What to Bring

When preparing to head to Fukushima for the first time, there is a lost of confusion about what you should bring, what you shouldn't, omiyage, and so on. Breath and you will be fine!

Men Folk

 * Suits, at least 2. A thicker one and one of a lighter material is ideal. Don't forget you'll be making your way over during summer's peak.
 * Dress Shirts and Ties. Be aware of your size. If you're of average height and below, you'll be fine picking up more here. A variety of ties can't go amiss. Men are usually expected to wear a white tie for graduation ceremonies, so if you have one, you should bring it!
 * A nice track suit. Seriously, this is acceptable office attire in many schools.
 * Some socks. Don't freak out about socks, even if you have huge feet.
 * Undershirts and Underpants. Have your bases covered but don't feel the need to go hogwild, you shouldn't have too much trouble finding these here.
 * Shoes. Here is the rub... Don't skimp on shoes, especially if you have larger feet. (Large here is anything over 28cm) You'll need dress shoes, indoor shoes for school, and trainers at the very least. Consider packing some shoes in your carry-on baggage to save the weight in your main bag. When packing, don't forget to shove those shoes full of smaller clothing items like socks and underwear!
 * Winter clothing. Don't worry about this too much. You have a few months until you'll need it so save the space and have someone ship you your parka and sweaters after you get here and get settled in.

Lady Folk

 * Pretty much everything listed above for our male-bretheren.
 * Under garments. Bras, sports bras, underpants. Japanese underpants tend to be quite... frilly. Know what you like and what fits you.  Good thing is that many large online underwear shops (Victoria's Secret for example) do ship internationally. Shipping may be expensive but check with your friends and see if you can do a group order.
 * Business Suit (2). Either pants or skirts, both are fine.
 * Shoes. Same as with the men folk. If you are a woman with larger feet (Anything over 24.5-25cm), be aware you may have a hard time finding girly shoes in Japan. Sneakers, hiking boots, etc aren't as big of an issue as you can buy men's shoes.
 * Your style. If you have a particular sense of fashion, be aware that Japanese ladies fashion can be very rigid in style. (ie--lace and pastels and flowers)

Self Introduction Lesson
Be prepared to do a self introduction lesson. A lot. The kids have seen this before so don't be afraid to break out of the mold. Due to the fact that you'll be doing this quite a bit, you may want to take it into consideration when packing. Do you have a unique hobby? Is there a culturaly important outfit to your country or background? Think about packing it. ALTs have skateboarded into class, taught some beginner beatboxing, worn country specific clothing (such as kilts), etc. All of this makes for an unmatched impression.
 * Hobby Related Goods. Not only will these be good for your introduction lesson, you'll probably appreciate having it around for your own downtime and having a little piece of home.
 * Family photos. Your kids will go nuts for these. The goofier, the better. Don't forget about the furry members of your family. Also your car, house, or home town.
 * Sport equipment. This may be similar to hobby related goods but maybe not. Canadian-- why not bring a hockey puck? (Or a stick, if you have the room) From the common wealth? Why not a rugby or cricket ball? Several airlines allow a seperate checked bag of sporting goods in addition to your luggage so bringing sporting goods with you may allow you to get away with bringing even more luggage! I mean, who is really going to say something about a few extra pair of underpants in your cricket bag along with your pads?

General Supplies
First and foremost, find out what level school you will be teaching. If you are teaching elementary, supplies you'll want to bring may vary from someone who is teaching high school. At the end of the day, don't worry about pens, papers, or office supplies. Flash cards, posters, and the like is up to you. If you have something amazing, bring it. At the end of the day, don't worry too much about bringing an entire office with you. Your schools will be able to help you out with most anything you may need. And if not them, there's always the 100 yen store.
 * Stickers. Seriously. This cannot be stressed enough. They work for all grade levels (even certain senior high students. Maybe not as prizes for in class but for including with letters to your kids, your English clubs, etc.) They are cheap, light, and take up no room in your bag.
 * Stamps. A cousin to the sticker, unique stamps will be something your students will appreciate when checking homework, etc.
 * English Childrens' Books/Activity Books. If you have the room, this is always a great addition. You can make copies and do lessons around these.

Omiyage
A bane and a gift all at once. ]]Japanese people tend to live in small, crowded houses. The last thing people here generally need is more knick-knacks. So it's best if your omiyage is either practically useful, or edible.
 * [[File:Omiyage01.jpg|thumb|Omiyage.
 * Bringing chocolate or anything that's liable to melt is not recommended.  The temperature in Tokyo when you get here will be roughly a few degrees below that of Mercury, and even though your room may be air conditioned, the various buses and cars that will convey you to your ultimate destination may not be. Chocolate is liable to be very much the worse for wear by the time you need it.  If you really want to give chocolate, I suggest buying it once you reach your town (see below).
 * Only a few select (read: important) people, like those listed above, really merit individualized omiyage.  For regular coworkers (teachers and/or BOE staff), just bring bulk candies of some kind (make sure they're individually wrapped, though, that's considered proper here).  And even that's probably optional.  You can buy stuff like that here, so there's little need to take up valuable luggage space with it.
 * You don't have to give out omiyage the moment you arrive.  Settle in, first (and find out who the important recipients should be, if you're not sure beforehand).  A couple of weeks after you get here is fine.
 * Plenty of people don't bother with omiyage at all, or at least not for people besides their supervisor and principal & vice-principal / kacho & superindentant.

Special Considerations--Nigh Impossible to Find Items/Toiletries
Japan is a notoriously svelte country with tall people being not so run-of-the-mill. Remember this when coming to Japan. Some clothing and personal items will be hard to come by.

Clothing--it can be hard finding clothing that fits you. If you are tall, or big-boned, finding good fitting clothing is quite difficult. Further, the shape and style of clothing is very different to that of Western clothes. Even if you can find clothes to fit, the style maybe rather unusual – for example, ultra girly and princess like. There are stores which will cater to you, but they are few and far between. Come well prepared with clothes that fit you, to save you the hassle of hunting around.

Busty/Hippy/Tall/Lanky/Etc
  Ladies, if you use any of the previous words or ones of the same ilk to describe yourself, you may have a difficult time finding clothing. It's not impossible but it will be a quest. Casual clothing is a bit easier but if you don't want to spend an arm and a leg on tailoring, make sure to have essential business attire along with you.

Feminine Hygiene
It can be hard finding you favourite brand of tampons(ie--impossible. There appears to be only one brand here...). If you can't live without your favourite brand, have a friend or family member send them over to you as needed.

Birth Control
Legally you can only bring only 2 months worth of birth control pills with you to Japan. This can be frustrating and a hassle. Some advice that previous JETs have given is that you should get a years worth and bring them over with you. Japanese customs can be very lax with JET Programme people, so they don't usually check. Whether or not you want to do this, is up to you. However, getting birth control in Japan is surprisingly easy.Find your nearest Womens Clinic and explain that you are interested in the contraceptive pill (経口避妊薬/Keikō hinin-yaku or simply ピル/piru (which can sometimes be confused with the morning-after pill)). They will take down your name, address, and copy your insurance card and give you a card for your next visit to speed things up. You will then have your blood pressure and weight taken and asked which pill you specifically want (monophasic or triphasic). Unlike visiting the hospital, you will get your medicine directly from the doctor here. Unfortunately, you can not get more than 3 months at a time. Usually, the whole process takes around 30 minutes.

Condoms
It is hard finding Western condoms. Japanese ones tend to be smaller and thus, tighter. Seriously consider bring a stock with you, or having a friend send some over periodically.

Deodorant
Common opinion of Japanese deodorant is that it stinks. Or rather, you stink when using it. Japanese people and foreigners don't sweat the same, it seems. Bring lots of your favourite brand and have your family include it in those oh-so-loved care packages!

Toothpaste
The stuff here usually doesn't have fluoride and just isn't the same as the brand you use back home. If you do use Japanese tooth paste, keep an eye out for フッ素 (fluoride).

Money
See How Much Money Should I Bring?

Airline Baggage Allowance
Every country and every airline has slightly different baggage allowance rules. You may hear a Canadian talking about how hard is was to fit everything into their 2 checked backs, with a weight limit of 23kg while someone from the UK may have only be allowed 1 checked bag at the same weight. Before you start bemoaning how hard it was to fit everything in your bags, remember- someone may have had it worse than you. Netflights.com provides a handy resource to baggage allowances for different airline providers.