Getting a Working Holiday Visa in Japan During Covid-19

 When Japan announced last year that Sweden was going to be added to their Working Holiday Visa scheme I was so happy. I’ve been wishing for this for ages and it would be my last chance as I am close to 30. I also just graduated so the timing was perfect.

Then came covid and to summerize, turned my life upside down. All my plans were ruined and I lost my part time job later. When I was at my lowest in October I heard that the Japanese embassy in Germany had opened the application for Working Holiday Visas, if you had a company which could sign a Residence track (a paper stating that they take responsibility for you during the first 2 weeks when you ought to be in quarantine). To my surprise the Japanese embassy in Sweden also accepted applications, so I immediately began working on my application. Fortunatley I had contact with a small company who agreed to sign my residence track so I submitted my application during the second week in November. On December 8 they finally called and told me the visa was ready. *YAY*

At first I was so nervous being denied the visa that I didn’t really consider all the other extra stuff which had to be taken care of because of covid.

The restrictions change all the time so keep in mind that this is my experience of entering Japan on the 20 of December 2020.

 

PCR test?

The most important thing that I had to prepare was the PCR test. Japan has their own form which is recomended to use but as long as all the information is stated in the document issued at the clinic of your choice it’s ok. However, paranoid as I am I thought it would be best to try and find a clinic which agreed to use the Japanese one. Another issue I had was to find a time, many of the clinics were fully booked for weeks! I worried a lot about the PCR test as many clinics stated it could take between 24-48h, I don’t have a printer at home so I need to be able to print at my local library, meaning I need an extra day. Therefore I began looking at the form and realized that there were 3 test methods stated and one of them is the antigen test which gives an instant result. I tried to research this but to be honest, in the forest of PCR tests not even the clinics themselves wanted to give me a straight answer. I sent the Japanese form in an e-mail asking if they could sign it and also if their test methods was equal to the ones stated in that very form and I don’t think one single clinic said yes. All emphasized that I need check this out myself so that I know that I’m ordering the right test, which I find weird. Shouldn’t the doctors know this? Since no one gave me an approval of the antigen test I finally decided to go for the PCR at a clinic which claimed to give a result within 24h and fortunately I also found a timeslot which matched a flight on Saturday the 19th.

 

Finding a flight

I never would’ve thought finding a flight would be this difficult. Quite a lot of flights go to Tokyo, but other cities- not so much. I began looking into this by going to KIX webpage to see which flights were arriving there and realised only KLM/Air France did from Europe. So I didn’t have that much of an option. I then spent hours looking at restrictions in the Netherlands and France, even though I would just be passing through I did not want to take any chances of being denied entry. I checked the embassies webpages and also contacted KLM’s customer support which was not very helpful. Again, they could not give me an answer which I found weird. I finally managed to get a coherent trip where I would get the PCR test on time, a plane ticket which was not too expensive and get a pick up from the airport when arriving. That last point is crucial as you are not allowed to use public transport during the first 2 weeks. The options are to be picked up by someone you know who will drive you to your quarantine location or to use a covid taxi (I don’t think that’s the official name but whatever, there are taxi’s just for driving people from the airport to the place they are staying).

 

Starting my journey

My trip began in Stockholm and from Arlanda Airport I took a flight to Paris. I always check in online at home but this time I decided not to because they required me to leave information about my visa and I rather have someone more experienced do that so I thought I could wait until I got to the airport. Air France also had a link to this very convenient webpage called travel doc where you can input the country you are traveling to and which documents you have and it will say if you need anything extra or if you are not able to enter at all. Anyway, at that webpage I was informed that Japan requires everyone entering to fill out a form and then by the end you will get a QR code which you should bring to the immigration control.

With me to the Airport (besides my passport and visa) I had the QR code, a printed ticket, my negative covid test both the Japanese version and the standard version offered by the clinic I went to, a copy of my Residence track and also a questionnaire from Air France (it was not necessary to bring but I did just in case).

 

At the airport I realised that they’ve gone back to manualy handle all check in’s to destinations which requires a PCR test, so I didn’t have to worry about not having checked in at home. The sad part about this was that people seemed to have forgotten about all the rules in regards to coid. No social distance and many did not have their masks on. They checked my PCR test and also asked if I had the QR code. I have to admit that I was so nervous there would be something from and that they would deny me entry, but everything went fine (until I was about to pay cash for a bottle of water and was told off by the staff because he now touched my money…).

 

I had never been to Charles de Gaulle Airport before so I was kind of anxious about my transfer which was only 2h. I did manage on time but I was stressed and sweating when I finally had found my gate. Before entering the flight to Osaka they checked my temperature and my PCR test as well as my visa. I had read others experiences on going to Japan and everyone mentioned almost empty planes, so I was quite surprised to realize that my flight was half full, mostly Japanese people. Makes me wonder, are they traveling now?... Besides the regular paperwork they also handed out a form regarding your health.

 

The flight went well (have to say Air France had the best food ever offered by an airline company) and once we arrived in Japan someone from the airport would board and check our documents. I was amazed that people immediately went up and wanted to get their luggage the minute the plane was parked, no thought of social distancing… Once off the Airport there was a lot of waiting but they had prepared chaires and those who had not already filled out the questionnaire to get the QR code had to do so now. The first 90 minutes was basically just a lot of waiting, but then everything went pretty smooth. The testing went fine (at least besides the fact that I had some issues to produce saliva and massaged the s** out of my neck as explained at the Airport until my throat hurt) and while waiting for the result they had reserved a gate so that we could sit down comfortably.

I have to admit I normally think the staff working at the passport control are, well not so service minded but this time I met the nicest man ever, he was so kind and funny to talk to!

I got my residence card and left the building, and to be honest I could not believe how smooth everything went! Weird thing was that no one checked my PCR test in Japan, even though they put emphasis on using their form…

So far I have been outside once, to buy some things to eat. I’m looking forward to getting  back to normal though, my jet lag is getting worse by being bored.

Sanrio Character Gudetama Restaurant

I'm trying to catch up on entries I began writing when I acctually visited all these places, very unfortunate that I was lazy and did not write them then -.-' Because of the corona crisis I am stuck at home with less to do and therefore I decided I should start writing again. There are so many things I never wrote about which I have experienced in Japan! So while I wait to return I will revisit all of the places in writing :)

If reading my earlier entries from Osaka it's pretty clear I did not like it that much. I don't want to blame the city itself but more my circumstances. I never did get any friends at the uni and I was living far away from the actual city. But most I think I just missed my life in Tokyo where I have friends and could even spend wonderful evenings all alone. I was determined though to not have my exchange semester spent alone in my dorm up the Mountains and I did try to make the best out of it. One of the things on my must-visit-list was the Gudetama restaurant in Umeda!

All the Sanrio character cafés are all very similar and reading the reviews online it seems to be a hit or miss. I personally enjoy them, it's a unique experience for us living in dull countries with "normal" cafés :P However, the menu can be good and sometimes not so much. For example the Cinnamoroll café in Shinjuku had a disapointing menu in my opinion, whereas the pompompurin café in Harajuku had an awesome pudding!

The Gudetama café ended up somewhere in the middle for me, entertaining as always (it also feels better to sit alone in these kinds of cafés hehe) but the menu was just ok.

I ordered the curry and a coke float. As I do not eat pork I undressed Gudetama. (Normally I try to avoid ordering pork as I dislike throwing away food, but if I remember correctly they only had pork in the main dishes and this was my dinner)

On screens around the restaurant Gudetama episodes were playing on repeat and all around were Gudetama plushies so you won't feel alone :) By the cashier different smaller goods are sold, from pens to lipbalm. I think this cost me around 2000-2500 yen, worth the price because of the unique experience.

I'm still wondering why there's no permenant Little Twin Stars café... (unless one opened in the past year)

Going to a doctor in Japan?

I've been to Japan many times and never had to visit a doctor until 2 years ago during my exchange semester at Osaka University. I had a cold which never seemed to heal and when I noticed headaches which lasted for several days, especially when bending forward, I thought it would probably be best to go see a doctor.

First try

I first turned to the campus doctor, I got to fill out some paper work and then he basically just checked my throat and noes, gave me some pills and then the nurse gave me the addresses to some off campus clinics in case I wasn't feeling well after the treatment.

I began taking the pills, which I was told were to help with my blocked nose and cough. I felt better but as soon as my medication was over (it lasted 5 days) I felt sick again. So I checked out which the closest clinic to my dorm was and headed out one afternoon right before new years.

Second try

I want to stress that I do not have any great experience with doctors in Japan so this is only my own and my own opinion. First of all I was only told to visit private ear/nose/throat clinics, in Sweden I would never go to a private clinic. My impression is that it's pretty standard in Japan. So I went to this clinic in Minoo, same thing, I filled out some paper work I told the doctor who only checked my throat and nose that the meds I got from the university helped so he gave me the same but for 7 days. I was then put by a machine I was supposed to breathe in for a couple of minutes before leaving. They told me the fume were to open up the nose and make it less stuffed (not sure it helped but what ever).
Guess what, I felt great for 7 days and then it got back to "normal"!

Third try

By this time I didn't have so many classes so I spent most of my days at my boyfriends work and decided to try a clinic close by. Same thing, I explained what the issue was and this time the doctor acctually acknowledge that the meds didn't work and this is where my visit got a bit creepy and to be honest old fashioned (I imagen my grandmother probably got this treatment when she was young). They put me in a tiny room, more like a closet, and told me to place my head on a tiny "table" and that's when I realised they did a tiny x-ray of the front of my head! I was taken back to the doctor who showed me the image and said he could see that I was about to have sinusitis (like I had told all the other doctors I expected as well) but since the meds didn't work he was gonna wash my sinus for me and this was creepy. He went up my nose and to be honest I don't know exactly what he did, only that it felt highly uncomfortable and acctually hurt a bit (just by the feeling I was sure I was gonna have a nosebleed). Because he went far up my nose I automatically began to cry and my nose was running with snot and whatever it was he was cleaning with, the embarrassment....
when all this was done I was put by one of those fuming machines while whiping my tears and nose and then I got some pills to minimize the production of snot. He told me to come back in 2 weeks for another cleaning session. (I said I would but on the inside I was like f* no)

When you go to a new clinic in Japan you need to sign in and for that you pay a fee. So by this time I had paid 2 of those since I changed clinic and then the fee to see a doctor and the medication. I felt better after the last visit and I then began to check what kind of medication I had been given and found out that the University doctor and the first private clinic I went to had given me antibiotics! This scared me a lot. In sweden you are not given antibiotics unless a blood sample can prove you have a bacteria infection which needs antibiotics to get well. These two doctors had only checked my throat and on top of that not even given me a full 10 days which is mandatory in Sweden as the chances of bacteria surviving and getting resistant being higher if under 10 days (of course only if you acctually NEED antibiotics). By this time I had spent a lot of money on visits and medication I didn't really need. The pills from my last visit was enough, but I never made a new appointment and after 2 weeks I felt bad again.

Fourth try

I really have no idea why this cold wouldn't just let me go XD I've never been sick for months before, maybe it was the stress or something I have no idea but by this time I was sick of cashing up. I had a 100% coverage insurance from my university in Sweden, which I previously had been told I most likely could not use because it is in English and the likelyhood of the staff understanding English is small (this was said to me by a person at the city office the first time I studied in Japan). But I had asked the person who issued the insurance in Sweden how I could use this when in Japan considering what I had been told before and she said I could contact the Insurance Company before visiting a doctor and they would help me book a free appointment. So I did. it took a couple of days (I e-mailed and then a nurse from the insurance company called me up and she then put me in contact with their Japanese bransch office and they made an appointment with the last clinic I went to). So I went there, didn't have to pay for the visit and the doctor commented on me not coming in 2 weeks time (sorry!). He performed the same nose torture and then I acctually went back to Sweden 2 weeks after and was back to normal.

My honest opinion is that seeking medical care (for smaller issues) is too complicated and I did not like having to go to private clinics. It felt like when you chose a restaurant, which has the highest rating score? I don't think medical care should be like that, that depending on your choice of doctor you will get different treatments, some which might not even be useful. Also that shit with my nose felt medieval, I'm sorry but just put me on drugs XD