korea around that time, but it's not confirmed yet.
- Istanbul. There's a Lindy swing dance exchange around that time, but the follows are waitlisted, so I might not be able to get in. Would be cool though, and I assume I could use up a week exploring the city. Need some other places to add on though.
- Trans-Siberian. I've always wanted to do this, but the visas look complicated, and I'm not sure I want to do it by myself.

So, any suggestions for itineraries or activities? YANMTA (you are not my travel agent), but the more details the better.

Will I get stuck in Tokyo?

jcrbuzz — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 04:38:18 -0800

Please help me determine if this flight plan through Narita (Tokyo) airport is plausible or insane. I have a flight booked that will take me directly from Boston (BOS) to Nartia (NRT) and land at 3:50pm. I want to then catch a plane from NRT to Komatsu (KMQ) that leaves at 5:55pm. I will not be checking any bags. Will I have enough time to clear customs and security to get on this flight?

Bonus question: My flight home leaves at 11:30am, and no flights from KMQ get in that early (that I know of), so I was planning on flying back to Toyko the day before. Can anyone recommend a good hotel near NRT airport that I can stay in for one night?

Japanese film with poison gas and windmills?

mediated self — Wed, 04 Jul 2012 10:12:32 -0800

Japanese film...colored clouds of poison gas...a village of windmills...what movie am I half-remembering? When I was a child I saw part of a movie on television and the images have haunted me ever since. Googling the recollected details hasn't produced a title. Pretty sure it was a Japanese film. Here's what I remember:

- It seemed to be comprised of a series of vignettes. Each segment was a self-contained story, but the connecting thread was a protagonist who appeared in every sequence. This character was a skinny man, in fact I remember him looking like a Japanese version of Gilligan, red-shirt and all.

- In the first sequence I remember three people (a young woman, an older man, and the main character) are standing on a rocky cliff ledge overlooking the sea. They seem frantic and it develops that they have fled a chemical weapons attack. Clouds of smoke of different colors begin drifting toward them. The older man explains that the gases are colored according to their effects...e.g., the green gas causes monsterism, the blue gas suffocates, etc. As they stand with their backs to the sea watching the clouds of gas move closer there is a splash...the woman has jumped into the sea. The older man remarks that knowing the effects of each gas based on the color is worse than not knowing. He jumps off the cliff, leaving just the Gilligan character. Fade to black.

- The other segment I remember begins with the Gilligan character walking into like a village of windmills...that's what I recall: windmills everywhere. He interacts with the people there, lots of happy children. I remember feeling jarred by the stark tonal differences between the two sequences.

That's all I remember. Any ideas about what this movie may be are greatly appreciated!

Can non-residents buy property in Japan?

Megami — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 02:03:59 -0800

Can non-residents buy property in Japan? We are in a position where we can finally buy some property, and since we know we are not in a position to live in the same place for a period of time, we would like to buy places that have character, are in an area we like to visit and perhaps (in the very distant future) live. Inspired by this post and a general love of Japan I am really interested in buying a place there. Is it possible? How difficult would it be?

Things to do around Kure, Japan

MrSomeone — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 08:44:34 -0800

I am heading to Japan for the first time. Looking for day trip suggestions and things to do near Kure. I will be traveling to Kure, Japan for about 10 days next month (mid-July) for work. I anticipate a few days of downtime--probably not consecutive days, so I'm looking for some fun things to do in Kure and nearby areas. I enjoy the outdoors, but it seems like it may be pretty rainy in July, so indoor and outdoor suggestions are welcome. Since I am a vegetarian I was also wondering if there are any local dishes I should try or even specific eateries I shouldn't miss.

Places accessible via rail/bus are preferred as I will be staying a short walk from the Kure rail station. Hiroshima is less than an hour away, so I definitely plan on spending a day there. Any specific suggestions for things to see in Hiroshima?

This will be my first time in Japan, so any general tips/info would also be appreciated. Arigatou gozaimasu!

Finding a full-time gig in Japan while over there, work visa expiring soon?

Kamelot123 — Sat, 26 May 2012 16:03:19 -0800

Looking for work in Japan - Have a work visa that will expire in early August. Details inside. Hi everyone,

I was an English teacher (ALT) in Japan for two years, and have a Japanese major/English minor. I decided not to stay on for a third year due to some personal/family problems.

Now I will be doing a part-time job over in Japan over in the summer, and after much soul-searching have decided to try for a more permanent position in japan and get my work visa renewed while I am there.

Unfortunately, I do not have much time - The visa will expire on August 2nd. I will be in Japan from June 1st until the visa expiration date, unless I am able to secure another gig. And I know that it takes at least a few weeks to change the visa over.

I have somewhere between JLPT 1-kyuu and 2-kyuu Japanese at the moment (am taking JLPT N1 in July). I can speak, write and read fairly well, in my opinion. If possible I'd like to find a position in which I could use the Japanese I've learned, but I realize that I am running out of time.

I am currently looking on some job sites like careercross, gaijinpot, and a few temp agencies.

Anyone have any experience with anything like this? Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

PS: (I am in the States now, but will be in Japan in a week)

How do I carry my yen?

hoyland — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:13:51 -0800

What's the best way to handle getting/carrying foreign currency? (For travel to Japan, in particular.) In addition to the ninety thousand other bizarre anxieties I'm having about this trip to Japan, I've realised that I don't actually know how 'normal' people handle money while travelling. For past trips, I've simply changed money before I left and taken cash and that was all the money I've spent. But that's never been more than €150. (The one time I haven't stayed with friends/relatives, my friend was drawing money out of a local account and I paid him my share in dollars.)

The options I can see are

Change enough cash for the whole trip before I leave. I have qualms about carrying that much cash. I don't know if it's simply psychological because the numbers are so big for JPY.
Traveller's checks. Yes, they've gone super out of fashion. They may be hard to cash in Japan.
Credit card. As I understand it, Japan's a cash economy. I need to pay for the hostels in cash. Maybe good for train tickets, though there's an irritating 3% surcharge on foreign transactions. Oh, plus Japan has chip-and-pin it seems.
ATM. My bank charges an outrageous $5 plus 3%. To be honest, I want to avoid this option out of principle, though it's probably the best option if my aversion to carrying large sums of cash makes sense.

So what to real adults do? Are there options I haven't thought about?

Can debris for the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami be used to create new land?

sconbie — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:32:32 -0800

Could rubble and debris from the Great Eastern Japan earthquake be 'reclaimed' to make useable land? The earthquake and tsunami created an estimated 24–25 million tons of rubble and debris in Japan. Could this rubble be reclaimed to create land that is able to be used for housing or other purposes?
Bonus question: If this is possible, and a new island was created, what would the dimensions of this new land be?
Thanks!

Tsukemono / Japanese pickle recipes needed

ryanshepard — Wed, 09 May 2012 20:20:56 -0800

Give me your favorite tsukemono recipes, please. I live in the US and can't afford any of the recommended, OoP cookbooks (e.g.) that were available here, so I'm turning to you, hivemind. Hit me we with your best tsukemono recipes!

What's the cheapest way to ship a book from the US to Japan?

No-sword — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 03:29:30 -0800

What's the cheapest way to send a single normal-sized book weighing about a pound from the US to Japan? I'm trying to help an academic society at a US college figure out how to get a book (that they publish) to where I live in Japan. Bookselling isn't a big part of what they do and apparently they don't often send things overseas. They checked US Post and got an estimated cost of about $40; I checked UPS and got about the same. (I haven't checked FedEx because their rates calculator doesn't let you select different origin and destination countries without bouncing you to their global "choose a country" splash site.)

These prices strike me as wildly extravagant. Is there a better way that I'm just not seeing? Or are cheaper rates only available to big companies and/or people mailing things in bulk? I don't need tracking or super-expedited delivery or anything fancy like that.

Southeast Asia travel suggestions

holyrood — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 13:50:56 -0800

Southeast Asia travel advice desired. Where should two vegetarians who speak English go for a 5 day vacation in mid December? My boyfriend and I (I'm a woman) have to be in Seoul, Korea December 20 through 23, but figured we'd take the chance to see another country from December ~13-20. The boyfriend has been to Thailand, and right now Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, and Indonesia top the list. We are Americans leaving from Los Angeles, have limited funds, and enjoy food, historic stuff, art, museums, (you know, nerdy stuff) when traveling. Ifound some questions from 2010, but none addressed vegetarian food! Any suggestions on where to go?