Things that Still Surprise Us

It’s official, we have been living in Japan for over 4 years now. It’s still odd to think that when I got accepted through the JET Program Papa Bear and I talked about staying 2 or 3 years only. We would have never thought that we would still be here 4 years later, with the intent to stay for longer. 

In recognition of our long time here in Japan, I wanted to introduce some aspects of Japan that continue to surprise us. 

Child Car Seats (or lack thereof)

By Japanese law, all children under the age of 6 must use a car seat and after that a booster seat is recommended. There are some guidelines about what type of car seat to use with the age/weight of your child. However. I rarely see young children over the age of 2 actually strapped into a car seat. I see children bouncing around in the back seat, sitting in the front seat, and often with no seatbelts. There might be a booster seat somewhere in the car, but the child is usually not in it. 

When I did my study abroad in Nagoya, my host family would often go out with the grandkids (1 toddler and 1 infant). If there were enough adults, then someone would hold the baby in their arms while someone else tried to get the toddler to sit and buckle up, usually with no luck. I only saw those children strapped into a seat if the mother was driving with the kids by herself. I was shocked. 

I am still shocked. We have always been very strict about this. We brought our car seat with us when we moved to Japan when Baby Bear was only 2 years old. We used it on the plane and then had it available to use once we got our car. Baby Bear is 6 years old now and I strap him into his car seat every time, regardless of where we are going. Even if we are just going down the street, he gets buckled in. Our car seat is an adjustable one that grows with the child, and since he still fits we still use it. Only once he grows out of it completely will I consider getting a booster seat. It’s just safer that way. 

Lack of Technology in a Business Setting

Back in the US, I worked for a moderately sized company that used up-to-date technology. I had a computer with 2 monitors, my own email address, access to an intra-office messenger, online time-clock, internet access, etc. Most of my work was completed through email, online programs, and cloud systems. Pretty normal, right? I guess I just took all of that for granted… then I started working as a public servant in Japan. I knew that Japan still relied on fax machines and paper files, but for some reason I expected to have access to a lot of the same types of systems and services that I was used to in the States… but that was just a pipe dream. 

For example, the department I work for at town hall has only one public email address for the entire department (8 employees) and we can only access that email account through one computer. No one has access to the internet on their work computers, except for me. Some of my coworkers even bring in their home laptops to connect to the wifi to have internet access at work. There is an intranet system that is utilized where everyone has an “email” address and can view meeting schedules or book a meeting room. However, in these 4 years I have never been given access to this system. Since I do a lot of translation that requires online research and access to dictionaries/resources, I am one of the few with actual internet access on my work computer but in exchange IT won’t connect me to the intranet. So I can’t schedule meetings or check for internal notices. I’m always the last to know about a lot of things because I can’t access the internal system. 

There are also stacks of paper everywhere. Any information with even a slight importance has to be printed and passed around for everyone in the office to stamp with their personal hanko (seal) where it then gets inserted into a binder and shoved into the already full cabinets lining the walls. Even if I were to suggest using an online cloud system, people would probably think I was talking about the weather. 

Setting up Internet Service (or opening any kind of major account)

In the US I remember being able to set up internet service online or with a simple phone call. That’s not quite how it happens here in Japan. First of all, you hope you are lucky enough to be moving into a place that is already wired for the internet, otherwise you will have to wait weeks or even months for the cable installation to be completed before you can even access the web.  Many people here will opt to get a satellite dish installed instead but this also takes time.

When we first arrived in Japan we went to the closest Docomo shop (cell phone and internet provider) to get our phones and internet setup. Getting the cellphones took a little bit since we needed to pick out phones and fill out all the paperwork, but getting the internet contract took forever. We were at that shop for half a day, I am not kidding. At least 4-5 hours. And on top of that our apartment was not wired for their internet service so we had to wait 2-3 months for that to happen before we could connect to the internet. It’s such a pain! You may be wondering if this is because we are out in the countryside, but I have a good friend who lives in a major city and had the same issue. 

I was impressed, and very surprised, when we were able to switch our cell phone service to LINE Mobile and everything was completed online!  I mean, who does that…. haha.

Election Season

We are currently in the middle of election season here in our town, with the mayor and town council positions up for election. The most common methods of advertising your campaign is to leave fliers in mailboxes, post posters around town on designated election billboards, and to drive around town in a campaign van with loud speakers shouting the candidate’s name and political views. I am so tired of the campaign vans. It’s loud, annoying, and they just circle town all day long. I can’t wait for the election to be over.