What to Bring

Teaching Items

Bring photos (high school/family/graduation/holidays) to teach about your culture. Bring costumes, flags, maps, videos and any information you can about your home country/town. Bring music from home to play for students and friends. These resources will turn into great teaching materials - and are a big help when you do your self-introduction lessons.

Bring some small prizes for class. In junior high schools, stickers go down really well. They can be used for prizes during games or can be put on corrected papers. For high schools, coins, pins, and stamps tend to work better. Puri-kura (print club) of you and your gaijin friends are a big hit with all age groups. You can make a sheet of 16 of these for just \300 at a photo booth near you.

Personal Items

Clothing
Japanese people are, on the whole, smaller framed than the average JET. Large (or even a US size 10/UK size 12) and tall sizes are often difficult to find. Larger sized shoes are also hard to find. If your feet are larger than a women's size 7.5 or men's 10.5, bring plenty of shoes.

Also, you will need:

School/Office Attire
It is best to start off on the right foot and attend your school(s) dressed professionally. Some schools are staffed with what seems like 35 gym teachers (everyone in tracksuits), while others seem like a fashion show (albeit Japanese fashion). You will quickly get a feel for your situation. In the past, some schools have complained about ALTs who do not dress appropriately. The safe bet is to err on the side of caution. It is much easier to loosen up than to try to erase a negative first impression. You will also need to bring a pair of indoor shoes. It does not matter what they look like or if they match your outfit - most people wear sneakers or sandals. Just make sure they are comfortable, as you will be wearing these everyday. If you plan on playing indoor sports with the students, bring a pair of 'indoor' athletic shoes. If you are a municipal ALT, you will most likely be visiting elementary schools. Attire for these visits is casual - bring stuff that you don't mind getting crumpled and dirty as you play with the kids and they climb all over you. The dress code for offices (Boards of Education, International Affairs) is more formal. Plan on wearing business attire.

Medicine and Toiletries
If you are bringing any kind of prescription medicine with you, be sure that the doctor's written prescription accompanies it. Technically, customs regulations allow you to bring just one month's supply into Japan. Chances are that you will not be searched when you arrive, and some JETs have been known to bring a year's supply of prescriptions with them. However, it is best to practice prudence. If you are searched, you will need to show the written prescription. Some prescriptions are particularly difficult to fill in Japan (birth control pills, medication for skin conditions, and diabetes medication), but most others (or a close substitute) should be available.

Over the counter cold/allergy remedies can be tricky to bring into Japan. Basically, any over the counter medicine that contains stimulant, is illegal - your General Information Handbook gives more specific information on this topic. More and more familiar brand names are becoming available here - Contact, Advil, Bayer - and kusuri (drug stores) can be found even in small towns, so you will probably be able to buy what you need.

As mentioned earlier, birth control pills are not easy to come by in Japan. In order to get them, you need to have a 'medical condition'. Thus, condom use is the most popular form of birth control. The general consensus is that Japanese condoms are unreliable. The horror stories could fill a book. If you think that you might be sexually active while in Japan, bring condoms from your home country.

In the past, Japan did not have fluoride toothpaste, but that has recently changed and you can buy familiar brands (Aquafresh) in the stores or order them. You will want to bring antiperspirant/deodorant from your home country, as the products here are not very effective and of limited variety. There are plenty of brands of soap, lotion, and shampoo around, although many people find that Japanese shampoo/conditioner is too heavy for fine hair. Pads and tampons are available; however if you have a specific brand, bring it with you or have someone ship it out once you get here. Cosmetics are extremely expensive.

Books
Buying English-language books in Niigata is expensive and can generally only be done in the Niigata City. The going rate for a paperback at Niigata City's Kinokuniya (large chain bookstore) is about \1,500. Amazon.co.jp is also a good place to find English language books, and the prices are slightly discounted. And the Niigata International Friendship Center has a decent-sized library that is popular with JETs. In general JETs do a lot of book swapping. So, if lugging books halfway across the world is not your idea of fun, don't worry. There are lots of ways to get your hands on a good read.

Should you bring a Japanese/English Dictionary? In some cases (especially in high schools) the schools have extras, but these are designed for Japanese speakers (the Japanese words are written in hiragana and kanji). So, unless you can read Japanese already, we recommend bringing one with you. Some JETs have also said that a basic grammar book and an English dictionary/thesaurus would be handy. But it is a good idea to check with your predecessor before making these purchases, as they may be leaving a few dictionaries behind. At this stage you may simply want to bring a phrasebook, which helps you with the basics, introductions, shopping, eating out, etc.

Omiyage (Gifts)

Worrying about omiyage causes stress for many people before they come to Japan. Giving gifts is an time-honored Japanese tradition. However, you are not Japanese and are not expected to know the detailed workings of Japanese culture. If you choose to bring gifts, they will be appreciated. If you do not, nobody will think any less of you. In the end, it is up to you as to what and how much omiyage to bring. Talk to your predecessor for specific ideas.

An assortment of candy or sweets (from your home country) that won't immediately go bad is a pretty safe bet for omiyage. You can divide it up however you see fit once you get an idea what your work and community situation looks like.

Money

One of the most common questions asked by incoming JETs is, "How much money should I bring to Japan?" As a government employee, you will be paid on the 21st of each month (unless it falls on a weekend or holiday), and thus most of you will not receive your first paycheque until the third week of August. (The pay schedule can vary slightly from Municipality to Municipality). It is vital that you have enough money to get you through until then.

From the time you get on the plane in your home country until the end of Tokyo Orientation, you will not need to spend much money unless you want to. Transportation from the airport, your hotel room, breakfast, and lunch will be provided by the JET Programme. Transportation from Tokyo to Niigata, and ultimately your new home, will also be covered. The only expense you will have in this area is the cost of sending your large luggage from Tokyo to Niigata via takyubin (delivery service). The cost is about 2,000-3,000 yen per bag.

It is probably best to bring any money in the form of traveler's cheques, as you can replace them if they are lost or stolen. You will be able to exchange the cheques into yen at the hotel in Tokyo - the exchange rate is standard wherever you go in Japan: hotel, bank, etc. Japan is a cash society, and exchanging all your money in Tokyo is easy and fairly safe. You can exchange money at banks in Niigata, but if you live in a small town, it may take a day or two for your request to get sent to a larger bank. Don't assume you will be able to change money immediately upon arrival at your new home. (Take care of this in Tokyo). There are several banks in Tokyo and other bigger cities that accept international credit cards for cash and credit advances. As well, many big stores also accept VISA and MasterCard so a credit card is a good back up. Don't forget to notify your bank and credit card company in advance that you will be leaving the country, and be sure to obtain international customer support numbers (many credit card companies automatically freeze an account when purchases are made abroad without prior notice). 

The amount of cash you need during Tokyo Orientation is directly related to whether or not you are going out on the town. Tokyo has often been named as the most expensive city in the world and you can expect to pay at least 3,000 yen for a sit down dinner and a beer or two. (cheap fast food is easy to find as well). If you plan on going out and dancing, the clubs in Roppongi and Shibuya often have steep cover charges. It is easy to spend 10-15,000 yen in a night without even trying. You may also be drawn to the bookstores and department stores, but if money is tight, don't worry, the Big City is just a two hour Shinkansen ride away from Niigata. You can pop down to Tokyo for the weekend with little trouble after you have settled into your new home.

Settling into this new home will be your first 'big' expense. Niigata-ken host institutions are often very generous about setting up ALT apartments. They usually take care of deposits and key money, pay for the phone line and furnish the apartment with the necessities - futon, refrigerator, stove, TV etc. As well, you might want to buy items that your predecessor is leaving behind. You can usually get VCRs, stereos, oven/toasters, bicycles, and other items for a fraction of what they would cost new. It is best to contact the person you will be replacing and talk to them about such items. The "Hard-Off/Off-House" chain of recycle shops also provide excellent discounts on home goods and furnishings, but you may need to enlist a friend's help in transporting any purchases.

1,000 USD (~100,000 Yen) is a good round amount of money that most people recommend bringing, unless you are partying like a rock star every day. If a thousand dollars is going to be difficult for you, don't worry and bring what you can. Your host institution will be able to help you out (by either giving you a forward on your paycheck or a short loan) if you find yourself short on cash come the middle of August. It is easy to spend a lot of money living in Japan... but, if you are careful, it is also pretty easy to live cheaply.

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