Annie's Excursions

A little bit of an overdue post I suppose, but better late than never! Since the new accepted shortlisters are being announced, I fiigured this post was timely. Here’s a list of the main things that I brought with me to Japan, when I first arrived on the JET Program. Keep in mind that at the time I was only allowed two suitcases, and a personal carry-on (I brought a backpack, and a small purse, which I could fit in my backpack if need be). I was moving to Hokkaido, so I also shipped a big box of things, mostly for winter use and other miscellaneous personal items, from America before I left, and had it set to arrive a few days after I got settled in my new home. Some overall thoughts at the end follow…

On me the day I left, I wore

• a t-shirt, since I knew I’d get hot easily
• a light jacket in case the plane was cold
• jeans
• socks
• casual sneakers
• and my small purse.

In my purse, I had more immediate things I would need to grab or have quick access on the plane:

• my phone
• a power bank
• my wallet
• my DS
• earbuds
• passport with visa
• and my plane ticket.

In my backpack, I had some essentials and personal lifestyle items that I would like access to and safekeeping, but nothing I would constantly need on the plane:

• my laptop
• small travel-size toiletries, like lotion, disposable toothbrush, toothpaste
• tweezers
• snacks
• various personal documents I needed at the time
• an empty water bottle
• my cable chargers for my electronics
• headphones
• my mini scissors (they ended up breaking after a while in Japan…which I was quite sad about)
• a keychain, for my eventual house keys
• my immediate medication
• a mini fan (since it’s peak summer!)
• my sunglasses
• playing cards
• my retainers.

I brought 2 large suitcases, both of which I checked in. Now, since we were only allowed 2 suitcases in general, I also wanted some way to bring a carry on, in case when I traveled in the future, either domestically or internationally, that I’d want to bring one. Another reason was because I’d be shipping my large suitcases from the JET orientation happening in Tokyo to Hokkaido, and they would arrive a few days after I got there, but I’d still need some clothes and things for those few days. Instead of keeping a large one on me, I figured it’d be better to have a small one with me to pack just those few days of essentials. The solution? I actually brought a carry-on within one of my large check-ins on the way here. Props to my mom for helping me think of that!

Between my two large check-ins I brought:

• a carry-on size suitcase
• around 8 casual tops
• around 8 casual bottoms
• around 10 work tops
• around 7 work bottoms
• 2 sets of sportswear
• a suit
• underwear
• a hair brush and other things I need hair-wise
• masks (it was still peak corona)
• a few tubes of toothpaste (I heard Japanese toothpaste tends to not have fluoride)
• a nail clipper + file
• an umbrella
• a small bottle of shampoo
• sunblock
• my backup glasses
• a hat
• pajamas
• women’s sanitary products (I know Japan is pretty pad-friendly, but I wanted to start off with ones I was familiar with)
• a first aid kid
• larger size hand sanitizer
• a pair of sneakers
• a small plushie
• omiyage/souvenirs for my coworkers (which were a few boxes of sugarfina, large tea packs, and See’s hard candies)
• my medicine
• some bars of soap
• bigger sized lotion
• stickers for my kids
• 2 pairs of indoor shoes (I knew I would have 2 schools)
• a rain jacket
• flipflops
• a larger purse
• makeup
• a few pictures books in case I wanted to show off
• some color catchers for laundry

In my large carboard box I’d be shipping across the ocean:

• 1 trench coat
• 1 pair of snow boots
• 1 pair of rain boots
• 1 pair of ski pants
• 1 ski jacket
• 1 pair of sneakers
• 1 pair of loafers
• a few pairs of work and leisure pants
• a few long sleeve tops
• a few pairs of socks
• 1 robe
• a couple winter pajamas
• 1 pair of fuzzy slippers
• 4 camisoles
• 3 vests
• 2 t-shirts
• 1 can of tea
• 1 bag of tea

Good job me: Ok, so although omiyage is considered heavily optional, and no one really expects you to bring it or adhere to omiyage culture as a foreigner, I’m still glad I brought some. They’re a somewhat good conversation starter, if people are feeling nice and sociable, and it gives a nice first impression. I also exchanged about $3000 worth, or 380000 yen at the time, with my bank right before I left, because I didn’t know what to expect cost-wise when coming here after hearing various things online (From 2k to 5k, with most saying 3k was a safe bet).

I’d say it’s best to err on the side of caution than to bring too little, and in my case, the cash I brought with me lasted a good while. That’s mostly because I did use my non-foreign transaction fee credit card sometimes when doing shopping, and also I got a Japanese credit card a bit into my being here, so I also started using that. Plus, in the grand scheme of things, I didn’t have to spend too much before I got my first paycheck.

I’m also glad I brought indoor shoes with me, and one pair per school. I found that the indoor slippers here don’t fit me very well, plus since I have two schools, I didn’t want to carry one pair from one school to the other. If you ever find yourself with a suitcase limit and have other, not immediate items, I’d recommend the shipping method! Just find a Kuroneko drop-off location near you.

Perhaps unnecessary: This is highly personal and your own circumstances driven, but as much as I like all my casual outfits, imagine you work 5 days a week and don’t 2 days a week. I think I either brought over too many casual tops, or I did too much excited J-fashion shopping when I got here, and kind of ended up with a plethora of casual clothes. Do I regret any of that? Not really, I like what I bought, but do remember you can always shop here if you don’t bring that much with you (unless you don’t like the styles here or if your sizing isn’t Japanese friendly).