Day 4 (Osaka) : I am a human HEPA filter...

Moving to my new 1LDK apartment has been one helluva an ordeal. It's amazing how the apartment can be freshly remodeled, yet somehow still covered in dusty and a strange moldy smell. Since I'm still short some of the major appliances for living (refrigerator, vacuum, washer, etc...) I have had a rough time getting the place cleaned up. I may have had my first experience with allergies too, which wouldn't surprise me considering the cleaning and unpacking that's been going on since I moved in. The funny thing is that after burning through a few hundred tissues I started to think, "Hey, maybe the air will get cleaner if I keep breathing in all this dust..." That could be considered super optimistic or just desperate.

I've wanted to start a healthy blog on my experience moving to Osaka and taking up the student life again, but the internet is still iffy so I'm a few days behind. I should have kept a running list of all the problems that I ran into a long the way. One of the lessons that I learned is that any forms in Japan, and I mean any forms, will require a photo ID of some kind. Applying for my japanese program, my alien registration card, my JLPT exams each year, etc. Take it as a tip, if you're going to apply for papers in Japan that relate to school or your stay in Japan then you should have one of those sheets of ID pictures on hand at all times. You'll find the photo booths almost anywhere. I've taken my photos at Daei outside of Yokosuka base, Yokohama station, outside of the city hall in Komagawanakano, and there are lots of other places.

Tip #2 - If you plan to have a long term stay in Japan, make sure the Immigration office gives you a multiple re-entry stamp. They don't usually mention it and I had to ask after getting my two year student visa. When I got it they asked for 6,000yen stamp (Shunyuinshi) which I thought they would put in my passport, but they just took it as payment. You can buy the stamps at most any convenience store.

Tip #3 - If you are leaving the military or had SOFA status for any reason, make sure the stamp is voided at PSD and that someone, anyone, gives you a piece of paper explaining it. The first time I went to Yokohama they weren't happy with a void stamp alone. They insisted on seeing "retirement papers" or "discharge orders", which was funny since I just left a civilian contracting position and didn't have any of that crap. I ended up bringing them my debriefing papers where I agreed to return all the government belongings and that seemed to be good enough.