Registering as a Foreign Alien

So now I am the one who is a foreign alien in this family, not Kan. Since Miyako is considered a dual citizen and Kan is obviously a Japanese citizen, they do not have to register as a foreign alien. I, on the other hand do within 14 days of entering the country, and I went to do that yesterday with a lady who was hired to specifically help us with the relocation process.

Some of you may not know this about me, but after college I lived overseas in Minsk, Belarus working with college students. I spent two years there and learned lots about waiting in long lines, filling out meaningless paperwork, only to be told I would have to do it over for some reason or another. I thought things would be different in Japan since it is a thriving country, but not really. Each country does things differently. "It is not weird, it is just different." HA! Well, I think it is a bit odd but I am sure Kan felt the same way when it took him nearly five years of paper chasing and immigration attorney fees to get his US green card. I guess sitting in an office is the least I can do to stay in his country long-term. I filed yesterday for a temporary foreign alien registration card. In three weeks my permanent one will be ready to pick up. Then I have to go and get a re-entry permit so I have permission to leave Japan and come back in without any hassle. No biggie, right?

Well, in three weeks we will hopefully be moving to a new apartment which means I will be living in a new ward which means...you guessed it...I have to get a new foreign alien registration card since my address will be different. Sigh! One thing, Miyako is getting used to the subway with all of this and Japan is baby friendly when it comes to these offices. Nursing stations/diaper changing stations are easily accessible and Miyako is so cute nobody seems to mind her running around. All they say is "Kawaii desu ne" which means "Cute no?" to which I reply "Arigato gozaimasu (Thank you very much)." Oh and I forgot to mention we have to meet with an attorney to get my long-term spousal visa so I do not have to leave the country after 90 days of "visiting." You would think they would be the same but the alien registration card is simply to help me get things like a drivers license (no thank you) or a mobile phone. I still have to get my spousal visa to stay here longer than the permitted 90 days for a visitor.

As for the apartment search, we are in the negotiating process. Over here, real estate agents help you negotiate rent prices like they help you buy homes in the US. After all of the searching, we found two we liked. The pros and cons for each are quite different. And both are a bit more than what we wanted to pay so we are hoping the agent can pull some strings for us. Apartment A is very new, white floors, bright lights and the bedrooms are separated nicely by a door from the living/dining/kitchen area. It also has a gym in the building we can use and rooms to rent for when visitors come visit so they do not have to stay far away in a hotel. These are the pros. The cons are it is a 10 minute walk to the nearest station and grocery. This may not sound like much but when you have already commuted 30 minutes, you would like to come out of the station and be home. Or when you are pushing a stroller and carrying a backpack full of groceries, you would like to be right there at your apartment building. It also does not have a great view at all. You look out the window and see another apartment building.

Apartment B is a bit larger than apartment A, but is also a lot older. Not as bright and kind of dungy/old feel...imagine your grandparents house when you were younger and you thought it was outdated with the shag carpet. Also, Miyako-chan's room would be right off the dining/living area so could be a hindrance when she goes to bed at 8. However, it has a beautiful view of Tokyo, sits on a river with a grocery store at the corner of the street. It is also a 5 minute walk to two different stations giving us access to two different metro lines, which is big for commuting purposes. And it is a 5 minute walk to our Dutch missionary friends (they are voting for this apartment).

Both apartments have three rooms so Kan can have a home office when he needs it and Miyako has a place to store lots of her toys. And, plenty of room for us to blow up an air mattress. We like them both about the same so feel like we cannot go wrong, but if we think long-term as in we will live here for the next 3 years potentially, we are leaning towards the older apartment. We can always brighten it up with some lamps. We feel like the apartment with not so good station access will get old quick in comparison to the older apartment. I will keep you posted.

Oh, before I sign off, I have to add a big GO CATS. I DVRed the game but ended up watching the second half live. Which I am glad because my DVR did not get the OT. I would have been so mad if I had been watching it and missed OT. And for all of you from the deep south, I thought you were supposed to be prim and proper. No need Miss. St fans to throw water bottles on the court. No need. :) What would I do without the Sling box!