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1) Do not submit entries without tags!
2) Do not submit join requests if you do NOT qualify.
3) Make sure you help each other out with information, links, and feedback!
4) Send me a message if there are ANY problems with users on here or posts!

I've downloaded the Skype application to my iPhone but I'm not sure whether I can use it without incurring additional charges or not. I am on AU with a plan that lets me use the internet as much as I want, but I've heard that Skype is different. 
Also, has anyone had luck using Facetime when calling back home? I'm from the US if that makes any difference...

Hi,

I want to remove the hair on my arms.
I've always had issues with it and shaved it when I was a teenager. Unfortunately I have super great and thick hair that grows super fast, so I had to shave TWICE a day.
At some point I just had to give up. I mean there are so many other body parts that we women have to take care of, too, right?

As a university student I kind of accepted it as part of who I am. I'm really hairy! Although I'm German I hardly ever see any Spanish or Italian who's hairier ...

I came to Japan many years ago and didn't care about shaving my arms.
I guess my students and co-workers quickly got used to it, too. Only when a new female Japanese teacher started I noticed her staring at my hair like crazy all the time.
Yet, I kept my hair.

I started a new job this year and the majority of my students and all the teachers tend to stair like crazy.
Usually I don't give a shit about what others think (otherwise I'd go crazy), but for some reason the hair annoys me this year, too!

Some Japanese women are surprisingly hairy on their arms! You won't ever see it as ALL of them seem to get rid of that hair!
That is one of things that is considered beautiful here: soft white skin.

Fastest option would be shaving, but like I said I would have to do it twice a day. I don't have THAT much free time!!
Also, the summer here in Japan is sooooooooooooooooooo long, I'd die!
I do have an epilator, but I don't think it's a good idea to use it on my arms.

For that waxing or sugaring would be best, but I think my arms are the only body part that I can't do myself.
So, I'm currently looking for a waxing studio or something like that.

I already knew that Japan is not into waxing and most people have never heard of sugaring before. It's sad.
They tend to prefer permanent methods such as laser.

My current co-workers are all much older than me (in their 40s and 50s), so they all don't know of any beauty salons or anything.


Do you have any good sugesstions for me?
I tried to search online but there are very few places that offer waxing and are very expensive.

I'm glad for any advice you can give me.

Please note that I do not live in or close to Tokyo. It would be too far to go there just for hair removal!
Osaka is not too close either, but I can go there by local train in less than 2 hours, so if I only have to go once a month in summer, it's doable.


Thanks a lot in advance!

Hey there!  I just found out I received a scholarship from my university, so I'll have the opportunity to study at Todai for a couple months this summer.  I lived in Yokohama from September 2010 to March 2011, but I've never gone to Japan short-term before, so I have a few questions:

1) I'm planning to stay at a guest house in Tokyo.  I'd like to keep costs low (under 75,000 yen a month if possible), but do want my own room.  I've poked around at Sakura House, Oak House, and a few others.  Any insight on these guest house companies or recommendations on other ones to look at? 

2) What are the transport options from Narita to Tokyo? (Shinjuku, etc?) There was a bus to Yokohama that I took last time, but that's not going to be very helpful for me this time.

3) My mom's planning to come visit the last week I'm there, so we'll be buying JR Rail passes to play around Tokyo and head out to Kyoto/Hiroshima/maybe Osaka.  Is there a guidebook you'd recommend for someone who's never been in the country before?

4) I have my keitai from the last time I was here, and am planning on renting a SIM card from Softbank so my friends in Japan can contact me.  Where can I do this in Narita? 

Edit: Another question

5) How do you reserve shinkansen tickets if you have a JR Rail Pass?  I know I can't ride a couple of the lines, but I'd like to reserve seats on the slower line for the Kyoto leg. (I bought my shinkansen tickets last time from a travel agent in Japan, so not sure what the procedure is if you have the pass.)

Thanks for your help!

*crossposting- sorry if you see this twice!*

Hi everyone !

I hope winter is treating you well as that you all managed to escape the flu...

I just moved to Kyoto 6 months ago and finally settled down. Now I would like to take some time to enjoy the night life, but I know nothing about Kansai and therefore would like to ask for people's recommandations here.

I am especially looking for K pop evens in night clubs. I know some are being more and more organized in Europe and the US; but what about Japan and especially Kansai ?
Are there such events sometimes organized in night clubs in Kansai ? I live in Kyoto but I can go to Osaka and maybe all the way to Kobe... thought it's kind of expensive.

Thanks !

Hello! I am a friendly middle aged Japanese woman who moved here in Kanto area next day of the earthquake of March 11 last year. I am a cram school teacher and live with my husband and two junior high school boys happily here in Urawa, Saitama Pref.
Well, something that I am addicted over a year is this; Parliamentary Debate.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_debate

As most of you probably know well, it is an intellectual sports that two side；Government and Opposition （2 or 3 members in a team), gives 7 minutes speech and it is beneficial to train in improving valuable analytical and logical speaking skill.
Unfortunately I am still a beginner plus not a native speaker, so it is sometimes over my capacity of knowledge. But I am so enthusiastic in learning so what I need is a team mate.
If you are interested in joining this club, please leave your comment. Please let me know if you are interested.

Thanks and best regards,

Hello everyone! I'm going to Japan for the first time next month. I want to go to a concert in Koriyama, Fukushima prefecture and I was wondering if there was any special etiquette or anything that I need to know? I have never been there before so I'm not sure if it will be okay because of the disaster... If this question is rude or inappropriate please let me know, I'm not trying to be mean, I just want to be safe. Thank you.

Kay

Hi everyone!
I hope you're all doing okay through this nasty weather we've being having lately. I think it's just about time for the Sugi pollen to start blooming and spreading towards Tokyo and my nose is already killing me. I built up an allergy to Sugi while being here and now it's like having a painful burning sinus cold for two to three months. I swear it feels like I've been snorting chili pepper sauce. I know a lot of people also have this ~wonderful~ affliction, so does anyone have any suggestions or advice on coping? I work at an elementary school so I can't just wear a mask all day (also, it fogs up my glasses and I look like a perv >.>...) but I also can't teach while sniffling, sneezing, and coughing. I went to the doctor and got nasal spray and eye drops and an inhaler but I still look like death walking. What about allergy medicine? Do they have it hear and has anyone tried it? Thanks in advance^^!

I've made up my mind to leave Japan sometime this summer.
I've only been here since September, and I moved to Tokyo last October. So… what's the deal with ward taxes? Will I have to pay any? How much can I expect to owe? If I don't have that much in cash, can I arrange to pay it from the States if I have to?

A cavity filling in the back of one of my front teeth came out--I'm headed home in four days, but until then I'd like to plug it up with something. I know in the States you can get dental wax at some pharmacies. Is that also available in Japan? What would it be called?

Thanks in advance, guys!

I've been mulling around in my head the idea of someday starting a small business in Japan with my boyfriend, maybe-future-husband. In the little bit of research I've done, I've read that I would need a business/investor visa, and I would need to show that I had spent 5 million yen setting up the business or had 5 million yen in savings in order to get it. Which is fine, gotta do what you gotta do. But I'm wondering, would I need to get this - would I even be able to get this - if I was married and had a spousal visa?

Kind of a random question, sorry!