Differences

This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

--- japan [2025/10/14 20:01] – particles
+++ japan [2026/03/22 06:18] (current) – [Phone numbers for visitors] particles
@@ Line 8: / Line 8: @@
   * [[journal:令和7年2月02日|令和7年2月02日]]
   * [[Suica reactivation]] - a report I wrote about reactivating a Suica that supposedly had expired using the JR Central workaround.
-  * [[osaka_expo_notes|Expo 2025 notes]] -- Now that EXPO 2025 is over, this is less usefu.
+  * [[osaka_expo_notes|Expo 2025 notes]] -- Now that EXPO 2025 is over, this is less useful and more of an archival item.
-  * [[summer_comike|Summer Comic Market guide]]
+  * [[comike_guide|Summer Comic Market guide]]
+  * [[shrine_guide|Shinto shrine guide from Fushimi Inari Shrine]]
 ===== Advice for visitors to Japan =====
@@ Line 97: / Line 98: @@
 ==== Phone numbers for visitors ====
-If you're a visitor to Japan, you may be tempted to go down the rabbit hole and try to get a phone number that can send send/receive phone calls and SMS. In Japan, unlike some other countries (namely, the US), you need to provide photo ID to get service that includes these features. The best provider for this is [[https://www.mobal.com/|Mobal]], in my opinion. You may also consider [[https://www.hanacell.com/japan |HanaCell]], which was suggested by a friend at a suggested cost of $8 a year.
+See [[jp_numbers|my article on phone numbers for visitors]].
-  * Mobal service is more expensive than other types of service.
-  * If you want to use ticketing services like Lawson Ticket or e-plus, you really need to consider getting a long-term plan with Mobal, not a short-term plan. You can get a long-term plan even if you do not have a Japanese Residence Card / you're on a tourism visa. The catch is that you basically need to pay for it forever. You can downgrade to cheap plans to park your number. **I just do not suggest that you get a SIM card with a Japanese phone number unless you plan to maintain the number in the long term.**
-  * Even if you have a Japanese phone number from Mobal, you still cannot use Mobal's service outside of the country.
-It is valuable to keep a Japanese phone number, though. You can register on Yahoo! Japan and other Japanese only services and keep an account for when you're in Japan. You can also bootstrap a [[PayPay]] account without identity verification, which you can then use to buy apps and in-app purchases from the Japanese App Store. PayPay is also convenient as a QR code payment method in-general. You can pay back friends in Japan with it, and you can buy things with it, and top-up without identity verification.
-Effectively, Japanese systems do not expect foreign tourists to have phone numbers that route SMS. This means that if you can do this, you can sign up for more services than you would be able to otherwise. The caveat is that it's more expensive to maintain the number, and you might find yourself in a situation where you wish you could access it outside of the country. This is currently not possible, however.
-If you get a number from Mobal, due to Mobile Number Portability regulations, you can port your number to a different provider if you become a resident.
-Finally, note that the process of verifying your identity will take a period of time. Usually this is 2-3 days maximum of ID verification time before your phone number will route calls and SMS. If you try to perform the registration process around a holiday or weekend, it will take longer.
-**Transferring a phone number to another person is a crime in Japan, so don't do that.**
 ==== Apple Accounts for visitors ====
@@ Line 159: / Line 146: @@
   * [[http://hitomidental.com/|Hitomi Dental Office]] for dental cleaning / general dentistry with English speaking service. **Japanese Health Insurance coverage accepted**. I have not used their services without Japanese health insurance.
-  * [[https://yaesugai-medical.com/english|Yaesugai Medical Office]] for a walk-in general practitioner. Again, I've only visited with **Japanese Health Insurance**, but the website includes instructions for easy navigation, and more practically speaking, seems to be accessible to tourists. There is a pharmacy right below the doctor's office, which can easily serve you after visiting. No appointment necessary. I believe the pharmacy below is an associated pharmacy with Sakura Pharmacy, but it's not exactly an uncommon name, so maybe?
   * [[https://en.tokyo-midtown.com/shop/1546/|Sakura Pharmacy Tokyo Midtown]] is great for OTC drugs, general pharmacy needs, and COVID-19 tests in English. However, there is a caveat: sometimes there is no English speaking staff available. If you're in or near Roppongi, it's worth a visit I guess if you need a pharmacy. I have not visited Tokyo Midtown Clinic, but they're in the same building, and they seem to advertise English speaking services.
     * Multiple people I've seen and trust attest to [[https://www.tokyomidtown-mc.jp/en/|Tokyo Midtown Clinic]]. I suggest calling ahead to verify your condition before visiting.
@@ Line 200: / Line 186: @@
   * [[pet bottle recycling|The specific recycling bin I use to store PET bottles ready for recycling before group collection day]] is, imho, a must-buy if you get a lot of PET bottles.
   * [[mobile_networks_foreign_residents|Mobile networks for foreign residents of Japan]] focuses specifically on which mobile carrier to get and/or my experiences.
+===== Anti-foreigner sentiment =====
+It is an extremely common issue to hear, particularly lately, about how Japan has a rise in anti-foreigner sentiment. I think it is important to view it in the perspective of Japanese people, and I refer you to the following videos on this topic:
+  * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNHR9lnGS3A|Golden Rule of Japanese Society]]
+  * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULKPS8gNk7A|On the Rise of Anti-Foreigner Sentiment in Japan]]
+  * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WpkQTtHUyg|On Overtourism in Japan and the Country's New Leaders]]
+**Q: If I visit Japan, will I be looked down upon for being a foreigner?**
+**A: No.** But to give you a more nuanced answer, the there are two very important elements to this:
+  - Read the air. In English, it would be better said as "read the room". In a society where politeness is paramount and not being a nuisance is regarded as a valuable trait, you should endeavor to not be a nuisance. There are many ways to not be a nuisance, and probably my single best piece of advice is to pay attention to your surroundings and copy people. If you board a train and everyone is being quiet, it is not your job to disturb the peace. Line up in lines. Be cognizant of what's going on around you and you will be fine.
+  - If you don't speak Japanese, learn at least basic phrases or be extremely humble. Don't force English into people's daily lives unless they speak it or they offer it to you. Assume Japanese. Ask if they speak English. "Ano, sumimasen, ego wakarimasuka?"
+If you didn't watch the above videos, the overwhelming negative sentiment that people have is not towards foreign tourists who don't break the rules, it's people who have no observational awareness or people who knowingly break the rules. Just because you can get drunk on the train platform at 2pm doesn't mean you should. Yeah, NewDays will sell you a beer, but no, it's not socially acceptable to drink it on the train unless it's 23:30 and you're not making a scene.
+The vast majority of Japanese people only care about disruptive people. There are exceptions as there are in any society. Some people are racist. But this is true in all countries.
+==== "There's no law against it" ====
+Many societal norms in Japan exist but have no laws against breaking them. You shouldn't eat and drink convenience store food while walking. But Japanese people will always say there is no law against it, while also observing that you're walking and eating and that's not really ideal.
+This extends to everything, including to foreigners who apply for statuses of residence and other forms of treatment from the government. "The letter of the law" in Japan is not the law. Some cultures believe that the law is written such that loopholes intentionally exist. In Japan, they may or may not intentionally exist. If they do exist, knowing whether or not they are intentional or not requires reading the air.
+Lately, a lot of anti-foreigner sentiment comes from this disconnect. Many parts of Japanese law are circuitous or seemingly impossible, but these are meant to be wrangled by lawyers who know not just the law, but the intent behind the law. But at the same time, when people can read the law and technically understand it, they can apply for things and change things without reading the air. So the system functions as designed, but produces an incorrect result in-practice.
+That is, fundamentally, why immigration and other forms of laws related to it have changed. Social insurance was always required, but now evidence is required that it's actually being paid. Business managers must now actually prove their businesses have merit.
+The fact of the matter is that Japanese law has always had loopholes, but they were rarely exploited. Now, they are. This has led to a rise in scrutiny of these laws to fix loopholes and ensure that there aren't any gaps in the legislation.
+Again, the intent was always that one of Japan's hundreds of thousands of administrative scriveners or lawyers would parse the law, and that these people would be ethical. Now, amateurs read the law and also apply. LLMs help this. The result? Now stricter laws are required. Foreigners who previously exploited loopholes are admonished, unsurprisingly.
+"You should have known the rules" even when those rules even when the rules were never written down.