Far from it...
But I do now know a few things that I wish I had known from the first day. Or even before, when I had traveled to Japan for holidays. So here are a few things I've learned that make living or travelling in Japan easier. I'm sure in 6 months I'll have a whole different list of things I've found out and wished I knew...
1. Buy a handkerchief/hand towel
They sell these in all hundred yen shops, and also pretty much everywhere else. In Japan, most public toilets do not have paper supplied to wipe your hands after using the sink. They also, largely do not have hand drying machines. Japanese people, both men and women, carry a hand towel around with them in their bags. They're only small and would easily fit in a pocket, but are a lifesaver in cold weather when you face the idea of having to go out into the wind or snow with wet hands. They also come in handy when you're travelling around, visiting temples and want to use the purifying water.
2. Keep your shopping bags.
A lot of Japanese grocery shops charge for shopping bags in the spirit of `mottainai` (don't waste). Japan is very eco friendly so this is just one way that Japanese society encourages people to think deliberately about their actions. You'll start collecting the bags in your house and reusing them when you go shopping.
A lot of Japanese grocery shops charge for shopping bags in the spirit of `mottainai` (don't waste). Japan is very eco friendly so this is just one way that Japanese society encourages people to think deliberately about their actions. You'll start collecting the bags in your house and reusing them when you go shopping.
3. Take your bottles and takeaway tray to the shop with you
Japanese house bins are usually quite small, and if you have people over, or have a pig out weekend, or miss one of the specific bin days, you might not have room in your bins. So, get into the habit of taking a little bit of trash with you to the shops when you go. Shopping centres will have recycle-specific bins out the front and you can just pop your trash in on your way into the shop. Be aware though that a lot of bins will just be specifically just for PET bottles, or just for bottle lids, or just for cans, or just for the little trays that you get takeout food on. You're also supposed to have washed your litter before you put it in these bins.
4. Use all day tickets for the train
Every Tuesday and Friday I travel into Kobe for work. From my town of Nishifutami, this costs me 770yen one way. That's about $10 one way, so $20 in travel each day... It's a sizeable chunk. But I recently found out that there's a 1000yen all day ticket that you can buy for certain railways. It only allows you to travel using one railway company, but usually this is enough, and most railway companies offer them. This reduced my train expenses greatly, and also means that if I want to go somewhere after work then it doesn't cost me any extra. The 1000 yen ticket gets me anywhere from my home to Kobe area. There's also a 1500 yen ticket that can get you anywhere from my home to Osaka and back. Again, it's very discounted. If you go to any subway that's manned, you should be able to ask one of the attendants how to purchase an all day ticket. Just remember to make sure wherever you want to go is all on the same subway line.
5. Study on the train
Train rides around Japan are often long, and if you work in Japan, you'll probably have to do them pretty regularly. So you should study Japanese (or a chosen field) on the train! If you're wanting to learn some Japanese, I highly reccommend memrise. It's a free app, although you canpurchase the pro version. The pro version is super cheap- I think it's something like $60 for a whole year, and if you practice on the free version they usually offer you a 50% off! I reccommend getting the pro version because it allows you to download whole courses, which then allows you to study anywhere without using wifi or data. This is what I use every day on the trains. And the more you can understand, the easier your life in Japan will be.
6. Find the closest 100 yen shop
Seriously. You need to do it. You can usually just type "100 yen shop" into google and it will give you the closest location. For anything you need for your house, the 100 yen shop is the place. You'll find things you didn't even know you need for your house. You'll see it in the hundred yen shop and think "AH! This will make my life/home so much better!". You'll be surprised at how much you can get for 100 yen so this should always be your first stop when you need something. If it's NOT in the 100 yen shop, THEN look in more expensive places. They also have Lawson 100s which are 100 yen convenience stores. They are also your friend.
7. Carry a coin purse
Japan has 1 yen coins. It's essentially the equivalent of 1 cent and it's essentially worthless... You will get a lot of them. If you have a standard wallet, coins can stuff it up pretty quickly and make it unable to close. Luckily, you can get a cute coin purse easily from a hundred yen shop! Plus, they make good spots to put your all day pass so you don't lose it.
8. Use hyperdia.com to plan routes on trains and subway
Google maps is of course everyone's go to, and it's great for using when you're out and about.
But when using public transport in Japan, it has it's down sides. For example, google maps often does not show the cost of the tickets for private railways. This means that when you get to the ticket machine, you have no idea which ticket to buy, and are left desperately searching on the huge map signs which are sometimes not in English. For those who don't know- the only way to buy a ticket in Japan is to put in the price- you cannot buy a ticket by putting in where you want to go. You have to KNOW how much it should cost. So, if you're planning a trip in advance, use hyperdia.com. It gives you the amount you'll need to pay for each leg. It also gives you the option of finding a route that only uses JR trains (if you're using a JR pass). Google doesn't allow this and will always give you the quicket options instead. This might mean that you miss out on a free ride and have to end up paying because you used google rather than hyperdia.
9. Buy things online
Having trouble finding shoes to fit your size 12 feet? Or pants that are long enough for your 6 foot tall frame? Buy your stuff online! Lots of shops, like asos.com have free shipping to Japan that arrives in a reasonable time frame. Make sure you get someone to help you put in your Japanese address though! Which brings us to our last hack...
10. Make a Japanese friend!
This is literally the biggest life hack possible. It will make so many things easier in Japan.For example, in Japan, if someone tries to deliver a parcel and you're not home, you will then need to CALL them to arrange for it to be dropped off. So if you're not proficient in Japanese, this might be a struggle, or even impossible. So you need a Japanese friend as soon as possible! Meetup.com is really big in Japan and there are lots of groups for different interests. You can easily and rapidly meet Japanese people, and a lot of them simply want to practice English and will be willing to help you out. Tinder is also popular in Japan, and it's more for making friends without the stigma of being entirely for sex, like is common in Western countries. So you can also easily meet close-by people on Tinder. Again, people will probably hit you up wanting to practice English.
Japanese house bins are usually quite small, and if you have people over, or have a pig out weekend, or miss one of the specific bin days, you might not have room in your bins. So, get into the habit of taking a little bit of trash with you to the shops when you go. Shopping centres will have recycle-specific bins out the front and you can just pop your trash in on your way into the shop. Be aware though that a lot of bins will just be specifically just for PET bottles, or just for bottle lids, or just for cans, or just for the little trays that you get takeout food on. You're also supposed to have washed your litter before you put it in these bins.
4. Use all day tickets for the train
Every Tuesday and Friday I travel into Kobe for work. From my town of Nishifutami, this costs me 770yen one way. That's about $10 one way, so $20 in travel each day... It's a sizeable chunk. But I recently found out that there's a 1000yen all day ticket that you can buy for certain railways. It only allows you to travel using one railway company, but usually this is enough, and most railway companies offer them. This reduced my train expenses greatly, and also means that if I want to go somewhere after work then it doesn't cost me any extra. The 1000 yen ticket gets me anywhere from my home to Kobe area. There's also a 1500 yen ticket that can get you anywhere from my home to Osaka and back. Again, it's very discounted. If you go to any subway that's manned, you should be able to ask one of the attendants how to purchase an all day ticket. Just remember to make sure wherever you want to go is all on the same subway line.
5. Study on the train
Train rides around Japan are often long, and if you work in Japan, you'll probably have to do them pretty regularly. So you should study Japanese (or a chosen field) on the train! If you're wanting to learn some Japanese, I highly reccommend memrise. It's a free app, although you canpurchase the pro version. The pro version is super cheap- I think it's something like $60 for a whole year, and if you practice on the free version they usually offer you a 50% off! I reccommend getting the pro version because it allows you to download whole courses, which then allows you to study anywhere without using wifi or data. This is what I use every day on the trains. And the more you can understand, the easier your life in Japan will be.
6. Find the closest 100 yen shop
Seriously. You need to do it. You can usually just type "100 yen shop" into google and it will give you the closest location. For anything you need for your house, the 100 yen shop is the place. You'll find things you didn't even know you need for your house. You'll see it in the hundred yen shop and think "AH! This will make my life/home so much better!". You'll be surprised at how much you can get for 100 yen so this should always be your first stop when you need something. If it's NOT in the 100 yen shop, THEN look in more expensive places. They also have Lawson 100s which are 100 yen convenience stores. They are also your friend.
7. Carry a coin purse
Japan has 1 yen coins. It's essentially the equivalent of 1 cent and it's essentially worthless... You will get a lot of them. If you have a standard wallet, coins can stuff it up pretty quickly and make it unable to close. Luckily, you can get a cute coin purse easily from a hundred yen shop! Plus, they make good spots to put your all day pass so you don't lose it.
8. Use hyperdia.com to plan routes on trains and subway
Google maps is of course everyone's go to, and it's great for using when you're out and about.
But when using public transport in Japan, it has it's down sides. For example, google maps often does not show the cost of the tickets for private railways. This means that when you get to the ticket machine, you have no idea which ticket to buy, and are left desperately searching on the huge map signs which are sometimes not in English. For those who don't know- the only way to buy a ticket in Japan is to put in the price- you cannot buy a ticket by putting in where you want to go. You have to KNOW how much it should cost. So, if you're planning a trip in advance, use hyperdia.com. It gives you the amount you'll need to pay for each leg. It also gives you the option of finding a route that only uses JR trains (if you're using a JR pass). Google doesn't allow this and will always give you the quicket options instead. This might mean that you miss out on a free ride and have to end up paying because you used google rather than hyperdia.
9. Buy things online
Having trouble finding shoes to fit your size 12 feet? Or pants that are long enough for your 6 foot tall frame? Buy your stuff online! Lots of shops, like asos.com have free shipping to Japan that arrives in a reasonable time frame. Make sure you get someone to help you put in your Japanese address though! Which brings us to our last hack...
10. Make a Japanese friend!
This is literally the biggest life hack possible. It will make so many things easier in Japan.For example, in Japan, if someone tries to deliver a parcel and you're not home, you will then need to CALL them to arrange for it to be dropped off. So if you're not proficient in Japanese, this might be a struggle, or even impossible. So you need a Japanese friend as soon as possible! Meetup.com is really big in Japan and there are lots of groups for different interests. You can easily and rapidly meet Japanese people, and a lot of them simply want to practice English and will be willing to help you out. Tinder is also popular in Japan, and it's more for making friends without the stigma of being entirely for sex, like is common in Western countries. So you can also easily meet close-by people on Tinder. Again, people will probably hit you up wanting to practice English.
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