First month in Japan

Two and a half weeks have passed since arriving in Japan, counting the preparations before coming, it's been more than a month. Today, I will summarize the things to do before and after going to Japan.

Before Going to Japan

Once the Certificate of Eligibility has been obtained, preparations can begin, not everything can wait for the visa to be issued, otherwise, it will be very rushed.

Renting a House

The most troublesome thing should be renting a house.

Considering that many people might be looking for a house at the same time after arriving in Japan, to avoid price hikes or not being able to rent a place (which, in retrospect, was unnecessary worry in this small city of 160,000 people), and to solve the address issue quickly, we decided to rent in advance from China.

Because the school's dormitory is very small, and we are two people living together with an office space needed. I am used to using two monitors, which would not fit in the dormitory. Additionally, the cost of two people living in a dorm is more expensive than renting a 2-room locally (renting a double room costs 78,000 yen per month), so we decided to rent a place ourselves.

However, due to some pitfalls set by predecessors, many houses in Japan do not rent to foreigners. I found some satisfactory houses on suumo and inquired by leaving messages.

In response, some houses could be rented by foreigners, but the best layout one, which is the one I ultimately rented, the agent said they wouldn't rent to foreigners. So, I replied with an email saying that both of us are over 30 and don't plan to leave this time. Plus, we are designers and developers, so no worries about money.

Another crucial reason is that I have an uncle who has been in Japan for over thirty years and has Japanese nationality. When the landlord was worried about communication, it was my uncle who communicated with the Japanese side and acted as a guarantor, which eventually eased the landlord's concerns.

Therefore, two to three weeks before going to Japan, I signed the rental contract, paid the initial deposit, and solved the biggest problem.

In Japan, the first payment for renting a house is called the initial deposit, which usually includes a month's rent, a month's deposit, and possibly a non-refundable gratuity for the landlord for renting the house to you. The gratuity is the most unreasonable one, but fortunately, my house doesn't have it. Besides, it also includes property insurance and the guarantee company fee, in case you run away, the guarantee company needs to compensate the landlord's losses.

My monthly rent is 65,000 yen, and the management fee is 5,000 yen. Yes, even such a small 4-story building has an elevator and needs property management.

In the end, including the fee for moving in a week earlier, I transferred a total of 287,047 yen.

This house is 47 square meters, 2LDK, a rectangular layout. This price could make people in Tokyo envious. Renting a one-bedroom apartment in Tokyo would be tough, let alone a two-bedroom; it would at least double the price, and the location wouldn't be good.

Overall, renting a house was very smooth, from starting communication to video calls to the guarantee company review, all done seamlessly within a week.

SIM Card

Signing a rental contract, mailing luggage, etc., all require a phone number. To avoid the trouble of changing phone numbers later, I bought a cmlink Japan card in advance and had it mailed to China. Although it couldn't be activated before arriving in Japan, having a number is better. Japan allows number portability, so I can switch providers later.

Luggage

A few days before departure, we packed some clothes and shoes we wouldn't wear temporarily into three boxes and sent them by sea.

However, these clothes are still drifting on the sea till today, not knowing when they will be delivered.

Cash

I got a BOC Cross-border Passbook Debit Card, Mastercard single-labeled. After exchanging foreign currency at the Bank of China, there's no fee for transferring to this card. Then, the first withdrawal abroad each month is free of charge.

For students who can't apply for a credit card, it can also be used for daily shopping.

After Arriving in Japan - Housing

Utilities

After arriving in Ueda, the intermediary picked us up in a K-car and introduced a bunch of contract details at the office (which I didn't understand), then sent us to the house.

Water and electricity had already been turned on for me, and the gas company came in the afternoon to activate the gas.

These bills will be regularly sent to my mailbox, which I can bring to a convenience store to pay. Today I tried using LINE to scan the code on the electric bill, and the payment was successful.

Of course, you can also fill in your bank account or credit card information on a form and mail it back, then it will be automatically deducted.

Home Appliances and Furniture

Renting a house in Japan generally does not come with furniture. Fully furnished places are obviously much more expensive in terms of rent.

Other than lights, a water heater, possibly a stove, an exhaust fan, air conditioning, and a toilet seat that can wash your butt, you have to buy everything else yourself.

Although this approach might cause new arrivals to Japan to spend a lot, it’s more convenient in the long run to use your own things. If you have rented a house before, you might have experienced the landlord's provided appliances and furniture being too old, and not willing to replace them when buying your own new ones because there’s no place to put them, or not wanting to leave the new ones behind.

Furniture and home appliances are the most tiring part. Since we don't have a car, we had to either pay for delivery or slowly move things with a bicycle ourselves. After who knows how many trips, we finally started to feel a bit like home.

After Arriving in Japan - Formalities

After arriving in Japan, besides buying things, there are many formalities to handle.

Residence Registration at the City Hall

The first thing to do after determining your address is to go to the local government office to register your address, then your residence card will have the address. Subsequent tasks, including but not limited to applying for a SIM card and opening a bank account, require a residence card with an address.

Compared to Tokyo, there are very few foreigners in Ueda, just about five or six hundred Chinese. Luckily, we encountered a Chinese-speaking staff at the city hall who helped us register our address and set up health insurance.

Mobile Phone

After updating the residence card, you can go get a SIM card. After comparing online, I chose Y!mobile as the provider to switch to. 4015 yen per month, 20GB data, and with Softbank broadband I also subscribed, there's a 1650 yen discount.

It's indeed much more expensive than in China. There are cheaper providers, but after searching online reviews, Y!mobile seemed the most cost-effective for me.

Broadband

Broadband was the most frustrating.

I initially subscribed to Softbank's 1Gb apartment-type network, 4180 yen per month. All online and on-site enquiries confirmed my address didn’t need construction, meaning I could use the internet as soon as I got the device.

However, I found that my house only had telephone lines, theoretically maxing out at equivalent to 100Mb speed. Paying for gigabit but using decades-old speed was unacceptable.

Then began a nearly two-week tug-of-war.

My request was simple: to send someone to check and determine how to lay fiber, so I can confirm with the landlord. Then, let me have gigabit internet.

It took them ages to understand that I’m not unable to get online, nor is there a setup issue, but the physical characteristics of this line limit the speed.

Today finally saw some progress: NTT will come for construction in two weeks. Just a visit, not a guarantee for results.

(Unlike China, Japan's ISPs and lines are separate. Some require separate subscriptions, some are integrated. In my case, dealing only with the ISP, but the lines and technicians come from NTT, not Softbank)

Once I have my symmetrical gigabit internet, I'll post results on Twitter immediately.

Bank Account

Before school started, I visited the post office but was told a student ID is required to open an account. After school began, I applied for an account through the JP Bank app, still awaiting news.

Other major banks supposedly require six months of residence, so I won't try for now.

Experience

Chinese internet has little information about Ueda. The two somewhat notable points are that it's a famous base of the Sanada clan in the Japanese Sengoku period, and it's close to Bessho Onsen. Also, 30 kilometers from Karuizawa towards Nagano is Ueda.

Climate

Overall, Ueda's climate is very comfortable. Before coming, seeing low single-digit and teens temperatures scared me into researching how Japanese keep warm. Based on my experience in Chengdu, outdoor 10°C makes indoor breath visible.

Arriving here, it's far more comfortable than Chengdu. Despite teens and rain, it's not cold. On sunny days, temperatures can rise above 20°C, just wearing a single layer is enough under the sun.

And in the distance are snow-capped mountains.

I've always wanted to live in a city with a view of snow-capped mountains, and it turned out to be here.

Urbanization

Although it took a month to lay a fiber and three weeks to deliver a washing machine, the city's urbanization exceeds my expectations.

For example, Amazon delivers next-day on orders, sometimes within the next day if ordered in the morning.

This area might have fewer than 100,000 people, but there are several large supermarkets and malls, with some open 24 hours. The streets are quite lively.

My feeling is that this place is like a miniature version of a mid-sized U.S. city. Commercial areas lead to quiet residential zones, where driving to shopping centers satisfies daily needs.

Overall, I quite like it here. It's quiet but not too desolate. Most things can be bought, and if not, the Shinkansen takes just over an hour to reach Tokyo.

Cost of Living

As for the cost of living here, my conclusion is: a bit expensive but not unmanageable.

Supermarket prices are obviously higher than in China, roughly at Ole's level. Some foods are quite expensive:

Also, there's the legendary overpriced melon:

But at farmers' markets or local markets, there are cheaper options:

To be continued

This summary covers the first month; I may update by category later. There are many Chinese in Japan, but my case is unique enough and niche: old age, zero foundation, small city. My experience may not be greatly valuable but might still add a bit to the internet.

If you want to know about Japan, feel free to leave a comment.