Certificate of Eligibility to enter Japan...kind of

Not long now until I embark on my adventure to the land of the rising sun! Given the current humidity (not a very common term used in Scotland), Edinburgh has proved a good training arena for the subtropics of Kansai. It's currently August which only means one thing in Edinburgh: The Fringe Festival.

The fringe is a term normally followed by a sigh from most Edinburgers who live near the centre of town for one main reason: our population doubles. Again another fantastic training arena for outward elbows and pushy frustrated pedestrians, Edinburgh is transformed from the tranquil, cobbled-street, fairy-tale town into "Congestion City". You'd think the Jacobites were back only they have given up on their quest to restore the Stuarts to the throne in order to take up flyer-ing and amateur stand up comedy.

It's been just over a week since my last post and there have been a couple of significant shuffles towards 留学 ryūgak-ing (studying abroad) in Japan. The most vital of these shuffles has been receiving my certificate of eligibility, or in English a "not-visa". The application process for a not-visa is comprised of 73 easy steps and processing time of a mere 4 months, 13 days and 17½ hours. One of the more useful community chest cards, possession of a not-visa entitles the bearer to an extra shuffle towards Visa Street Station, where one can apply for an "actual-visa". Players attempting to enter Japan without an actual-visa will be instructed to go home ("Go directly home. Do not pass Tokyo. Do not collect ￥2000.") On the other hand, possession of an actual-visa allows one to pass through international arrivals with (alleged) ease.

As well as my certificate of eligibility my university also sent my official acceptance letter, always handy to have.

My metre-long checklist will receive its final tick once I discover the location of Visa Street Station - a.k.a the Japanese consulate - and muster the courage to wade through the sea of flyers and confused tourists. With the list completed I will be able to resume eating ice-lollies and pretending that anime counts as revision until another form of procrastination reveals itself.

Slightly off topic but still related to informative preparation tips, I received intel from an informant that certain handy travel gadgets could be obtained. Vacuum bags are a handy way to avoid wearing 12 jumpers over 9 tops whilst tripping over the 7 pairs of socks - minus one you lost in the taxi to the airport. Not to mention the threat of evaporation shortly after alighting from the plane. Suitcase space is always an issue when you are staying in a foreign country for a long period of time, especially when alternative measures to ensure you can send more crap to your final destination are not exactly Asda-price. Vacuum bags on the other hand are roughly 7 quid.

So how it works is a bit obvious, you put the aforementioned crap in the bag and then use your hoover to sook out all the air and it will transform your bag into a compact sheet of wardrobe.

Other essentials to bring with you before you go that I have discovered include :

• Deodorant (apparently Japanese ones don't work on us Brits)
• Toiletries (quite expensive in Japan)
• Sun cream (very expensive)
• Mosquito repellent, especially if you're traveling way out in the sticks 
• Tea bags
• Hot water bottles, if you want comfy ones rather than the tin-foiled bags in Japan 
• Power adapters
• Gifts, normally little things from home
• Spare copies of all your documents

I do intend to write a retrospective post (most likely with a slight resentful tone) describing the absence or extortionate expense of anything in Japan deemed essential to 外人 gaijin (foreigners), which stood out as nothing more than a pop to the shops back home. Asking your parents or anyone coming to visit you to step in as a luggage mule is strongly recommended.